Taking It

by Michael Cadnum

Seventeen-year-old Anna Charles, who has turned shoplifting into an art form and a way to vent frustration, feels her confidence crumbling when she begins finding things she does not remember stealing.

Genres: Young Adult, Realistic Fiction

144 pages, Hardcover

First published August 1, 1995

About the author

Michael Cadnum has had a number of jobs over the course of his life, including pick-and-shoveler for the York Archaeological Trust, in York, England, and substitute teacher in Oakland, California, but his true calling is writing. He is the author of thirty-five books, including the National Book Award finalist The Book of the Lion. His Calling Home and Breaking the Fall were both nominated for the Mystery Writers of America Edgar Allan Poe Award. He is a former Creative Writing Fellow of the National Endowment for the Arts. Also a poet, he has received several awards, including Poetry Northwest's Helen Bullis Prize and the Owl Creek Book Award. Michael lives in Albany, California, with his wife Sherina.

Reviews

[anne marie · Rating 1 out of 5]

uggggggggghhhhh!!!! dont read this!!!! its cunfuzing, boring, and the ending is suprising and abrupt, not giving any details... like this:a boy cried wolf beacause he had too much pizza and was very happy. He was always happy. Happy happy happy happy. He died on his bike. Get my drift?
yeah.... dont read this!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Chelsi · Rating 1 out of 5]

The storyline of this book did not follow the blurb on the back cover, and at the end I was left wondering what really happened in the story.

[Keri Hebert · Rating 2 out of 5]

Anna is an underdeveloped character with problems and no clear reason for her problems. A gratuitous sex scene develops between the main character and a boyfriend and to demonstrate her recovery from a kleptomaniac she returns silverware from the table at the restaurant she is eating to the busboy.

[Lisbeth Solberg · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this was leading ponderously to a pop-psychology resolution that would explain Anna Teresa's mysterious compulsions, but as it turned out, the author chose to leave the story without any real resolution. Art imitates life. I liked it though. Lincoln was my favorite character.

[Mariana · Rating 2 out of 5]

I know the author and I wanted to see how he wrote. I was disappointed by this book about a teenage girl falling apart. I think a teenage girl might be a bit more connected to her body. Also, the book was written for teenagers but I often think they are smarter than we can know.