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Kay asked this question about Little Fires Everywhere:
Spoiler alert: In my opinion, Izzy's last act does not line up with her character at all. She consistently resists conformity to the norm of Shaker Heights but to burn down a house, and her own family's house at that? There is no indication anywhere in the development and description of her character that she would even consider such an act, much less carry it out. Did anyone else have this reaction?
Yolanda Well, Izzy generally had violent reactions when she was upset. Two examples that I recall: She broke a bow and threw it at her music teacher, and she …moreWell, Izzy generally had violent reactions when she was upset. Two examples that I recall: She broke a bow and threw it at her music teacher, and she threw a soda can at Moody when he said that Pearl got what she deserved.

Mia also told Izzy about a prairie fire, where the earth was scorched, yet the massive destruction allowed new things to grow. Later, when she was trying to say goodbye to Izzy, she mentioned the prairie fire again, presumably to explain why she and Pearl were was leaving.

I agree, Izzy hadn’t done anything extreme prior to setting the fire (throwing a bow or a soda can isn’t going to cause serious damage), but she was impulsive, was strongly influenced by Mia’s fire story, and wanted to punish everyone in her family. Maybe she also wanted to make sure that if she was found and brought back that “home” would different.

ETA: I do think it was odd that Mrs Richardson immediately assumed that Izzy was to blame! Despite Izzy’s rebelliousness, I don’t think she would’ve done something this extreme if she hadn’t gotten to know Mia (not that I think Mia was a bad person). Given that Mrs Richardson didn’t know how close Izzy was to Mia, nor did she know Mia’s fire story (right?? I’m almost positive she didn’t), I can’t understand why/how Mrs Richardson came to her conclusion.(less)
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Little Fires Everywhere
by Celeste Ng (Goodreads Author)
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