Suzanne Phillips did an equally good job of writing the book Burn. In this novel our main character, Cameron, is 14. He comes from a home that had a domestic abuse problem. His mother has since left that situation, but it's still a part of who Cameron is. He can't seem to find happiness, he has become more and more isolated as his freshman year has worn on. Anyone he becomes friends with is accused of being gay, events all of which keep piling one on top of the other.
His new friend, SciFi, is beaten up so badly for befriending Cameron, that he ends up in the hospital. And Cameron, who was absent for the beating that was doled out to SciFi, meets terror in the boys locker room.
He is held down, pantsed, and the "Red Coats" take pictures of his personal parts. These photos are then uploaded to the Internet.
Later these boys are arrested, but the damage has been done.
And Cameron, much like a person with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, just wanders through the next few days. He ends up burning himself when he starts a forest fire on purpose - just so he can feel in control of an event. He also ends up killing a classmate...which is the path that Phillips leads us down, forcing us to examine our own role in bullying.
If you watch, you are a part of it.
If you participate, you are a part of it.
If you stand up against it - maybe you save a life. Maybe that life is your own?
Interesting food for thought!
Phillips wrote a very compelling story about a dark time in life.
She did an excellent job with character development, with selecting a cover that will sell, and with telling a story that we could all stand to hear/read.
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