Impulse by Ellen Hopkins -- review by Hope Austin

Impulse

***** stars

by Ellen Hopkins

Question: What could an army brat, former juvenile delinquent and a prep possibly have in common? Answer: a whole lot. Enter Aspen springs, a psychiatric hospital, and you'll find a group of friends made of three very different people. There's Tony, the street-smart guy who knows the ins and outs of the facility, Vanessa, a girl who wants to stop alternating between "up" and "down", and Conner, the guy who supposedly has it all: money, popularity and the attention of quite a few girls. At the beginning of the story, the only thing they have in common is that that they all attempted suicide. However, as the story progresses, we see that they have a lot more in common then one would suspect. Together, the trio grows and faces their demons.

I can't give away too much away without spoiling the entire book. It's 666 pages long, and filled with twists and turns. Don't be intimidated by the size though, it's written in free verse, so it moves very quickly. The book deals with a wide range of topics, from suicide and child molestation to drug use and sexuality. It seems like a lot to take in, but Hopkins writes it well. One thing I especially liked was the tone of the story. Hopkins isn't telling the reader about the evils of crystal meth or premarital sex or anything like that; there's no judgment, only the story of three people getting a second chance at life. A non-preachy tone like that sometimes is pretty hard to come by in YA fiction.

Review written by: Hope Austin