Book
A face first / Priscilla Cummings.
Record details
- ISBN: 9780142302477 :
- ISBN: 0142302473 :
- Physical Description: 197 p. ; 20 cm.
- Publisher: New York : Puffin Books, Penguin Putnam, 2003.
Available copies
- 1 of 1 copy available at BC Interlibrary Connect. (Show)
- 1 of 1 copy available at Salmo Public Library.
Holds
- 0 current holds with 1 total copy.
Show Only Available Copies
| Location | Call Number / Copy Notes | Barcode | Shelving Location | Holdable? | Status | Due Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Salmo Public Library | PBK JF CUM (Text) | SPL22258 | Juvenile Fiction | Volume hold | Available | - |
- Booklist Reviews : Booklist Monthly Selections - #1 February 2001
Gr. 5-8. When she wakes up in a hospital burn unit, 12-year-old Kelley has no memory of the car accident that badly burned her face and hands. She bravely endures skin grafts and painful treatments, but when she finally looks in the mirror and sees what the third- degree burns have done to her face, she falls into a deep and angry depression. At the same time, her memory begins to resurface, and she realizes her mother's careless driving was the cause of the accident. The plastic face mask Kelley must wear for over a year to prevent further scarring makes her retreat even further, and she rejects supportive friends, family, and nurses. Cummings has obviously done research on burn victims and treatments; her knowledgeable but compassionate tone rings true. Although Kelley's journey from withdrawal to reemergence into the world seems a bit forced, there is a wonderful moment when she meets a fellow burn victim, and realizes she is not alone. A thoughtful read that will encourage empathy. ((Reviewed February 1, 2001)) Copyright 2001 Booklist Reviews - Horn Book Guide Reviews : Horn Book Guide Reviews 2001 Fall
A car accident leaves sixth-grader Kelley with severe burns on her face and hands. The physical pain, however, seems insignificant compared to the trauma she feels when she finally sees her ravaged face in a mirror. Cummings believably and sympathetically limns Kelley's rage and withdrawal from the world and her ultimate reemergence with inner reserves of strength and a newly discovered talent for drawing. Copyright 2001 Horn Book Guide Reviews - Kirkus Reviews : Kirkus Reviews 2000 December #2
When 12-year-old Kelley is terribly burned in an automobile accident, she must heal not only physically, but psychologically as well. Much of the novel's action takes place in a burn unit, where Kelley begins to comprehend what has happened: in addition to a badly broken leg, one hand and half of her face are covered with third-degree burns that will take at least a year to fully heal. Cummings (Autumn Journey, 1997, etc.) keeps the third-person narration tightly focused on Kelley and her internal struggle to cope with her new reality, and this becomes simultaneously the novel's strength and weakness. Compeling the reader to move through Kelley's healing process with her, it quickly becomes almost relentless: "When they finished strapping the new pressure mask on her, when the Velcro straps were good and snug, when she saw the world through two small holes, Kelley knew she was truly alone. A prisoner contained in a cell of plastic." It seems unfair to accuse a 12-year-old burn victim of narcissism, but Kelley's undoubtedly perfectly normal reaction to her circumstance becomes somewhat tiresome when it is the only device to drive the plot. Predictably enough, she is coaxed into a more positive attitude by the end of the book, but this comes so suddenly and after so much denial that it's unconvincing. The burn unit procedures carry a fascination of their own and will appeal to those readers who love weepy medical dramas, but Kelley's ordinariness ultimately keeps her story ordinary, too. (Fiction. 10-14) Copyright 2000 Kirkus Reviews - Publishers Weekly Reviews : PW Reviews 2001 January #4
When sixth-grader Kelley and her mother get into a car accident, Kelley is rushed to the hospital with a broken leg and severe burns, especially to her face. She is in physical pain, and her mental anguish grows throughout the novel, as she wonders why this happened to her, and who she is now that her appearance has been dramatically altered. Her anger and confusion intensify when she suspects that her own mother may have been at fault in the accident. Cummings (Autumn Journey) incorporates medical vocabulary and treatments into her narrative ("Twice a day they come in and pull the dead skin off my leg with tweezers and Q-tips," Kelley explains to a visiting friend. "It's called debridement"), and while these passages are sometimes clunky, readers learn a great deal about burn recovery. The mystery surrounding her mother's responsibility, on the other hand, seems like an unnecessary complication, and some of the descriptions of Kelley's emotions are clichéd (e.g., when the heroine opts for the silent treatment, "Kelley... wondered if she wasn't subconsciously or maybe consciously punishing her mother for something that maybe she didn't even do!"). Ultimately, Cummings's careful pacing makes this story work; she helps readers to empathize with the heroine, to follow her from her post-trauma confusion to her rage and withdrawal from the world, and ultimately to her discovery of inner strength. Ages 10-up. (Mar.) Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information. - School Library Journal Reviews : SLJ Reviews 2001 February
Gr 6-10-Unable to remember the horrific automobile accident and resulting explosion that melted her earrings as well as much of her skin, 12-year-old Kelley finds her world of horses, ballet lessons, and environmental projects reduced to a vise of pain in a Baltimore hospital's burn unit. Having dead skin tweezed off and being forced into pressure bandages and difficult physical therapy are bad enough, but when the staff straps a clear plastic mask on her ruined face, Kelley resists in the only way left to her. She quits all human communication. Finally weaned from her self-pity by the cries of a burned baby, she begins to speak once again, but draws the line at seeing friends and returning to school. However, she isn't the only one who isn't fully communicating, and the arrival of a lawsuit brings about an evolution of sorts. Cummings gives a good explanation of medical procedure, but really shines in showing the careful balance of push, pull, and nurturing that must be maintained by the dedicated medical staff who choose to work with fire victims. She understands appearance-conscious adolescents, and leads readers to pull with Kelley in working through the layers of her inner being to reach beyond the mask.-Cindy Darling Codell, Clark Middle School, Winchester, KY Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information. - Voice of Youth Advocates Reviews : VOYA Reviews 2001 February
In this straightforward novel, Cummings tells a tale of injury and healing so exquisitely focused on Kelley, the twelve-year-old heroine, that reader identification is all but seamless. Driving Kelley from school, her mother collides with a truck.Kelley is pulled from the wreckage with her hand maimed and half of her face burned away. She undergoes multiple skin grafts and agonizing physical therapy. For a year, she must wear pressure garments-a glove, a stocking, and a full facial mask-toprotect newly forming skin. Kelley also must come to terms with changing life conditions. How can she relate to girlfriends whose interactions with Kelley consisted mainly of trips to the mall and experiments with makeup? What does she think about aGod who, some say, allowed the accident to happen? How does she feel about her mother who might have been legally at fault? Can she salvage any part of her former life? Have doors opened for her when others have been closed? If so, does Kelley havethe strength to walk through them? Kelley's voice rings true from start to finish. She is by turns hopeful and frightened, brave and cowardly, saint and sinner. Teens-no matter what their ages-will like, understand, and struggle with her character. With clear and direct writing,Cummings provides an unsentimental portrait of Kelley and her struggle. A recommended purchase, the book has a clear application for anyone caught up in the drama of devastating injury. The casual or timid reader might shy away from the hard andspecialized subject, but Kelley is a heroine worth knowing, and like her scarred face, worthy of a second look.-Mary E. Heslin. Copyright 2001 Voya Reviews
