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How to Set a Fire and Why
How to Set a Fire and Why: A Novel | Jesse Ball
121 posts | 73 read | 1 reading | 155 to read
The highly acclaimed author of A Cure for Suicide now gives us a singular, blistering novel about a teenage girl who has lost everythingand will burn anything. Lucia's father is dead; her mother is in a mental institute; she's living in a garage-turned-bedroom with her aunt. And now she's been kicked out of schoolagain. Making her way through the world with only a book, a zippo lighter, a pocket full of stolen licorice, a biting wit, and striking intelligence she tries to hide, she spends her days riding the bus to visit her mother and following the only rule that makes any sense to her: Don't do things you aren't proud of. But when she discovers that her new school has a secret Arson Club, she's willing to do anything to be a part of it, and her life is suddenly lit up. And as her fascination with the Arson Club grows, her story becomes one of misguided friendship and, ultimately, destruction.
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review
shortsarahrose
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Pickpick

As someone who used to be a teenage girl who was angry and sad and cynical about both the injustices of the world and her own lot in life and believed she was smarter than the adults around her (and often truly was), I loved this.

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shortsarahrose
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“The same guy was talking again to Stephan. I leaned in to hear. He said, you have a month to set a fire, and if you don‘t you‘re out.

He saw me looking at him. Same goes for you.”

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shortsarahrose
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(Almost) all of my library holds came in at once! And when I got home, the dress, that I bought as a #treatyoself present to celebrate submitting my grad school application, had arrived as well 📚 👗❤️

2 likes1 stack add
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readordierachel
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Pickpick

Lucia Stanton is a disillusioned, fiercely intelligent teenage girl who wants to set fires. Like the title says, the book reveals the how and the why. It's a short, open-ended story. Just a glimpse into this girl's life, and yet Lucia felt like one of the more fully realized characters I've ever encountered. Funny and sad. Highly recommend.

vivastory I was really fascinated by his book 6y
readordierachel @vivastory Oh, that does sounds interesting! I'm definitely keen to read more of his work. 6y
batsy Nice review! Jesse Ball is filed under "authors I've been meaning to read but haven't" ? 6y
See All 8 Comments
readordierachel @batsy Thanks 🙂. And I feel you. I could file so many authors under that heading. Probably fill a warehouse, like all those boxes at the end of Raiders of the Lost Ark 🤣 6y
RohitSawant Great review! 6y
readordierachel @rohit-sawant Thank you! 😊 6y
kspenmoll Nice review! 6y
readordierachel @kspenmoll Thanks! 😊 6y
91 likes9 stack adds8 comments
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monalyisha
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A - American Gods
L - Letters from Skye
Y - Yes Please
I - I Capture the Castle
S - Stranger Things Happen
H - How to Set a Fire and Why
A - Anne of Green Gables

Thanks for the challenge, @ScorpioBookDreams !

MiyakoBunny This is cool 😎 🌹 6y
monalyisha Thanks @MiyakoBunny . I thought it was a great idea, too! 6y
35 likes2 comments
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introvertedbooks
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What does your Sunday night view look like? #sundayfunday

Bklover Pretty much like yours!!😊😊😊 (edited) 6y
introvertedbooks @Bklover best way to finish a weekend 😊 6y
9 likes2 comments
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shawnmooney
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Hands down, this is the best novel about a 'bad girl' I've ever read! What I said in my review last year still holds true: "I felt bad for her, worried about her, loved her, rooted for her. She cracked me up a hundred times. I finished reading the novel a couple of weeks ago: Lucia continues to stomp around, brilliant and brash, inside me. Like she owns the place."

#badgirls #augustgrrrl

Bklover Great review! Gonna have to stack this one! 7y
Megabooks Such a good book!! 7y
saresmoore You sure do know how to convince me to read a book! (Really you just have to say you liked it.) 7y
LeahBergen This sounds marvelous! 7y
Cinfhen Oooh! That review is 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥 7y
65 likes5 stack adds5 comments
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Beachesnbooks
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Day 29 of #junebookbugs - my most recent book purchases! Some from Book Outlet, some from an indie bookstore, and some from B&N. @RealLifeReading

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monalyisha
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Pickpick

This book is so... strange. It took me forever to read. The protagonist's voice is different. She's very smart, very matter-of-fact. Her thoughts jump around and the narrative is very "stream-of-consciousness." She's unsentimental about things like sex; she isn't overly innocent or naive. She's funny. Her life is painful. You hurt for her, even as she acts way outside of conventional morality. It wasn't my typical fare but I liked it a whole lot.

