Burned: What really hard things are happening in the text?

Burned by Ellen Hopkins         
          Throughout this whole book, it is filled with problems and they lead to even bigger problems. Let's say the main character, Pattyn is just really messed up. But it's not all her fault. It deals a lot with her family too. One main problem is child abuse and adult abuse too. Her dad beats her up and beats her mom up too. He is very strict and expects everyone in this huge family to follow his orders. Pattyn didn't listen and the more she didn't care, the more he beat her up. Pattyn didn't want to deal with him, but she couldn't just let her dad boss her around like that. He only used Pattyn's mom for sex and that got Pattyn thinking about that too. There is also a deep problem that causes most of the family's problem.

          Religion. Religion nearly tore the whole family apart. Religion was why Pattyn was sent away to her aunt's ranch in the summer. Her dad is deeply religious and that's why he's so strict. Pattyn was a Mormon and was supposed to be a good one, too. But she started kissing and making out with guys, almost having sex with a useless boy that was soon forgotten, and started to drink and use drugs. She also did have sex in the summer and even became pregnant. Obviously, this is not what a Mormon should do. Her dad didn't like it and the people at church didn't like it either. A Brother at church said Pattyn was possessed by the Devil. Over the summer, Pattyn wasn't a Mormon anymore. This led to a big problem that wouldn't be fixed.

          Homelessness. When Pattyn's friend, Trevor learned that she had a secret love who she had sex with (Ethan) he told on her parents. Trevor even got Ethan's car with Ethan, Pattyn, and Pattyn's baby in it arrested and it crashed. Ethan died and so did the baby. This led to her dad being furious and disowning her. He already had a new son (his only) and Pattyn was useless. She had nowhere to go anymore.

          The pages in this book are really Burned and it shows a lot of problems teens outside deal with.