Who is the narrator in fire girl?

The narrator in Firegirl is Tom Bender, who is in sixth grade as the novel begins.
In the novel, Tom confesses that he once struggled with a reading disability. He describes his experience of "switch[ing] letters around" in his attempt to read. Tom characterizes himself as a shy and unassuming boy. Despite outward appearances, he is like any other boy. Tom regularly daydreams about Courtney, a beautiful classmate, and he loves fast cars.
The story is told from Tom's point of view, in first person. He describes how his class welcomes Jessica Feeney, a burn victim. Jessica's parents have enrolled her at St. Catherine's (the school Tom attends) so that she can be near the hospital at New Haven, where she will receive burn treatment. When Tom first sees Jessica, he is horrified.
He tells us that Jessica's face is like a terrible mask. She has rough, mottled skin in shades of pink, red, and white. Jessica's lips are also swollen, and her fingers are bent. Initially, Tom has a difficult time with Jessica's appearance. The story relates how Tom eventually gets to know the girl behind the "mask." His first-person narrative reinforces the main theme of the story: character is more than the sum of one's outward appearance.