22 likes1 stack add
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monalyisha
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"I guess he's one of those people who don't like licorice. I think 75% of people hate it, but the other 25% adore it. What else is like that? Trampolines? Tanning salons? Parrots?"

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monalyisha
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"Some people hate cats."

#greatfirstline

Note: I tried to convince myself that I hated cats for awhile. I'm allergic, and was trying to make *not* petting kittens a choice that I made instead of a choice that was made for me. But they're adorable. Whatever. I admit it. Bring on the hives.

(I do still prefer rabbits & dogs, though. There aren't enough rabbit memes in the world. Cat people have all the luck. ?)

Rachel.Rencher I'm so allergic to cats, and I feel like all they ever wanna do is scratch me. 😂 7y
monalyisha @Rachel.Rencher They usually just want to rub up against my face. 😩And part of me wants to let them. Devious creatures! 7y
11 likes2 comments
review
JacintaMCarter
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Pickpick

#2017Book78
Lucia's father is dead, her mother is in a mental hospital, and she lives in a garage with her aunt. After getting kicked out of school again, she begins to search for some sort of meaning from her life. Instead, she finds a group of teenagers who share her interest in wanting to start fires. The writing in this novel is somewhat disjointed, which perfectly fits the main character stumbling through life trying to figure things out.

48 likes1 stack add
review
Yournewfriendsams
Mehso-so

Enjoyable but not mind-blowing. Eventually, I aligned with most Littens in thinking the main character, Lucia, was sassy and enjoyable.

However, I skimmed over anything involving arson directions/anarchist agenda. The first rule of Fight Club is, don't talk about Fight Club.

⭐⭐⭐

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JacintaMCarter
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I could be this character for Halloween and look exactly the same as I do every day.

34 likes2 stack adds
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Yournewfriendsams
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Pretty sure people at airports, coffee shops, etc. do this. I'm always giving side-eye trying to determine if people are true Littens 😏

RiotMom lol I will totally do this now. 7y
saresmoore This makes me want to carry around a show book to look crazy so people will leave me alone in airports... 7y
RiotMom @saresmoore like "Murder Made Super Simple!" Or "So You're a Psychopath! A Common Sense Guide to Life With Psychopathy!" 7y
saresmoore @RiotMom 😂 I think the exclamation points really make those titles. 7y
57 likes4 comments
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Yournewfriendsams
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Littens who have read this one: Did you find the narrator annoying or sassy/fun? I'm still trying to decide 🤔

Redwritinghood More sassy - bit of attitude. 7y
Books_Wine_Repeat I listened to the audiobook and she was so sassy. 7y
StephBengtson I did the audio and found it a little annoying. I ended up losing focus because of all the tangents she went on. 7y
See All 6 Comments
BookishFeminist The narrator for the audiobook was amazing so I thought Lucia was very sassy & nihilistic—a really compelling, complex character. Probably not a book for everyone but I gave it 5⭐️ (I don't hand those out like candy). One of my favorites last year. (edited) 7y
stargazerblue49 Annoying - mostly the tangents. And the monotone. 7y
dylanisreading Sardonic. I love characters like that especially when they're female. One of my favorites that I read last year. 7y
58 likes6 comments
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elisebarker
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Just started this audiobook today!

elisebarker This was just okay. Lots of tangents.. 7y
DimeryRene Is this a feminist-y book? 7y
elisebarker No not really. 7y
2 likes1 stack add3 comments
review
StephBengtson
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Mehso-so

I loved the characters in this one. It was both funny and heartbreaking. However, there were just too many tangents and I found myself losing focus at times.

