Thursday, November 26, 2015

Burn Baby Burn Baby by Kevin Craig

Page Count: 147
Published on: December 11th 2014 
Published by: Curiosity Quills Press
Genre(s): Coming of Age, YA, Contemporary, Fiction
Source: Print: Paperback (Sent to me by Kevin (: )
Age Rating: PG-15

Where To Find ItGoodreads // Amazon

Twitter@KevinTCraig

My Rating: 4.25 stars




Goodreads synopsis:

Seventeen-year-old Francis Fripp’s confidence is practically non-existent since his abusive father drenched him in accelerant and threw a match at him eight years ago.

Now badly scarred, Francis relies on his best friend Trig to protect him from the constant bullying doled out at the hands of his nemesis, Brandon Hayley—the unrelenting boy who gave him the dreaded nickname of Burn Baby.

The new girl at school, Rachel Higgins, is the first to see past Francis’s pariah-inducing scars.

If Brandon’s bullying doesn’t destroy him, Francis might experience life as a normal teenager for the first time in his life. He just has to avoid Brandon and convince himself he’s worthy of Rachel’s attentions.

Sounds easy enough, but Francis himself has a hard time seeing past his scars. And Brandon is getting violently frustrated, as his attempts to bully Francis are constantly thwarted.

Francis is in turmoil as he simultaneously rushes toward his first kiss and a possible violent end.

~~~

Hey guys!

       I was sent Burn Baby Burn Baby by Kevin Craig, and let me tell you. I was so excited to receive it. I've been interested in Kevin's book for a while because I had seen pictures regarding his work on Instagram, and nothing negative about it. When I received BBBB in the mail I was really surprised about how thin the book was and I was actually really skeptical if Kevin could fit a legitimate and well thought out contemporary that dealt with such serious issues. 

        Burn Baby Burn Baby is about Francis who is covered in scars on half of his body. Francis is constantly bullied by a guy named Brandon, which causes Francis to be really uncomfortable with himself. Francis deals with a lot of issues whether they be with his self image or if it's with his family life. When Francis meets the new girl Rachel, he is faced with new challenges such as facing his fears head on and accepting himself for who he is.

        There were only a couple things I didn't like. I really didn't like how much France drank, and I didn't really think it was really realistic when France and his best friend and best friend's girlfriend drank all the time, and I didn't really find it believable when Trig and his girlfriend did the dirty in France's basement. I don't know if people actually do that in real life, but I've never experienced it so I just found it really awkward and even kind of unneeded. I also think that Rachel's appearance and sudden attraction to France was a bit too predictable. I also thought that the ending was really abrupt..but it kind of worked. I actually really hope Kevin writes some more of France's story, or even Trig or Rachel's stories...I'd read it.

        I really liked Kevin's writing style. It was really simple but very impact-full. I really liked his characters. I enjoyed how France's character progressed throughout the story when he spent time with Rachel. I'm not sure if I ship Francis and Rachel because the novel was so short, and I don't think I really have a connection with the characters that I usually have with the characters in other contemporary or even fantasy or science fiction novels. i didn't feel like Kevin's writing was really amateurish or anything, I felt like Kevin really put his all in this one. I really liked it.       

        Overall I really liked this book. It wasn't the very best contemporary, but the way Keven dealt with the feelings of someone who's bullied was really well done, and I really enjoyed it. This is also a really quick read, so it wouldn't take that long to read. I would have read it in one sitting if I hadn't been so busy with classes, but if I had had the time it would have been a piece of cake.

My Favorite Character: I don't have one
My Least Favorite Character: Brandon

Enjoy!
Happy reading!
Olivia
~livthebooknerd~
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