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    Firegirl
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    Firegirl
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    Firegirl
    Audiobook2 hours

    Firegirl

    Written by Tony Abbott

    Narrated by Sean Kenin

    3.5/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    "There is . . . ," Mrs. Tracy was saying quietly, "there is something you need
    to know about Jessica. . . ."

    From this moment on, life is never quite the same for Tom and his seventh-grade classmates. Despite Jessica's shocking appearance and the fear she evokes in him and most of the class, Tom slowly develops a tentative friendship with Jessica that changes his life. Firegirl is a powerful story that will show listeners that even the smallest of gestures can have a profound impact on someone's life.

    "It's a beautiful story, a sad story, brilliantly written, a story you'll never forget."
    -Newbery Honor winner Patricia Reilly Giff
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPenguin Random House Audio
    Release dateApr 10, 2007
    ISBN9780739355602
    Unavailable
    Firegirl
    Author

    Tony Abbott

    Tony Abbott is the author of over a hundred books for young readers, including the bestseling series the Secrets of Droon and the Copernicus Legacy and the novels Firegirl and The Summer of Owen Todd. Tony has worked in libraries, in bookstores, and in a publishing company and has taught creative writing. He has two grown daughters and lives in Connecticut with his wife and two dogs. You can visit him online at www.tonyabottbooks.com.

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    Reviews for Firegirl

    3.5/5

    208 ratings31 reviews

    What did you think?

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    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 1/5
      This book is really facile and the plot tension is banal. Maybe it's a better read for a middle-schooler but there are so many better books dealing with disabilities and relationships between classmates. Mockingbird, Out of My Mind, even Wonder.
    • 2/5
      This short novel never won me over. I felt extremely sorry for Jessica with her horrific burns and the way she was treated by her peers, but Tom, the thirteen-year-old narrator, annoyed me from the start. I found him unconvincing and extremely immature. I also hated his continual daydreaming and flights of fantasy. I can't see "Firegirl" appealing to it target audience. Despite being short, the story was heavy, the plot extremely slow and the ending unsatisfying.
    • 4/5
      My family and I listened to Tony Abbott's, Firegirl as an audiobook. It is about a girl named Jessica who is badly burned in an accident. Jessica transfers to a new school to receive treatments from the local hospital. The story is narrated by Tom, Jessica's classmate. At first all of the seventh graders are shocked and afraid of Jessica, because of the way she looks. However, as Tom gets to know Jessica, he begins to see her for who she is - not how she looks. This is a compelling story meant for young readers, but as an adult I thoroughly enjoyed it. The book is short, but filled with important lessons. My husband and 12-year-old daughter also enjoyed this powerful story. If you're a fan of Wonder by R.J. Palacio, you will appreciate this book as well.
    • 4/5
      BLURB: "...there is..." Mrs. Tracy was saying quietly, "there is something we need to know about Jessica..."

      From this moment on, life is never quite the same for Tom and his seventh-grade classmates. They learn that Jessica has been in a fire and was badly burned, and will be attending St. Catherine's while getting medical treatments. Despite her horrifying appearance and the fear she evokes in him and most of the class, Tom slowly develops a tentative friendship with Jessica that changes his life.

      Tony Abbott is the author of over 35 books for young readers, including the extremely popular The Secrets of Droon series. In Firegirl he has written a powerful book that will show readers that even the smallest of gestures can have a profound impact on someone's life.

      RATING: 4 stars for Firegirl By: Tony Abbott
      STARTED: APRIL 22,2014
      FINISHED: APRIL 22,2014