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Books_Wine_Repeat
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Pickpick

I listened to this in one day. Lucia is witty, funny, smart, and lonely. I loved this audiobook. The ending, though abrupt, was perfect. 😁👍👍 #myfavoritearsonist

StephBengtson Im listening to the audiobook right now! 7y
Books_Wine_Repeat @StephBengtson Nice! Hope you're enjoying it! 👍 7y
67 likes6 stack adds2 comments
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Books_Wine_Repeat
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Can I just say that I LOVE Lucia!!! The way she derides her counselor is brilliant! 🔥🔥🔥🔥

72 likes2 stack adds
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GlitteryOtters
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Just reached 24 hours on the #24in48 readathon with 1 minute left on the above book's audiobook. My stats for the #24in48readathon are as follows:

Books read: 7.5 (the .5 is an audiobook I bailed on at the halfway point)
Pages read: 1,996
1 paperback
2.5 audiobooks
4 e-books including 3 graphic novels

Review for the above book will be posted tomorrow, when my reading addled brain is better able to write a review. And now, 😴.

Daisey Congratulations! 🎉 7y
beagle.mama You did it! Impressive. 💜 7y
CherylDeFranceschi 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 7y
See All 20 Comments
mhillis Wow!! 7y
saresmoore 🙌🥂 7y
DebinHawaii Awesome! Great job! 🎉📚👍 7y
Cinfhen Congrats 🎉 💕📚😊✨🍾 7y
Eyelit Yay!!! 👏📚🎉 7y
TrishB Yay 😀🎉 7y
Dragon 👍🐉 7y
theshrinkette So awesome! 🙌🏽🙌🏽🙌🏽🙌🏽🙌🏽 7y
moranadatter Congrats!🎉 7y
asiriusreader Awesome!! 👏🏻👏🏻🎉 7y
ValerieAndBooks Just thinking it has been a long time since you've checked in here. I hope things are going well for you? 7y
GlitteryOtters @ValerieAndBooks so sorry...I got really sick right after the readathon & was out of commission for over a week. Since then I've been low energy during recovery & have been playing catch up around here. Have barely had time to read (still working on my first 2 books of the month). Also, I have surgery scheduled 3 weeks from now & have been trying to do all household tasks/deep cleaning &making/freezing food for post surgery time. Hope you are well 7y
ValerieAndBooks Good to hear from you. It can take a while to bounce back after being sick. And upcoming surgery? That's a lot on your mind for sure. I'll be thinking of you and hope you'll check in now and then, even if you're not reading, so we all know you're okay! 😘 7y
tpixie @GlitteryOtters good luck with upcoming surgery! 7y
Centique @GlitteryOtters Best wishes - and you see you're missed around here 💕 7y
LauraBeth I‘m just popping in to say I‘ve been thinking about you and hope you are well @GlitteryOtters 6y
52 likes20 comments
review
Victoria_C
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Mehso-so

Almost forgot I read this this week. Not that memorable for me. Enough said.

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Hoopiefoot
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I don't have a 2017 TBR list but here's the stack I have from the library at the moment.... #funfridayphoto

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Suet624

Another great quote from this book: "Wealth squeezes us, the wealthy squeeze us and squeeze us, until we cannot even help one another as we would naturally do, as it is already in our hearts to do. Never let yourself be squeezed in this way."

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Suet624

It is not important to me whether you are at this moment poor or rich. If you have the requisite humanity in your heart, the substance of empathy, then you will leave these classes, the poor, the rich, and join a new class: that is, the class of those who subsist gladly and meagerly. ...We want merely to have that which is necessary and least, and it is our joy to share what is necessary and least with others. #BooksfromSteinbeck

cathysaid Sold! Added to the TBR pile. 7y
Suet624 It's a small section of the book but the part I liked the best. 7y
39 likes2 stack adds2 comments
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Suet624
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I'm not sure why I didn't know this. I was halfway through this book about a teenage girl just trying to make it through in high school, really enjoying her snarkiness, when I looked at the back of the book and discovered the author is a man. Shook my world for a minute.

readordierachel I'm reading a book where the author's first name is Alexander, but for the whole first day I kept reading it as "Alexandria" and was convinced the author was a woman. It happens :) 7y
41 likes2 comments
review
Redwritinghood
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Pickpick

This is a rather sad story about a teenager who has lost her parents and then her guardian. Very smart but angry, she plays with the idea of joining an Arson Club. Written as a sort of diary, the author did a great job of being consistent with voice and making this character sympathetic without being sappy.

