Impulse (Impulse, #1) in YA Saves Reading Challenge Group

Apr 10, 2013 Paula Phillips rated it really liked it

If there is one author that every teenager has to read, it is Ellen Hopkins. As someone who grew up in a sheltered family, reading was my eye-opener to the world and during my teen years I had a knack for loving the edgier topics and Ellen Hopkins was the go-to author. Looking at Goodreads, funny enough I read this book 9 years ago - give or take a few days. Back before I had been dedicated to writing reviews on what I read. So here, is a review I should have written 9 years ago but I have to ad If there is one author that every teenager has to read, it is Ellen Hopkins. As someone who grew up in a sheltered family, reading was my eye-opener to the world and during my teen years I had a knack for loving the edgier topics and Ellen Hopkins was the go-to author. Looking at Goodreads, funny enough I read this book 9 years ago - give or take a few days. Back before I had been dedicated to writing reviews on what I read. So here, is a review I should have written 9 years ago but I have to admit reading this book now - I am a different person than I was 9 years ago. 9 years ago, I worked in the library and a job I loved, I was getting ready to go to America for the first time, I was single and my Mum was still alive. I was also 26 years old. Now 9 years later - I am no longer at the library, I have been to America twice, My Mum has passed away, I am in a committed relationship and have brought a house with my partner and I am 34 years old. Impulse is set in a rehab situation where we meet three characters Connor, Tony, and Vanessa - all brought to Aspen Springs as they tried to commit suicide. Each from a different path of life. By the end of this book, two will survive and one will be dead. The other thing that I love about Ellen Hopkins's books is that they may be large sizes but they are written in poetry format aka verse novels which means that the 650-700 page book only takes about 1hr-2hrs to read for the average person, myself it took me approx 1 hr 15mins on Saturday morning whilst lying in bed with my cup of tea. You are probably wondering why I am re-reading as I have always been a self-proclaimed "not a re-reader" but something sparked me at the end of last year and I decided that for 2022, I would re-read Ellen Hopkins's backlist and see them in a new view. The other thing that rocks are that reading these books is an F-U to the world as they are always on the Banned Book Lists as they aren't seen as PC and even readers love to break a few rules when it comes to reading great books. So if edgy YA is your thing and you want to be a little rebel, then check out Ellen Hopkins's books for 2022.

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Aug 02, 2011 Ricki rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: ya, fiction, poetry, bookclub, ya-saves-reading-challenge

Reading a verse novel was a new thing for me. I have read long poems before and even anthologies that loosely tell a story, but this was the first true novel. The story is very intense as Hopkins expertly gets into her three protagonists' heads that I often forgot I was reading poetry instead of prose. ...more

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Aug 25, 2011 Patricia (Patricia's Particularity) rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult, favorite, own, ya-saves, own-ya

"Three
people, with nothing
at all in common
except age, proximity,
and a wish to die."

It is hard to know where to start in sharing how wonderful Ellen Hopkins' Impulse is. Ellen Hopkins continually amazes me at how real her characters are, how their raw and pure emotions literally seep into your soul and take hold, and how much I find myself caring for the characters and their stories as if they were my own. None of the three main characters, Vanessa, Tony, and Connor, are what they seem to be. Not "Three
people, with nothing
at all in common
except age, proximity,
and a wish to die."

It is hard to know where to start in sharing how wonderful Ellen Hopkins' Impulse is. Ellen Hopkins continually amazes me at how real her characters are, how their raw and pure emotions literally seep into your soul and take hold, and how much I find myself caring for the characters and their stories as if they were my own. None of the three main characters, Vanessa, Tony, and Connor, are what they seem to be. Not only does Ellen Hopkins create an interesting setting, a psych ward which in itself has many stories to tell, but each character is multi-dimensional with many stories themselves to learn, share, and discover.

Vanessa finds a version of peace in the form of a sharp edge against her skin. Only when she is able feel pain is she able to release all her fears and worries that she has inherited her mother's troubles, at least for a little while. Tony fights a way of life he is not sure he was ever given the choice to choose, keeping memories of his past in the past knowing the haunt is present and future. Connor', unable to live up to everyone's expectations, he finds the only way out is through a bullet. Their lives become interconnected, whether they like or not, and soon find themselves learning more about themselves as they learn about each other.

"Three
tapestries, tattered
at the edges and come
unwoven to reveal
a single mutual thread"

Hopkins' character development is outstanding. Her use of poetry and verse (which in itself is superb) creates a very deep and timeless link between the readers and the characters, giving an inside look into each one that you would not otherwise receive. As with real life, you are never given all the details of any situation at once, let one your own feelings. Hopkins shows how real this is in her characters - the truth of one is gradually revealed, to both the readers and the characters themselves.

"Life is all about change. If it were static, think about how boring it would be. You can't be afraid of it, and you can't worry that you'll mess things up. You deserve good things, and I want to be one of them."

If that was not enough, Hopkins surprises you constantly, especially at the end. Vanessa, Troy, and Connor grow and change into different people by the end, showing the reality of pain, hope, fear, love, and life. Hopkins holds nothing back in Impulse, offering a real, raw, and emotional journey in the reality that many pretend to not know about. Hopkins throws it all in your face and makes you open your eyes and heart. A must read for anyone looking for understanding for themselves or for others. ...more

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Sep 29, 2011 Nikki rated it really liked it

WOW! Impulse was INTENSE! This was my first Ellen Hopkins read and I must say I was super impressed and Want to read more of her work. It wasn't hard to get into, considering this was my first read where its in verse but I fell into easily. At times I did get a bit confused as to whose POV it was in that particular chapter. but that was my only fault for the book.
The characters were so believable and real. It makes me think did Ellen have an addiction to something or did someone she knew have on ...more

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Apr 18, 2012 Abi. rated it liked it

I found it quite difficult to get used to the style that this book is written in but when I got going, I thought it was really good and the pages just flew through. I really liked the plots but it was hard to follow at times due to there being 3 different story lines and I kept having to flip back a couple of pages to know who's story I was actually reading. Overall, Vanessa was my favourite character as I felt like I related mostly to her and I didn't think that the ending was great but ya,I di ...more

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