      REVIEW: Let me say first, I think this book was geared to the younger kids, and a little bit of older kids. But, truthfully I think it fit both. From page 1-27 I absolutely did not know where this book was going with the plot. Like whats happening? It started getting better when she (the teacher) introduced Jessica-PG 28, and then I was hooked at PG 30. I really like the outline of the characters, as they reacted, and messed (severely) with each other. My favorite character was Tom because he helped Jessica AKA Firegirl through her troubles at school, and everyone picking on her. I disliked Jeff because he was rude, and disrespectful for most of the time frame of the book. I really enjoyed this book, and go read it becauses its great!
    • 3/5
      It's a bit sadder than the usual books I read, but really good anyway.
    • 3/5
      The style of writing took me a while to get into, but the overall story is wonderful.
    • 4/5
      Tom Bender a seventh-grader at a small Catholic school in CT. The arrival of new girl Jessica Feeney at school disrupts the daily flow of class. Jessica, has been badly burned by a fire, causing severe disfigurement . Her presence tests the moral character of students at St Catherine. Short but powerful story.
    • 5/5
      Tom becomes friends with Jessica, a burn victim who enrolls at his school while receiving treatments at the local hospital.
    • 2/5
      I would like to believe that young adults are far more capable readers than this book implies.It felt hastily written, undeveloped, and lazy through a great majority of the book.That being said, the premise is a brilliant start. Outcast boy has a slight connection with outcast girl, teaching him that the inner circle may not be all it is cracked up to be. But the moments are brief, and the time passes before he is able to make a fully developed friendship. Perhaps he should learn from this lost opportunity.I was left wanting, and even though I am fine with the lesson learned through a lack of exploration, the writing was both dull and maudlin. The main character was written as though a 12 year old himself had written his immediate thoughts. Perhaps that is brilliance, but I would prefer to see those 12 year old's thoughts written with the grace of an author with 60 plus books in his repertoire. I shall not be seeking out any of the other 59 done by Abbott without a huge push from another reader I trust.
    • 4/5
      Tom is a seventh grader, with seventh-grader preoccupations: school stuff, cars, buddies and girls who are starting to come into the picture. Until a new girl comes into his class that September morning. The new girl's name is Jessica Feeney, and she has been in a horrific accident which has left her badly burned on most of her body. And from then on, Tom's life and that of his classmates changes. They are scared of Jessica and her appearance, and do not know how to behave with her. They have trouble seeing her as a human being under her melted-looking puffed-up skin. They would much rather forget all together about her, which is easy on the many school days that she misses to undergo treatments at the hospital. Jessica has her own ways of dealing with the situation, which involves modifying reality, and the school kids start making up all kinds of stories on how the accident happened. One day, Tom is asked by his teacher to take the class homework to Jessica because she was absent from school, and Tom lives close by. There, in Jessica's bedroom, he begins to see her for who she really is, a girl whose everyday struggle to live teaches her over and over again what matters and what does not matter in life. Little by little, Tom starts to see her less as a burned girl, and more as a girl who can be a friend. And Jessica now has one person at school who is nice to her. Their friendship is just budding when Jessica has to leave after only a few weeks to go receive treatment in a different hospital. But Tom will never be the same again after meeting her. This is a very good story about difference, in this case physical appearance, and how difference often scares people, whether they are young or old. Yet, this book shows us that if we are able to get beyond our initial fears, and are willing to go past our preconceptions is when our lives can change the most, and it makes us better people because we become richer as human beings. Tom is aware of this when he says at the end of the book that if he sees Jessica again, he would "want to tell her thank you". He is not as shy as he was at the beginning of the story anymore, and he wants to take his life into his own hands, and do something good with it.I think middle school students can identify with this story, and it could be something they have experienced in their life under one form or another, from either side of the mirror. In any case, it is a nice story to read, with an important message, and it is nicely written, which is why I believe it would be a good addition to a school library."Firegirl" won the Golden Kite Award in 2007.
    • 5/5
      This is an inspirational story which proves that, with a little perseverance, anything is possible. It is also a story that teaches teen readers what it means to be empathetic to others who may be facing personal struggles in their lives. It is a book that teens can relate to and will inspire them to be better people.
    • 3/5
      An inspiring book, "Firegirl" reaches readers on a more personal level. A girl trapped in a fire with burns disfiguring her whole body moves to a town in order to seek medical help. There, she attends a catholic school, where she is shunned by everyone but a young boy; a neighbor. He is the only one who will hold her hand in the prayer circle, and learns her story, choosing her over a ride in a hot red rare sports car. This story is a great one, but the only upset for me is the way it's written. I look for colorful, descriptive language, and although I love the story, it didn't work for me.
    • 4/5
      Fairly short story hard to read, sad, but captures the uneasiness when confronted with uncomfortable events!
    • 4/5
      Very good story about a girl who is badly burned and a boy who almost befriends her.
    • 4/5
      Even though the new girl is only in his class for a couple of weeks, and even though Tom sees himself as the quiet one of his friends. Tom ends up sitting next to her and reaches out to her. When he learns her secret it changes his life.
    • 4/5
      This is a great book for helping kids think about what it means to be an outsider. The book is narrated by a Catholic school boy, and tells about the short period of time when Jessica Feeney, a young girl who'd been terribly burned, joined the class. The book doesn't flinch away from hard truths and doesn't lecture or condescend to younger readers. The book openly acknowledges that Jessica, with her hard experience and terrible scars, is not the same as her classmates. It explores the fear and gossip that her differences inspire in her classmates. And finally, the book points out that in spite of all her differences, she is still just a girl, and could get lonely behind all those scars. It's a challenging read, at times touching, and can help start conversations about how to face our unfounded fears when we meet someone like Jessica.
    • 5/5
      Great book, quick read. Think this will make for a great conversation about middle school interactions. Enjoyed it!
    • 5/5