Suet624 Just about to start this one. 7y
Redwritinghood @Suet624 I hope you like it. I read it in just two days. 7y
36 likes2 stack adds2 comments
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Redwritinghood
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#currentlyreading Up next from my December TBR library pile.

Megabooks So good!! 7y
43 likes1 stack add1 comment
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suvata
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Pickpick

This quirky little book was beautifully written yet very unsettling. And the end ... get your Kleenex out. Don't say you weren't warned. Lucia is one of the more memorable characters I've had the pleasure to encounter in a book. I will not easily forget this one.

17 likes2 stack adds
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suvata
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This sounds promising!

review
shawnmooney
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Pickpick

Meet Lucia, a badassed teen with a dead dad, an institutionalized mom who doesn't know her, a gobsmackingly bright mind, and attitude for days. A dark but joyous tale of grief, creativity, and arson. I felt bad for Lucia, worried about her, loved her, rooted for her. She cracked me up a hundred times. I finished reading the novel a couple of weeks ago: she continues to stomp around, brilliant and brash, inside me. Like she owns the place.

charl08 Love that image. 7y
charl08 (the stomping, not the author pic, which is fine, but not what I meant!) 7y
See All 6 Comments
Cinfhen Love & appreciate your review 😉 7y
mauveandrosysky Perfect review. 7y
Lindy Hooray for characters who stomp around inside of us! 7y
61 likes6 stack adds6 comments
review
amrsprout
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Pickpick

Even the cover of this book is great. Love the main character and how she deals with all her troubles.

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shawnmooney
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shawnmooney
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shawnmooney
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26 likes1 stack add
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shawnmooney
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shawnmooney
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shawnmooney
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@BookishFeminist OMG, this book! 👍👍👍👍

BookishFeminist Super compelling isn't it? It's such a great narrator! Both for the audiobook narration but also Lucia as a character. 7y
shawnmooney @BookishFeminist Yes and Yes! ♥️♥️ 7y
shawnmooney @BookishFeminist Oh. Jesse Ball is a man! I am a little surprised, but all the more intrigued! 7y
BookishFeminist @shawnmooney He sure is! He did a fantastic job with Lucia's character. It's clear he has strong women in his life. It's rare that I find a dude writer do such a fantastic job of writing women, especially young adult women. 7y
Suet624 @shawnmooney I had the same reaction. I thought the author was a woman. 7y
27 likes1 stack add5 comments
review
rachellayown
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Pickpick

I'm a judge for the Chicago Review of Books Award and I'm trying to get through all the finalists that I haven't read yet. I finished this one today. It's a quick read and I rather enjoyed it.

brendanmleonard Congrats! 7y
Hobbinol ❤️love the photo 7y
See All 6 Comments
mauveandrosysky I loved this one! 7y
60 likes4 stack adds6 comments
review
CarrieScott
Pickpick

I love everything about this story: the style, the prose, dialogue (often monologue); I'll never stop loving Lucia; her wit and candor and perceptiveness and honesty and and and. I think despite her nihilistic tendencies, there's a part of Lucia that is actively engaged in finding meaning in her life. But that's the thing about Lucia: "Each person needs to have his or thing that they must do. Furthermore, they shouldn't tell anyone else about it."

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CarrieScott
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"Something happens, maybe even something small, something no one even notices..."

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CarrieScott
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This entire book. Everything.

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CarrieScott
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CarrieScott
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It's just that, I'm already in such obsessive adoration of Lucia already, and then I read this.

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CarrieScott
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"Isn't it obvious that the world is a meaningless place where there is a faint impression you can leave on each other by being compassionate, but not more than that?"

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CarrieScott
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"and then I get called to the principal for having skipped detention, and then I am told: you have a week of detention. They don't understand--I can just read a book. It doesn't really matter where I am."

2 likes1 stack add
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CarrieScott
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"Or, a few do."