Burn by Patrick Ness- ARC Review*
Happy belated June, curious soul!
I was supposed to post this review yesterday, which was the official publication day of Burn in North America.
But the powerful movement of Blackout Tuesday kept me still. Not silent. Not complicit. Not going about my daily life as I was supposed to.
This was my moment of quiet protesting and paying my respect for lives lost.
Lives that matter. Black lives that matter. BIPOC lives that matter.
And if I didn’t mention it, you probably wouldn’t notice my absence.
Which is why I'm bringing it up in the first place.
But the powerful movement of Blackout Tuesday kept me still. Not silent. Not complicit. Not going about my daily life as I was supposed to.
This was my moment of quiet protesting and paying my respect for lives lost.
Lives that matter. Black lives that matter. BIPOC lives that matter.
And if I didn’t mention it, you probably wouldn’t notice my absence.
Which is why I'm bringing it up in the first place.
Before diving in the review, I would certainly recommend watching Becca’s vlog not only because I love her BookTube channel, but also because it contains spoiler-free commentary of the book in the first ten minutes of the video:
I will just highlight the fact that she forewarned me about two major build-ups in the story resulting in two plot twists that I actually ended up enjoying.
This is cetainly down to personal preference, but I've noticed that knowing the plot devices wihout knowing the actual plot often leads to my enjoyment of a book.
Onto the review:
For those
of you who want to know the absolute essential before diving in a book, which
is how this author’s novels are usually marketed, Burn is
basically 1950s America, just add dragons to it. Does young adult
historical urban fantasy sound appealing to you? (wow that was a long-winded genre/category!) Then pick it up.
OK, let’s briefly talk about the synopsis. Burn is set in 1957 Washington, where we first meet Sara, a young woman trying to keep herself together after her mother’s death and the tough financial situation she and her father are going through. Sarah is also biracial, which unavoidably leads to her experiencing prejudice on a daily basis.
Watch the book trailer (UK edition):
One of the main themes of this book was racial inequality and it is displayed in two ways. On the one hand, there was explicit racism and police brutality against BIPOC characters.On the other hand, the way humans treat and despise dragons offers an allegoric example of how human nature can turn fear for the unknown into hatred and convert belief in something greater into excuse for violence.
I am not going to lie, at first I was worried that the author covered this issue rather superficially. Not in the sense that it was briefly mentioned, anything but that, but that it was stated and challenged ina rather blunt way.
In light of recent events, I have come to think of what this book offered as food for thought time and time again. And that is how external surroundings and societal standards can affect one's life and perception, even in terms of appreciating a book.
I believe Patrick Ness wouldn’t want his book to be quite
so prophetic in emphasizing that racism is not an issue dealt with and left in
the past. His participation in the protests shows he will not be silent in more
ways than one. Writing books, going to protests, spreading the word on his
platforms.
There was also LGBTQ+ representation in the means of a male gay romance, which I have come to anticipate/crave in novels written by Patrick Ness.
If you would allow me to draw a comparison between Burn and the author's previous work:
While in books like Release homosexuality is one of the main themes, here it is more of an underlying component; always there, but not overpowering all the other elements of this story. I really appreciated the way this was executed.
Most importantly, what I usually get with Ness's books and certainly met in Burn was visibility.
The author does not let you forget that all kinds of voices and people exist in our world and have always been here. It felt like he implicitly said: "I see you. I'm writing about you. I know you are here, next to me. I am one of you."
And that is a powerful message in itself.
As with all Ness books that I have read, I was most impressed with the vibe and feel of the book.
The atmosphere slighlty reminded me of Twilight- that might be because it was also set in Washington and Ness recenlty referred to that book (oh we're not gonna go there).
It was like reading this book with a dark filter that made everything more dusty and...red.
*If that even makes sense.*
I also noticed that his writing felt extremely cinematic, like a film taking place in front of your eyes... but with words.
It might be because of Ness's training and his work for television and film; I was certainly not the first to point this put, since I read it on numerous other reviews.
Well, I agree.
Maybe the author will so a better job of intriguing you than I did, so here goes:
There was also LGBTQ+ representation in the means of a male gay romance, which I have come to anticipate/crave in novels written by Patrick Ness.
If you would allow me to draw a comparison between Burn and the author's previous work:
While in books like Release homosexuality is one of the main themes, here it is more of an underlying component; always there, but not overpowering all the other elements of this story. I really appreciated the way this was executed.
Most importantly, what I usually get with Ness's books and certainly met in Burn was visibility.
The author does not let you forget that all kinds of voices and people exist in our world and have always been here. It felt like he implicitly said: "I see you. I'm writing about you. I know you are here, next to me. I am one of you."
And that is a powerful message in itself.
The atmosphere slighlty reminded me of Twilight- that might be because it was also set in Washington and Ness recenlty referred to that book (oh we're not gonna go there).
It was like reading this book with a dark filter that made everything more dusty and...red.
*If that even makes sense.*
I also noticed that his writing felt extremely cinematic, like a film taking place in front of your eyes... but with words.
It might be because of Ness's training and his work for television and film; I was certainly not the first to point this put, since I read it on numerous other reviews.
Well, I agree.
Watch Sanne's chat with author Patrick Ness about Burn:
At first I was thinking of rating Burn with 3.5/5 stars rounded down, but the amount of time it has occupied my mind lately made me land on a slightly higher rating.
But that is of little importance at the minute.
What I think we need is to educate ourselves and start having the uncomfortable discussons. I'm not the forst to say it and hopefully not the last.
We can't turn a blind eye and a deaf ear against racial prejudice, even if we can't see it in our doorstep at this minute. That is an excuse. Because we DO see it. We have been seeing it.
🌟🌟🌟⭐
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Communist.
Then they came for the Socialists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Socialist.
Then they came for the trade unionists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a trade unionist.
Then they came for the Jews
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for me
And there was no one left
To speak out for me.
And remember. This was written after the Holocaust.
But that is of little importance at the minute.
What I think we need is to educate ourselves and start having the uncomfortable discussons. I'm not the forst to say it and hopefully not the last.
We can't turn a blind eye and a deaf ear against racial prejudice, even if we can't see it in our doorstep at this minute. That is an excuse. Because we DO see it. We have been seeing it.
🌟🌟🌟⭐
I leave you with Pastor Martin Niemöller's poem:
First they came for the CommunistsAnd I did not speak out
Because I was not a Communist.
Then they came for the Socialists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Socialist.
Then they came for the trade unionists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a trade unionist.
Then they came for the Jews
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for me
And there was no one left
To speak out for me.
And remember. This was written after the Holocaust.
Thank you for being here!
Come chat with me in the comments:
2 comments
Great review ❤️❤️❤️
ReplyDeleteThanks Foteini! 💗
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