      The class doesn't quite know what to make of new-girl, Jessica who suffered severe burns a few years ago and is in town undergoing therapy. Tom doesn't quite know what to make of it when he finds himself drawn to the girl even though it's resulting in funny looks and comments from his classmates and friends. When Tom does the little thing of being nice to Jessica and starts getting to know her, he becomes changed in ways that will last a lifetime.Touching story aching for class discussion.
    • 4/5
      Tom Bender is all geared up for another school year of being invisible and fantasizing about his crush Courtney. The most exciting thing in his life is the fact that his best friend's uncle has a really cool car and he might get to ride in it. Then suddenly Jessica shows up to his classroom. When Jessica walks in, the room goes silent. No one wants to hold her hand during prayer circles and people would rather spread vicious rumors about her then bother to talk to her and learn the truth about what happened. You see, Jessica was burned over most of her body. Tom thinks her skin looks like it melted. But Tom might be the only one able to connect with the Jessica underneath the burns. Will it be enough?
    • 3/5
      Well, maybe 3.5 stars. It was a little off to me, because the boy's thought processes and behavior just didn't quite match what I know about 12 yo boys. And the cover design/title are awfully reminiscient of Spinelli's Stargirl. But it was pretty good - and if you're interested you probably will enjoy it. Short, RL 4.1, IL probably more like 5.5 to 7.5
    • 3/5
      Children/Teen fiction. The 7th grade gets a whole lot more difficult for Tom when a new girl--a recent burn victim--joins his class.
    • 4/5
      Narrated by Sean Kenin. Tom's character comes off as being rather more emotionally sensitive than your average 7th grade boy, but his conflicting emotions towards burn victim Jessica and his occasional lapses of moral courage ring true. Young teens will recognize Tom's difficulty of figuring out what's black and what's white when everything is suddenly gray.
    • 3/5
      With this title I expected the story to be written for girls, but the main charater is a boy, and not a very interesting one at that. I have to give the author credit for trying to show her readers about accepting physical differences and how one person's actions can make a difference. The problem is her protagonist really didn't do anything, just spent a lot of time being anxious. The parents in this book are either distant or dysfunctional.I read it to consider adding it to our small library, but I'm going to pass it up.
    • 5/5
      This is an amazing story about friendship. The story is about a new student, Jessica Feeny, who looks different from her classmates. She is disfigured due to a car accident. Her classmates are afraid of her appearance and even start rumors about her. Tom, who is also the narrator of the story, learns to accept her differences and becomes her friend. His friend Jeff tries to discourage him from becoming Jessica's friend. Tom learns that there is more to people than appearance.
    • 4/5
      Firegirl seems like a coming of age story about Tom, a not so popular seventh grader, who transcends through his feelings and attitudes about a new student, Jessica, who joins his class. Jessica is not an ordinary girl. She is a shocking, disfigured burn victim, who begins attending their school, in order to receive treatment at a nearby hospital. The children are all immensely uncomfortable with her presence, and rumors fly about the circumstances of her situation. Tom develops a friendship with Jessica, and through his association with her, comes to grapple with attempts toward goodness and making brave social choices. This novel certainly leaves the reader with opportunity to think retrospectively about acceptance of other individuals and how goodness can prevail in extending oneself toward others. The positive imprint that one leaves, no matter how small, can have a resounding effect upon the life of another person.I acquired this book to put in my 3rd grade classroom collection, and I think that it will generate thoughtful feelings for our readers to consider.
    • 5/5
      I really enjoyed reading this book. This book is about a girl Jessica who arrives at a new school while she is still going to treatments from a fire that she was injured by. She was badly burned in a fire and now appears different from all the other students. This book covers the reactions of the other students as well as Jessica's feelings about being different and how she copes with her differences.
    • 4/5
      I really enjoyed this chapter book. I like chapter books that seem to have a true story behind it with a lot of details and graphics involved. This story was about a girl named Jessica who was severely injured by a fire and started school where a boy named Tom was in her class. When she first got to school everyone was terrified of her because of the way she looked. But as the weeks went on, they opened up a little bit, including Tom who was assigned to bring Jessica her homework when she was absent because they lived near each other. He got the true story about how her accident happened, and started seeing her for who she really is instead of what she looked like. Tom lost some friends that year of school because they didn't agree with his decisions about being nice to her. In the end, Jessica had to move to another school because she needed to go to a different hospital, but Tom never forgot about her and what she taught him- to never judge a book by it's cover. I liked this book because it explains a disability that often most people forget about. Her appearance was a disability for Jessica because it controlled her life, her learning, and her social capabilities. It teaches children to not be mean to someone just because of the way they look, and to always have an open mind and an open heart. The language in it was simple and I could truly picture how Jessica and Tom looked and interacted because of the details. The only part I didn't like was when she had to leave at the end, I felt it ended abruptly.
    • 4/5
      I liked this book, but I did not love it like I was hoping to. This book follows a seventh grader named Tom who is like any other seventh grader. Then one day, Jessica, a girl who was horribly burned in a fire comes to the class. Everyone is repulsed by her, even Tom. But throughout the story he understands that there is more to people then just what they look like. The plot in this story was fairly simple and if there was nothing else to this story, then I would not have liked it. But I did like it because of the characterization. I could definitely relate to Tom. I remember one time there was a new kid in my school who didn't look like everyone else. She had down syndrome. And like my other classmates I wasn't sure about her at first. But when I got to know her I learned that she was just like everyone else and she turned out to be one of the nicest person I have ever met. I think that this is the message of the book. Don't judge someone based on their appearance. One thing that I did not like about this book was that it focused so much on Tom, which I get, he is the main character. But I wish I had a little more information on Jessica. Tom only interacted with her in the book around 4 times, I believe. I just wanted to see more of the interactions between Tom and Jessica in the book. Overall, I liked this book. I think that I did not find this book amazing because I was expecting it to be like Wonder, but that was not the case. Maybe if I hadn't read Wonder first I would have liked this book more.
    • 2/5
      Firegirl had so much potential; but, in all respect, it did not match up to my expectations. There were lots of errors - in the plot, writing, and characters - that I barely finished it.

