Book of the Day: Firegirl by Tony Abbott

Firegirl is a short but compelling story about life and the power that friendship has to change a person’s life forever. Tom Abbott is a normal 7^th grade student at St. Catherine’s. He and his best friend Jeff like to talk about comic books. He has a crush on Courtney, another 7^th grader in his class. Tom imagines what it would be like to be a super hero so he can save Courtney from danger. Tom’s biggest wish, though, is to be able to ride in a Cobra sports car, which Jeff’s uncle conveniently owns. Jeff and Tom spend their free time planning which classmates they will visit in Jeff’s uncle’s Cobra someday.

Tom’s normal life changes when Jessica Feeney joins his class. Jessica has been severely burned in a fire and is attending St. Catherine’s so she can undergo treatments at a nearby hospital. The mystery of how Jessica was burned is of great interest to Tom and the rest of his classmates. However, they are too frightened of Jessica to talk to her about what happened. For Tom this changes when his teacher asks him to drop off some homework at Jessica’s house. This small favor allows Tom to get to know Jessica as a person and not just as Firegirl.

Firegirl is a nominee for the Teens Top 10 List. To request it from the library, click here. If it’s your favorite, don’t forget to vote during Teen Read Week, October 14-20, 2007.

Review by Marci @ Duraleigh Road Library