Firecracker by David Iserson

After reading a bunch of rather maudlin teen fiction books in a row, I was ready for a change in tone. Luckily, Firecracker, by David Iserson was next on my to-read pile. I picked up this book at a Target a while back on impulse. The cool cover design drew me in, and then the line about the author on the front sealed the deal. It stated that Iserson was a writer for television comedies, including New Girl and SNL, two shows that I really like. I was hoping that this book would contain a lot of the same smart humor. Ready to relax and laugh, I gave it a shot this week.

Firecracker is about a wealthy teenager named Astrid Krieger. Astrid is not like other young adult fiction heroines. She's cynical, spoiled, self-centered, and only values other people for what they can do for her. She's not one to follow rules either. Her past is checkered with arrests for crimes ranging from robbery to attempting to sell her local police station to China. Her exploits are epic, and her family's immense wealth always shields her from facing true consequences for her actions.

At the beginning of the novel, Astrid is thrown out of her prestigious private school, Bristol Academy, in the wake of a cheating scandal. She admits to the cheating, but explains that far more people were involved in the situation than the school knows. She believes someone set her up to take the fall for the whole ordeal. She wants to figure out who the culprit is and pay them back, but this goal is complicated by her family's decision to make her attend public school as a sort of punishment for getting into trouble. All is not lost, however. She manages to make a deal with the dean of the academy that if she can turn over a new leaf and perform three acts of kindness for other people, she can earn her way back in to Bristol.

Astrid begins trying to perform her acts of kindness at her new public high school, but it turns out that doing good in the world isn't as easy as she hoped. She tries throwing money into some random situations, but it doesn't really work the way she expects it to. Simply put, she has no idea how to be nice to others. To make matters worse, she's finding that the kids at her new school don't care about her name or her family's wealth. She's used to people being automatically intimidated by her; now, many are openly hostile to her instead. She eventually meets two students named Noah and Lucy, and they become the closest thing to friends that she's ever had. They teach her how to function in her new world, and with their help, she sets off to finish her acts of kindness and get revenge on the person who sold her out.

Firecracker ended up being a very enjoyable read, and was a really nice change of pace from the dramatic, emotional stories I had been reading lately. It's strength, as one would expect given the background of its author, was in its humor. The story is narrated by Astrid herself, and while she is a tough character to like, her biting sense of humor is hilarious. I actually laughed out loud at several lines, which I'm not used to doing while reading. Her sarcasm helped draw me in to her character and like her in spite of her flaws. By the end of the novel, Astrid has definitely grown a little, but still retains her distinctive spice, which I thought was a nice touch. It wouldn't have been realistic for her to completely transform into a kind and caring person over the few months the story spans, but she ends her tale better than she was at the beginning of it. I found myself wishing that she could have become a bit more empathetic at the story's conclusion, but I can see why Iserson held back on that and kept her personality essentially the same - it's not that kind of book. Astrid's not meant to be perfect.

The plot of the novel, while fairly absurd, was also entertaining. Some things happen that would definitely not be possible in real life, but the absurdity was part of the story's charm. Astrid is a ridiculous person that makes ridiculous things happen around her, so it all seemed to fit together. This definitely isn't one of those stories that impresses you with its authenticity. It's one of those stories that you indulge in as a guilty pleasure, like watching teen dramas on CW. It lacks depth from time to time, but the ride it provides you with is still very enjoyable.

What I ended up appreciating about this book the most was how refreshingly different it was. There were no tears, no depression, and no "very special episode" style lessons to learn. Instead, Firecracker has an unapologetic heroine that doesn't put up with anyone's nonsense, sarcasm by the boatload, and a story full of funny twists and turns. This is definitely a novel that I can see my students falling in love with, especially those who may not consider themselves to be big readers. I'm happy to have gone on this particular adventure.   


Challenge Tally
TBR Challenge (previously owned): 59/60

Total Books Read in 2017: 74