The Hottest Girl at Burn Camp: How to Survive a Fire and A Chaotic Upbringing (Without Losing Your Sense of Humour)

(Hardback)

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'The guiltiest of literary pleasures: a memoir that you open with trepidation and stay up til 6am to finish' KATE SPICER, author of Lost Dog.

When Krystal Evans was 14, the house that she shared with her mother and little sister burned down. Krystal narrowly escaped by breaking a window and jumping out head-first; suffering burns, smoke inhalation, PTSD - and the unimaginable tragedy of losing her six year-old sister. But horrific as events were, the account of what led the family to that fatal night, and how they coped with its aftermath, is a richer and more complex story.

Writing with skill and candour to find light in the darkest of places, this is Krystal Evans' story of growing up poor in America, living with a mentally ill mother, and having a wolf for a pet (really). From the indignities of being rejected from 'burn camp' for being 'too attractive', to putting up with a succession of her mom's increasingly dangerous and shady friends and partners, Krystal and Katie's childhoods were marked by adult chaos, inappropriate behaviour, and never knowing what the next day would bring.

The Hottest Girl At Burn Camp is Krystal's story of how she grew from the ashes of disaster into the confident, funny, and (reasonably) well-hinged adult, mother and comedian that she is today.

At the same time, funny, tragic and inspiring, it is the story of a family dangerously close to the edge, and of a girl struggling to make her way into adulthood, once the smoke clears.

Reviews

'The Hottest Girl at Burn Camp is a cracking read. By entirely stripping any trace of victimhood or forcing any palpable pain on the reader, this telling of a tragic childhood gifts us the guiltiest of literary pleasures: a memoir that you open with trepidation and stay up til 6am to finish.' -- Kate Spicer * author of Lost Dog *

Author Bio

KRYSTAL EVANS is an American standup comedian based in the UK. She has been featured on Comedy Central, Mitchell & Webb, BBC Scotland, and many others. Her stand-up show about the fire, also called The Hottest Girl At Burn Camp, won critical acclaim and coverage in The Times, The Telegraph and The Guardian, among others. She lives in Edinburgh and is the super-responsible mum to two boys. Her favourite food is breakfast burritos and she has a humongous photo of Rod Serling in her front room.