Summary:A social outcast in junior high due to his excessive weight, narrator Eric Calhoune found a kindred spirit in Sarah Byrnes, whose face and hands were hideously disfigured in a childhood accident. Now a senior and considerably slimmed down through competitive swimming (though still aptly called "Moby"), Eric remains fiercely devoted to his friend, whose caustic tongue is her only protection from life's inequities. When Sarah abruptly stops talking and is committed to a mental ward, Eric is compelled to take action to help her, but quickly finds that he is in over his head. He risks their friendship by breaking his vow of secrecy and enlisting others' aid--help that comes from such unlikely quarters as a former bully, Eric's swim coach and, most surprisingly, his mother's seemingly wimpy boyfriend. A subplot centering on a self-righteous teammate drives home the point that nothing is as it appears on the surface, and leads to Eric being caught between his menacing vice-principal and the even more malevolent Mr. Byrnes--with spine-tingling results. (From Publishers Weekly)What I liked:The premise of the book is good. The swimming scenes are great – something at which Crutcher excelles.What I didn’t like:For a “realistic fiction” book, I found some of the content to be very unrealistic. Would a person be able to get away with pretending to be sick in a psychiatric ward? Would a teacher be able to take a teen into custody, hide that teen from her parent, and then take her out of state on a search for her missing mother? What are the chances that they would even find the mother? The author takes on some really tough and controversial issues in this book including politics, religion and abortion, all of which are discussed in CAT class with coach/teacher Mrs. Lemy. She does a horrible job of conducting the discussions, and allows thing to get way out of hand. Students get into name calling, profanity laden sessions after which one student attempts suicide. Would this be allowed in school? The characters seem flat and stereotypical. It’s the nerds verses the popular kids at school with the nerds being the good guys because secretly they are cool in their own way, and the popular kids being the bad guys because they think they are cool but are really stupid or misguided in their thinking about politics, religion or sex (according to the nerds). In some instances, I really felt that there was reverse bullying going on. For example, the purpose of the underground newspaper that Mobe and Sarah launch, Crispy Pork Rinds, seems to be strictly to make fun of kids they don’t like, and Mobe and his friend, Ellerby, are constantly setting up Mark Brittain for failure and humiliation during swim practice. Christians really take a beating in this book. They all seem to be one-sided, over-critical, mean, and shallow or foolish for their beliefs. The language is a bit rough although nothing much more that the b word and telling someone to “go to hell”, but there are references to Mobe enjoying porn and “jacking off”.This book would be best suited for older high school students, but I don’t recommend it because of the stereotypes , political and religious overtones.First person narrative.
This was such an excellent read! I'm honestly surprised that Chris Crutcher is not a more prominent name in YA literature because he's one of the better ones that I've ever read. He is really an amazing writer, and I'm glad that my professor had us read this book. Crutcher knows how to craft a very good line, and he uses his words effectively. There were some really gut-wrenching lines in this book. He gets in the heart of his character and stays there, creating the distinctive voice of the witty smartass narrator, Eric Calhoune. While I couldn't really visualize the characters, I got such a clear picture of their voices and their personalities that I would know them anywhere. I love when authors do this with their characters because it shows me that they actually care about their characters. Another big plus in this book is that Crutcher absolutely does not shy away from any of the raw topics of life, ranging from domestic abuse to abortion to religion, which is why he gets banned quite frequently. I love that he takes these untouchable topics and has his readers really think about them through the antics of his characters. I think it's important for people to read about stuff like this, if just for the simple fact of being aware that it happens. Crutcher's approach also works really well because he uses comic relief and laughter to lighten the mood. Just because he talks about serious subjects does not mean that this book is a Debbie Downer, by any means. Hell, I read the first page and I was cracking up already. Eric, otherwise known as Mobe, is such a witty and hilarious narrator. There aren't many books out there that get actual physical reactions out of me, but this was one of them. I laughed out loud, I cried, and I gasped. That takes some good writing. So, if you're looking for an author that you may not have heard of who writes quality novels (11 in total), I highly suggest checking out Chris Crutcher.
Do You like book Staying Fat For Sarah Byrnes (2003)?
Biggest surprise read into the year so far. I didn’t expect this badly covered book would take me so deep into its story and far into my mind. Wow, did I just say that profundity?? But see what I mean! I expected this book was just going to be another easy read for me - after all, that almost-naked boy in swimming trunks didn’t seem too serious for me - but sorry, self, Chris Crutcher apparently isn’t into meeting expectations. He’s into racking your brain, challenging you to think about what would greet you in the coming pages. I’m truly surprised at why this doesn’t appear often in must-read YA novels lists around since it has so much teenage issues that will be v. well-appreciated by fans of more recent YA writers: feeling like an outcast, dealing with self-esteem, rising above all the bad, going to the lengths of proving the preciousness of friendship, teen depression, terrible familial issues, discovery of sexuality, discussion on abortion, the perpetual debate on the righteousness of Christianity and the factual-ness of science, school work pressure, etc. The number of issues it touched on WAS crazy many but I extend my congratulations to Mr. Crutcher because I found his story well-delivered and well-ended.Yay!s-I’m all for YA lit that deals with weight issues, so the title wasn’t off-sounding for me as it would be to some readers. Come on, wouldn’t you be interested yourself? THIS BOOK IS A STORY ABOUT A BOY WHO CHOOSES TO STAY FAT FOR A GIRL! A boy. Would. Stay. FAT. for a. GIRL! Why?? Which girl?-THERE IS A LOT OF INTENSITY in this book, I tell you. Here’s a few: ABORTION, FRUSTRATED MURDER, BULLYING.Boo!s-While Eric Calhoune was a stellar protagonist, Sarah Byrnes was a disappointment of a character. I felt like her story - no matter how interesting - was too contrived to be true.-Speaking of that, a lot of stuff in the story appeared unbelievable to me.-I enjoy waters and swimming, but there was too much details about the meets Eric competed/practiced in that I kind of tuned out in the middle. (Coach Lemry was an amazing character, though. I almost wished I had someone like that back in school.)
—kb
Just finished this novel and highly recommend it to parents and to teens who enjoy thoughtful, well written coming of age stories. I like the way that Crutcher presents athletics. Most athletes spend the VAST majority of their time training and only a small percentage competing and a still smaller percentage winning the big event. Crutcher's writing realistically emphasizes the time spent training. In addition, the athletics aspect is always a sub-plot to another story that the reader can tell is the prime focus.In this case the primary aspect of the story deals with child abuse and being friends with someone who is a victim of child abuse. As horrific as the events themselves are, they are somewhat buffered in this story by being told through the eyes of the best friend of the victim, rather than through the victim herself. That gives the events a perspective that the first person witness would not have. There are also side stories about religious fervor and forgiveness that make worthwhile reading. Overall, this is a fast, easy, and worthwhile read. Kudos.
—Stephen
I picked this book up on the pretense of scoping it out for my teenaged daughter. Loved it. I look forward to passing it on. It may not be for people who are profoundly Christian. This book is a great fit for those who are encouraging kids to be free thinkers, and families who have honest lines of communication with their kids.It is not for those who keep their kids isolated. That being said I really thought this was a well written book that touched on so many controversial & sensitive subjects. Well worth the read.
—Stephanie Snell
