The Burning Girl Summary
Messud, Claire

The Burning Girl Overview

Claire Messud's coming-of-age novel, The Burning Girl, chronicles the dissolution of a childhood friendship between two teenage girls, Julia and Cassie. Narrated in the first person from Julia's perspective, The Burning Girl portrays what it means to be a girl growing up in small-town America, and all of the confusion and heartache that adolescence entails. Julia looks back at the events of two years ago, and tries to figure out what went wrong when Cassie's life spiraled out of control. Messud uses Julia and Cassie's stories to touch upon the themes of adolescence, relationships, storytelling, and the unique dangers and joys that accompany being a young girl today.