      My main problem with Firegirl was the writing. It seemed to tell, not show. This, as a reader, made the story dragggg on. There are many ways Tony Abbott could have avoided this, but he didn't. For example, Tom has a crush on Courtney. Author Tony Abbott keeps telling readers about how prefect Cortney is. There could have been millions of different ways to show readers that Tom has a crush on Courtney. Couldn't Tony Abbott simply just put a scene in where Tony talks to Courtney, but he stutters? Couldn't that get the message across just as efficiently, without "telling?"

      My second concern with Firegirl were the characters. They were so underdeveloped and one-dimensional. Not only were the characters underdeveloped, but so were the character's relationships. Even the relationship between Tom and his best friend Jeff seemed to be a "backstory" of sorts, maybe even a "page-filler." The same applies between Tom's relationships with everyone, but specifically with Courtney and with Jessica.

      The plot was integrating, but unfortunately, as much as I wanted to like Firegirl, it seemed there were just simply too many errors for me to enjoy it thoroughly.

      All in all, I found multiple errors in Firegirl that prevented me from truly enjoying it. If these errors were fixed, I am sure I would love Firegirl!
    • 4/5
      Once i started this book i couldn't put it down. It's a beautiful story, a sad story, a story you'll never forget. There's Tom, a nice, quiet boy with good parents who want their son to do well and encourage him to 'Get out there" and do well at St Catherines Catholic School.There''s Jeff, a spoilt, brat of boy who demonstrates anger, nastiness and the tellign of untruths in response to his parents who have parted and him believing that he is some type of superhero reincarnate (believed by the comic books his parents indulge him in). Jeff lives with his mother who is always working to keep the bills paid and she is always moaning about her ex husband who doesn't contribute. Jeff is expected to visit his dad, who really doesn't want him to visit as the place is too small (can't afford bigger due to having to pay exorbitant school fees for his son) and he has moved on with his new partner. Jeff's dad reminds Jeff that it costs him a lot of money to keep him at St Catherines and because he isn't focused on his schoolwork it might be best for him to attend a state school. Jeff is not too keen on visiting his dad either, but his mother insists as she is consumed with work. From the moment Jessica arrives, life is never quite the same for Tom and his seventh grade classmates. They learn that Jessica has been in a fire and will be attending St. Catherine's while getting medical treatments. Despite her startling appearance and the fear she evokes in him and most of the class, Tom slowly develops a tentative friendship with Jessica that changes his life. Jeff and others are not as inclusive, especially Jeff who voices his dislike (through ignorance) of Jessica who he refers to as Firegirl. The picture on the cover reflects this ignorance. Although her stay at St Catherines is short, Tom makes Jessica feel included. Firegirl , although in some parts feel a little negatively repetitive, i felt overall that it is book that will show readers that the smallest of gestures of kindness can have a profound impact on someone's life.