REVIEW: Lifted by Wendy Toliver

SYNOPSIS: Poppy Browne had never stolen anything in her life before moving to Pleasant Acres and meeting Mary Jane and Whitney. But when Poppy walks out of the mall with her two new friends and her first pair of stolen jeans, she’s hooked.
Before long, Poppy is lifting whenever she gets the urge- it’s never about the merchandise, it’s always about thrill. But when her secret gets out, the girls in Poppy’s clique turn on one another. As she watches her life collapse around her, Poppy must decide where her loyalties lie…and how far she’ll go to protect herself.


REVIEW: Lifted is one of the most thought provoking books that I have read in the recent past. It’s a beautiful book. The protagonist Poppy is a most likeable character. She is fun, independent, smart, a no-nonsense character and I could easily connect with her. The first person narrative is so fluid that I could almost get into Poppy’s head. The book in based on a very serious issue of shoplifting. Poppy and her friends just shoplifts because of the excitement and fun that they get out of it and not because they really need to.
Wendy Toliver writes about a subject that is rarely written about and she treats it in a most realistic manner. I loved the way in which Poppy feels about shoplifting. First she is thrilled about it and then, after doing it feels terribly guilty about it .Toliver also questions about the difference between appearance and reality and the real definition of the term ‘good’. She even deals with peer pressure and how easily we succumb to it. All these things were treated in the most interesting manner and I loved every bit of the book. Even Poppy’s relationship with her professor mother has been sketched beautifully. What I really like is that there is no high drama in their relationship and her mom behaves in the most rational manner when she gets to know about her bad habit.
Lifted is a book about decisions,choices,the lure of evil and the ramifications of it. It is a coming-of-age book where the protagonist has to make decisions (and of course she struggles with them) about doing the right things and any teenager will be able to relate with the character. Toliver re-instills in me the fact that there is forgiveness once one realizes the mistakes that he or she has made. I loved every single page of the book and can’t wait for Wendy Toliver’s next book!

My Rating:5/5 because it was unique,interesting,surprising and thought provoking at the same time.