8.6 /10 1 Votes
4.7/5 Barnes & Noble Country United States Pages 320 pages ISBN 0763674672 Preceded by Mango, Abuela, and Me | 3.8/5 Goodreads Audio read by Marisol Ramirez Language English Originally published 8 March 2016 Genre Young adult fiction Publisher Candlewick Press | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Media type Print, ebook, audiobook Similar Meg Medina books, Young adult fiction books | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Burn Baby Burn is a 2016 young adult novel written by Cuban-American author Meg Medina. It was first published on March 8, 2016 through Candlewick Press and follows a young woman growing up during the summer of 1977, when the Son of Sam began targeting young women.
Contents
Synopsis
It's the summer of 1977 and all Nora López wants to do is get old enough to move out and live on her own. Her home life is difficult, as her father left home when she was little and will only occasionally send them money to cover the family's rent - something made more vital when Nora's mother begins to gain fewer hours at work. Nora's younger brother Hector is violent and abusive, as he will frequently beat both Nora and their mother whenever he gets angry. Her mother is dismissive of Hector's abuse as she feels that it is just a phase and always tries to get Nora to calm Hector, to little effect. Nora is loath to let her friends know exactly how bad things have gotten at home, so Nora decides to hide her bruises and poverty. Things seem to get better when a cute college boy named Pablo begins working with her at the deli and they begin dating.
When fires and shootings start becoming commonplace, Nora and her friends begin to change their schedules and lives in order to avoid becoming a victim of the Son of Sam.
Development
While writing the book Medina drew upon her personal experiences growing up in New York City during 1977, which she states was " just an epic year in New York City’s collective history. It felt like everything was at the brink of disaster, and yet there was this energy, this scary yet thrilling chaotic energy." This included the public's fear that anyone could be a victim of the Son of Sam, as this was prior to him being caught and identified as David Berkowitz and there was fear that he could be "anywhere and anybody". Medina chose to also feature the character of Nora experiencing second-wave feminism, commenting that she felt that it was important for modern readers to see feminism as something they could impact and appreciate. It took Medina three years to complete the book, half of which was spent writing and the other was spent editing and fine-tuning. As she was only thirteen when Berkowitz was captured and arrested in 1977, Medina conducted extensive research and interviewed people who were teens or adults during that point in time.
Reception
Critical reception for Burn Baby Burn has been positive. The School Library Journal wrote a favorable review, stating "A devastatingly intense story, this work is a must-have for all collections, especially where Ruta Sepetys’s books are popular." Publishers Weekly and Booklist also praised the book, with Booklist calling it a "stellar piece of historical fiction".