And Then, Boom!

And Then, Boom! is set within a social landscape in which child poverty, food insecurity, and the failures of foster care and social services are central realities. In the United States, nearly 11 million children live in poverty, and many more experience housing instability, hunger, and neglect (“Child Poverty.” Children’s Defense Fund). These conditions are not simply the result of individual circumstances but are often shaped by systemic failures like underfunded schools, overburdened social workers, inaccessible healthcare, and cyclical economic hardship.

Joey’s story is designed to vividly illustrate these complex issues. His mother’s repeated disappearances, their lack of money for food or electricity, and his need to hide his troubles from the world and behave like an adult in order to survive all exemplify the broader systemic failures that allow children like Joey to go unsupported in modern society. Even when Joey is finally placed in foster care with a caring family, his trauma lingers, as do his fears about scarcity, and these emotional issues show how long it takes to children to heal from traumatic situations. 

However, the novel does present moments of optimism and hope, which are embodied in characters like Mrs. Swan. She stocks her classroom with snacks and supplies, and these conscientious habits represent grassroots efforts to meet students’ needs when larger support systems fall short. Fipps also portrays the dignity and strength of those living in poverty by highlighting Joey and Grandmum’s resourcefulness, emotional depth, and desire for greater stability. Ultimately, the novel critiques the common tendency of people to either pity or dismiss children in crisis, for the narrative gives Joey the power to speak, imagine, and hope. The novel’s focus on poverty thus becomes a call for empathy and systemic awareness, emphasizing the reality that poverty is not a personal failure but a societal one.