I naturally expected this story to be sad, it is of course. A young person facing facial disfigurement, blindness, or even death can hardly be amusing. Our hero, Ross, is a great kid, just wants to be ordinary and fit in with his peers, not to look horrifyingly different and the subject of cruel and thoughtless bullying. His few loyal friends and the other patients he meets during his treatments have to become a huge part of his life. He finds music, and is taught to play guitar by Frank, an understanding radiation tech, he thought it would be easy, it's not, and he releases his frustrations through drawing Batpig, his invented comic hero. Ross masters the guitar, to some extent, and forms a punk band who enter the school Talent Show, I was really glad the ending wasn't too predictable.