Firegirl

This is a review of the audio book.

Author: Tony Abbott

Reader: Sean Kenin

Producer: Listening Library

Production Year: 2007

Lexile: 670L

Most of the listeners will be: Late elementary to early middle school boys and girls.

Listener's Advisory: Laurie Myers's book Surviving Brick Johnson is also about a new kid who seems scarier than he is, and can be found in audio format.

Summary:
On the first day of seventh grade, Tom's teacher announces that a new girl, Jessica, will be joining their class. She has been badly burned and has moved to the area to get special treatments at the local hospital. Tom is horrified by her appearance, but not as horrified as he is by the behavior of some of his classmates. When his teacher asks him to take Jessica some homework she has missed he gets to know her and her story. Suddenly the things that used to be so important to Tom aren't so important after all: riding in Jeff's uncle's cobra, nominating Courtney for class president so that she will notice him. Now all he can think about is how awful it is for Jessica. She does not stay at St. Catherine's for long, but it is long enough to change Tom's life.

My favorite passage:
When Tom goes to Jessica's house to bring her her homework, he ends up telling her about his theory that small super powers are better than big ones. He thinks it would be good to have one indestructible finger or to be able to whistle really loudly. When you don't ask for too much, you are grateful for that little super power you have, and you can think of really amazing things you can do with it. (Disc 2)

What I really think:
This book was full of surprises. I'll admit it. Since the title is Firegirl I expected the main character to be a girl. (Tom is not a girl.) Then I was surprised by how much I can relate to Tom. That thing he does where he daydreams in class, making up stories in which he has weird super powers? I did that! All this time I thought I was a freak. And isn't that what young adult literature is all about - letting teens know they are not alone? Fortunately for Tom, he learns something from Jessica that I learned from the long, slow process of growing up - you can be happy with what you have.

Sean Kenin did a good job of giving the characters that have the biggest roles distinct voices. Most of the general class members sound the same, but you can always pick out Tom, Jeff, and Jessica. Jeff's voice is my favorite. He really sounds like a middle schooler who just doesn't care about most things.

Leap of Faith

Author: Kimberly Brubaker Bradley

Publisher: Dial Books for Young Readers

Publication Year: 2007

Lexile: 650L (This book is not in the Lexile Book Database. I used the Lexile Analyzer to get this value.)

Most of the readers will be: Late elementary school girls.

Reader's Advisory: Tony Abbott's Fire Girl is directed at an older audience, but also has a character who goes to Catholic school after a traumatic event in her life.

Summary:
Shortly after starting the sixth grade, Abby stabs the boy who has been tormenting her for the past few years. She is expelled from public school and her parents enroll her in the local Catholic private school. Abby decides to be invisible in class, but tries very hard to get the attention of her parents. She signs up for drama as her elective because her parents would rather she take something more academic. They are not religious, so she decides to convert to Catholicism to upset them. But Abby discovers that her elective and religion both suit her better than she could have imagined.

My favorite passage:

This thing about God on a cell phone stuck with me. On the day before Christmas break, I asked Rachel at lunch, "What would you do if God called you?"
She gave me a funny look. "He has."
"Really?" Rachel was not what you'd call an active participant at Mass.
"Yes, you dope. I'm Jewish."
"Oh." I thought about that for a minute, then laughed. So God was phoning Rachel, but Jesus wasn't. Then I said, "What do you think God's ring tone is?"
Jenna wrinkled her nose. "Something churchy," she said.
"No," said Rachel, "I bet not. How about - what's that song? 'What a Wonderful World.' you know - " She started singing.
"Nah," said Jenna. "Maybe not church music, but I bet there'd at least be violins."
Before elective period we had a class party, and then we had another party at drama, which got pretty rowdy since Mrs. Sumner didn't even try to keep order. I asked Chris what he thought God's ring tone would be. "'We Will Rock You,'" Chris guessed, and then he went around the room playing an air guitar and chanting, "We will, we will rock you. UNH. Rock you. UNH." so he was completely useless for the rest of the hour. I wanted to tell him Merry Christmas, but I didn't get the chance. (pg 102-103)

What I really think:
If we expect the Christians (Catholics included therein) to put up with authors like Phillip Pullman, then I suppose those of us who are only marginally religious should put up with authors who feel the need to have Jesus save the day.

Now that I've gotten that out of my system, I can talk about the book. Leap of Faith deals with some tough issues: bullying, distant parents, finding one's self. Young people who are going through the transition from elementary to middle school can certainly relate. I like that Abby is able to work through her problems in a healthy way. She makes new friends, gets involved in drama, and she confides in adults who are more attentive than her parents. We all (whether or not we have stabbed someone, and whether or not we are Catholic) need to find a way to live with the bad things we have done to others, and the bad things others have done to us. Abby shows us one way to do this.

Just one more thing. The play Abby's drama class puts on in the spring is based on a book. It is based on a book by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley called Ruthie's Gift. After George's Secret Key to the Universe I think we all know how I feel about authors tooting their own horns. But worse than that, Bradley uses the play as an opportunity to talk about the inner workings of Ruthie's mind. Not having read Ruthie's Gift, I can not predict whether it will someday be published in an elementary or middle school literary anthology. However, if it is, the questions at the end of the novel will not include, "What does Ruthie want?" This question is not up for discussion, because in her most recent book, the author answers it herself.