Reading Group Guide

A Reading Group Guide to Impulse by Ellen Hopkins

ABOUT THE BOOK

Conner, Vanessa, and Tony have all three landed in Aspen Springs, a psychiatric hospital. Conner has the seemingly perfect life: he is handsome and rich, and he is a star athlete and excels in academics. Despite having everything most teens would die for, Conner is at constant odds with his mother. She is cold, concerned with image and perfection, and forever critical. Conner is unable to cope with her criticism and his feelings of inadequacy. Vanessa is a copper-haired beauty but, like her mother, is manic depressive. Her father, a soldier, is both physically and emotionally absent, leaving Vanessa’s grandmother to raise her. Dumped by a boyfriend who can no longer deal with her mood swings, and haunted by feelings of guilt for not calling 911 when her mother overdosed on Xanax, Vanessa finds relief in cutting. Tony is angry with his father for leaving him to grow up in poverty with his mother, a prostitute who exposes him to men who sexually abuse him. Tony finds a friend in an older man, Phillip, who dies shortly after they meet. When Tony meets Vanessa, he begins questioning his gay identity. Desperate to end the emotional pain, all three attempt suicide: Conner grabs a gun, Vanessa slashes her wrist, and Tony downs a bottle of pills. Having survived their suicide attempts, all three must confront their own demons if they are to emerge mentally stable. Forging new friendships and participating in therapy, sometimes with family members, provides a support structure, but will all three have the strength to step beyond their pasts? A wilderness challenge tests their ability to work as a team and to confront life experiences.

PREREADING ACTIVITY

Talk about a time in which you acted on impulse. Did you make a good decision? What regrets, if any, do you have?

Describe a time in which you thought about acting on impulse, but you held back. What made you pause? Did you make the right decision by waiting? Explain.

Why are impulses difficult to control?

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

Conner, Vanessa, and Tony have different life experiences. What brings each to Aspen Springs? How are the three alike? How are they different?

Conner, Vanessa, and Tony have unique relationships with their parents. Describe the relationship each has with his/her mother and his/her father.

Both Conner and Tony are angry. Conner is angry with his mother, and Tony is angry with his father. What accounts for their rage? How does each young man deal with his anger differently?

Vanessa shows more depression than rage and finds release through cutting on herself. How does cutting help Vanessa feel better?

Discuss Conner’s relationship with Emily. Why is Conner so devastated over the loss of this relationship? What might the loss have to do with Conner’s relationship with his own mother?

Why does Conner tell Vanessa he is poison?

Is Dr. Boston attracted to Conner or is the attraction in Conner’s imagination? Support your response with examples.

Describe Tony’s relationship with Phillip. Why is Phillip so special to Tony? Might Tony’s relationship with Phillip be different if Tony had been close to his father growing up? Explain.

Vanessa learns that she loves both Conner and Tony, but her love is different for each. Explain.

What stands in the way of Conner’s ability to heal? Why is his path to recovery more difficult than Tony’s or Vanessa’s?

All three characters search for the meaning of love. What experiences has each character had that led to confusion about love? What does each learn about love?

Conner, Tony, and Vanessa participate in a wilderness challenge. What purpose is this adventure supposed to serve in their healing process?

Impulse ends with both hope and tragedy. Explain. How is this ending fitting, given what you learn and come to understand about the three central characters?

Comparing Tony and Vanessa, which character is more likely to heal and lead a productive and healthy life? Why?

A girl’s most important relationship as she grows up is often said to be with her father, whereas a boy’s is often said to be with his mother. Keeping this idea in mind, compare and contrast Vanessa’s relationship with her father with that of Conner and his mother. What impact do these relationships have on the way Vanessa and Conner view their futures?

Why is Impulse a just title for this book?

ACTIVITIES

Choose an aspect of teen suicide to research, and prepare a class presentation. Topics to consider might include: the causes and warning signs of teen suicide, who is more susceptible to suicide and why, avenues available for teens who are living with emotional pain, and how teens can offer support and assistance to friends who are struggling with depression and suicidal thoughts.

Investigate local help for troubled teens and prepare a repository of information for your school/community. What psychiatric help is available in your community? What resources are available in schools? Decide on a format for the repository and develop/implement a plan for distributing the information to teens, parents, and guardians. (You might choose traditional brochure literature and/or you might choose to construct web-based resource sites.)

Organize a series of speakers to come to your school/community to discuss with teens, parents, teachers, and others the issues and pressures that today’s teens face and ways of helping young people deal with difficult life situations.

Raise community awareness for troubled teens by identifying an organization that helps teens in crisis and organize a fund-raising initiative for that organization.

Research a successful hotline or help center for teens, then explore the possibility of developing a hotline for troubled teens in your community should one not exist. What resources would be needed for the hotline to become operational? What policies and procedures need to be developed and enforced? What funding would be required to make a help center/hotline functional?

Research successful summer programs for troubled teens. Prepare a handout, brochure, or website on summer programs, including summer wilderness programs, and share with others.

Guide prepared by Pam B. Cole, Professor of English Education & Literacy, Kennesaw State University, Kennesaw, GA.

This guide has been provided by Simon & Schuster for classroom, library, and reading group use. It may be reproduced in its entirety or excerpted for these purposes.