The Burn Journals

In this autobiography, Brent Runyon recounts his suicide attempt at age fourteen and his physical and psychological recovery from burns that covered eighty-five percent of his body. After Brent sets fire to a shirt in the locker room, the gym teacher threatens to expel him. A friend asks him what he’s going to do. He answers, "I’m going to kill myself." At home after school, Brent soaks his bathrobe in gasoline and lights himself on fire.