Burn baby burn by Meg Medina
Candlewick Press, 2016. ISBN 9780763674670
(Age: 14+) Recommended. 17 year old Nora Lopez lives in New York
during the terrible year of 1977. The heat is scorching and there is
a killer on the loose. But that's not all Nora has to face - her
family is spiralling out of control, with her mother having
difficulty paying the rent and brother Hector becoming
uncontrollable and befriending drug dealers.
In a story of resilience set against a fascinating historical
backdrop, Medina brings to life the difficulties that Nora faces
with courage and thoughtfulness. With her father only interested in
his new family and not paying his way, it is she who must interpret
for her mother, and try and avoid the increasing violence of her
younger brother. When she meets a cute boy at the deli where she
works, she and her friend Kathleen know that Sam the Man, the serial
killer, is murdering young couples, and they both wonder if it is
safe to go out on dates. Her teachers are encouraging her to go to
college but all Nora wants to do is reach the age of 18 when she can
leave home and become independent, without the family worries that
are so overwhelming.
I enjoyed the thread of feminism that weaves its way through the
story, with Kathleen's mother an ardent believer in going to rallies
for women's rights. She takes the girls along with her on marches.
Nora too is clever with non-traditional skills of woodwork and these
skills will ultimately help her in a resolution to her problems.
Friendship plays an important part of the story, and the
relationship between Nora and Kathleen will leave readers asking
questions about when it is right to tell family secrets and seek
help from friends.
There are some big themes here: not only is there the simmering heat
that erupts in violence in the city, and the threat of a serial
killer on the loose, but the family dynamics are dire. In the
author's note at the back Medina talks about her theme of juvenile
domestic violence that is rarely touched on in young adult novels
and the novel being a 'celebration of people who find their strength
even in the worst circumstances'.
This would make a great literature circle book, with lots of themes
to be discussed.
Pat Pledger