Burn

Written in free verse, this powerful novel  is about Casey, an eleven-year-old who struggles to keep her family together in the wake of her mother's abandonment. She has to care for her autistic sister, Ginny, and manage her stepfather's grief and alcoholism. In an effort to reach out to her mother, she begins to set fires in order to send smoke signals. But the ritual fires soon won't be able to contain the pressure she is under or her growing resentment.

From the jury: 

"Fullerton draws the complex plot seemingly effortlessly between the lines of her poetry, while allowing the verses to give us Casey herself."

Alma Fullerton was born in Ottawa and grew up in a large military family. She has lived all over Canada and in Europe and now resides in Ontario with her husband and two daughters. Her previous novels include Libertad, Walking on Glass and In the Garage.