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Loading... The Burn Journalsby Brent Runyon
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will love Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. This book is an absolutely devestating, and in the end viscerally refreshing, anatomy of a suicide. The author writes with so much honestly and openness, with a level of clarity and bravery that few people acheive. For me, it answered the question "What were they thinking?" ( )I liked that the person who wrote this wrote about his experense with what he went trought. And i think it will help other people who may have went troguth the same thing with dealing with it. The Burn Journals is a cautionary tale—beware, suicidal teenagers, your life may become a bigger torture than you could ever imagine. Better to do some hard work and figure out why you're in distress first, before you burn/shoot/leap/drink/drug yourself. I liked the close detail and how honestly Runyon writes. -Nan Bell, Librarian, Ithaca High School When Brent Runyon was 14 years old, he deliberately set himself on fire. He survived despite being burned over 85% of his body, and spent months in recovery and therapy. I found this book a disappointment. The details about the burn recovery were interesting, but Runyon never really explained why he tried to commit suicide or how he recovered his mental health. People seeking to learn about depression and suicide would do well to look elsewhere. There was nothing that prepared me for this sad memoir of a young 8th grade boy who is so depressed he attempts to kill himself by lighting himself on fire in his parent's bathroom. I still can't wrap my brain around someone being so unhappy in life that they would go to such an extreme. The fire is only a small part of the book -- it's Runyon's healing in the burn unit of a hospital that grips you. The long road back for him becomes a part of the reader, and it's impossible not to finish this book without feeling emotional and spent. Excellent read, but be prepared for heavy feelings. Awards Won: WINNER - New York Public Library Books for the Teen Age NOMINEE 2007 - Missouri Gateway Readers Award WINNER 2006 - Pennyslvania Young Readers Choice Master List WINNER 2007 - Rhode Island Teen Book Master List WINNER 2006 - Texas TAYSHAS High School Reading List 0.052 seconds to build listing no reviews | add a review
Amazon.com Product Description (ISBN 0375826211, Hardcover)BRENT RUNYON WAS 14 years old when he set himself on fire.This is a true story. In The Burn Journals, Runyon describes that devastating suicide attempt and his recovery over the following year. He takes us into the Burn Unit in a children’s hospital and through painful burn care and skin-grafting procedures. Then to a rehabilitation hospital, for intensive physical, occupational, and psychological therapy. And then finally back home, to the frightening prospect of entering high school. But more importantly, Runyon takes us into his own mind. He shares his thoughts and hopes and fears with such unflinching honesty that we understand—with a terrible clarity—what it means to want to kill yourself and how it feels to struggle back toward normality. Intense, exposed, insightful, The Burn Journals is a deeply personal story with universal reach. It is impossible to look away. Impossible to remain unmoved. This truly riveting memoir is a spectacular debut for a talented new writer. (retrieved from Amazon Fri, 24 Apr 2009 07:58:01 -0400) The first test round has been closed. Visit the Open Shelves Classification group for details. |
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