Face

Don't judge a book by its cover.
This was a powerful read, highlighting the subject of image and other people's reaction to disfigurement. It reminded me of Wonder by R. J. Palacio, another Young Adult book that I really enjoyed.

Martin is a fortunate teenager; he has a crowd of mates and a stunning girlfriend. Unfortunately he makes one bad decision and ends up in hospital with serious facial burns. He has to come to terms with his new appearance, his parents' reaction to his injuries, and then his friends and the rest of the school. It's a lot to deal with and we travel with Martin on his journey of self discovery.
This would be an excellent prompt for discussion about prejudices regarding appearance and our reaction to those less show more fortunate than ourselves.

Like Refugee Boy that I also listened to recently, Face was brilliantly read by Ben Bailey Smith, who moves seamlessly in and out of a London accent. I shall certainly look out for other books with his narration. show less

This was an interesting book about Martin, a fifteen-year-old, struggling to cope after a horrific car crash which left his face burned beyond recognition. Although Martin has a number of faults, the reader can sympathise with him as he battles to accept his looks and to live a normal life despite the stares and setbacks he receives from strangers, and also those close to him. Martin changes a lot by the end of the book in both his attitude to school and to life in general. Whilst plot is rather predictable "Face" still an enjoyable read.

Face by Benjamin Zephaniah was something i had never read before in all my time reading. It was very different and completey new to me, but it was very change for me. The character is a hipster type character who accepts a ride home from a drunk person , but his face gets horribly disfigured and burnt. Although he finds it hard to cope with the horrible new look, his personailty is the same, but things get worse when a good friend of his dies. During all this horror he is going through, he shows his courage and bravery through out the book. So in the end i really liked it, so out of 10 i give it a 8.