Living On Impulse by Cara Haycak

Publisher: Penguin Group (USA)
Pub. Date: August 2009
Age Range: 12 and up
Pages: 304
Format: ARC
Source of copy: from publisher - Penguin US

Mia Morrow is impulsive, plain and simple. While her friends are concerned with grades and colleges, Mia would rather focus on the things that make her happy— like chasing boys or snatching something off a department store shelf. No big deal, right? But then Mia gets caught shoplifting, and her thoughtless behavior doesn't just push her friends away, it gets her into a lot of trouble, too. In this eye-opening tale of friendships, family, and negative impulses, Cara Haycak subtly shows that the power to heal is within all of us, and it almost always starts with forgiveness.



I don't want to say it but this book is suitable for a slow read - one that you can put down any moment to do something else because the story can hardly stay on your mind for long. Living On Impulse held a a nice storyline, too bad it wasn't enough to make the whole book a successful one.

Mia Morrow was a somewhat rebellious girl who took actions before she could even think. There was something in her that drove the girl to do all the risky and wild things and there came the trouble. Caught shoplifting a single sandal one day, Mia's life was totally changed when her Mom forced her to apply for a job as a punishment. Everything that happened later gave her a new view about her life: her Mom, her Grandpa, her friends and herself. The arrangement sounded very hopeful and I did expect this story to turn out better than how it looked (sorry, but the cover is boring).

The thing that didn't allow me to get myself engrossed into this book was the fact the outline of the scenes. For example, Mia's process of stealing, which I considered worth being thrilled about, was so short the readers would barely feel any excitement or fear for the girl at all; whereas some uninteresting parts just went on and on. So many times I found myself wondering when is it going to be great? I also had issues with the characters. I felt indifferent to them, no connection at all. I did feel bad for Mia sometimes, like when she was ditched by her friends but that was it. Even occasionally she even appeared not impulsive enough for me. Also, I hated Gael and Michelle really much. What kind of friends they were to judge Mia all the time, looking down on her as if she was nothing good at all. Besides, not as much important, but Mia calling her Mom by the name was a little odd to me, even though the book was told in third respective.

In spite of having all those flaws, Living On Impulse did have something that the readers might like. There was a lot on fly experiment and it could help you look at those insects with a totally new attitude. The rebellion of Mia on the night she met Clancy did draw my attention for a while and. Her relationship with her Mom got better near the end, I mean the description, the flow and whatnot.

Basically Living On Impulse is an alright read. Even if it's not my type of book, don't let that stop you from picking it up. You may like the story better than I did, who knows?


Rating: 2.5/5