Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes

Sarah Byrnes and Eric have been friends for years. When they were children, his fat and her terrible scars made them both outcasts. Later, although swimming slimmed Eric, she stayed his closest friend.

Now Sarah Byrnes -- the smartest, toughest person Eric has ever known -- sits silent in a hospital. Eric must uncover the terrible secret she's hiding, before its dark currents pull them both under.

Okay, so can you really read just the title of this book and not want to dive into the rest of it? I couldn't. This was one of our monthly Young Adult Reading Group (YARG) Readerville selections back in the day. It was also my first Chris Crutcher book and, really, what a way to start. I had no idea what his writing style would be like, how his characters would affect me, and I was floored by how deeply involved I became in their story. I can't remember exactly who suggested it, but I am so very glad they did because I immediately went out and bought it and have loved it ever since. It immediately earned a nice, cozy spot on my Beloved Bookshelf and the only thing I wish different about it is its cover, which is really not that bad, but which doesn't exactly scream "I am unbelievably awesome!" in the way that it should. If you haven't read a Crutcher book, and especially if you haven't read this one, I highly recommend doing so immediately. He's like the Judy Blume of books about teenage boys and sports and his books are almost always on the most recently challenged and/or banned lists every year. It's to do with the fact that he actually talks about things and brings up issues and serious problems in the lives of today's teens, including prejudice (racial and religious), abuse, depression, and poverty. His books are also screamingly funny and this one is no exception.

Eric Calhoune isn't like other high school seniors. Nicknamed "Moby," Eric used to be obese. Ostracized by his peers in junior high, he formed an alliance with a girl named Sarah Byrnes, who was also an outsider on account of the quantity of disfiguring scars all over her face and hands--the result of a terrible accident when she was little. Together Eric and Sarah Byrnes got each other through the nightmare that is junior high. But when Eric hit high school he started swimming. He swam so long and so hard the fat started to melt right off his chubby body. He'll never be thin, but he's no longer the big, doughy butt of everyone's jokes. And though the outside changed, the nickname stuck. Everything that made up the real Eric stuck. And his friend Sarah Byrnes stuck. Even though her scars could never miraculously melt away. His kindness balanced her acerbity and cynicism and it seemed that everything would be all right. Then one day Sarah Byrnes stops speaking. Stops responding completely to anything. She just . . . stops. Right in the middle of class. They take her to the hospital and eventually admit her to the psych ward. Eric visits her every single day, talking to her, reminding her of their good times. But nothing seems to get through. And, though he thinks he might know why Sarah Byrnes finally checked out, Eric isn't at all sure what to do to get her back.

I love this book. I mean, I love this book. It represents the best in contemporary young adult literature and it does it with humor, gravity, and tension. It's impossible not to like Eric right away and the bond between him and Sarah Byrnes is touching in the extreme. My laughter and my empathy clambered on top of each other throughout the story, particularly as Eric surrounds himself with, as his swim coach often says, a cast of characters straight out of The Far Side. His buddy and fellow swim team member Ellerby is at the top of the list. And their lively, unexpectedly thoughtful discussions in their Contemporary American Thought class provide a wonderful venue for the teens to attempt to parse out the meaning behind the beliefs they've always held, right and wrong, the challenges they're facing now, and what could cause a young girl to up and walk away from the life she led. I didn't even surface while reading STAYING FAT FOR SARAH BYRNES. Not once. I loved Eric, the boy so loyal, so afraid of losing his best friend that he stayed fat an extra year for her. He ate even more than usual, even after getting a handle on his weight, just so she wouldn't be alone in her differentness. The questions that pepper the text captivated me. Why did Sarah Byrnes stop talking? What was she like before and what hasn't she told Eric? What will he do about her, about his crush on beautiful, sad Jody Mueller, about his mother's new boyfriend Carver, about using his intelligence and his compassion to help those around him? I'll close with a favorite early passage:

***

I stand in front of the huge double doors at the entrance to Sacred Heart Hospital and breathe deep, my frozen hair hugging my head like a bicycle helmet and my breath shooting from my mouth like exhaust from a truck. I wear only a light jacket; my internal heating system boils for hours after workout. Coach forever tells me to cover up when I go outside, but when I cover up I sweat like a walrus in a sauna. I threaten Coach with my laundry.

Sarah Byrnes is inside. Eighth floor. Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Unit. I've put this off, thought she'd be out in a couple of days, but it's been a full week. Sarah Byrnes. Toughest kid I know, and she just slipped away.

I don't want to go inside. I was here once about four years ago when my third cousin got drunk and attempted suicide. Not much of an attempt, really. He OD's on Flintstones vitamins, but he was wigged out so bad they stuck him in for seventy-two-hour observation. What they observed was extremely yellow pee. I hated visiting him. The place itself was nice--thick carpeting and comfortable chairs, plenty of books to read and games to play. It felt safe in a strange way, not for me, but for the people in there. But they all had a look, as if something important had been peeled away. And you got the feeling it could happen to you.

Now Sarah Byrnes is here. My best friend. I stayed fat a whole year for her.

***

This one you won't want to close. This one is worth your time. It cuts close and it makes you think and I'd love to talk with more people who've read it.

My emotions were pulled all over the place which, to me, is the sign of a writer

who knows what he's doing.

Thanks, Mr. Crutcher. Great book.

I'll be checking out some of your other books as well even though my own high

school days are far behind me.

This book was just plain annoying. Chris Crutcher's agenda was so obvious and obnoxious, it made me mad. Only half the book was spent on the plot, the other half was spent bashing someone for their beliefs and making this one stereotypical character look like a real jerk. The plot and catchy title looked intriguing, but it was hidden too deep underneath the annoying characters. This wasn't the first time this happened with a Chris Crutcher novel. In his other book I read called The Sledding Hill, in which Crutcher also ignores the plot in order to push his own agenda. Had potential, but I was left disappointed.

I teach English and I'm always looking for books that will open the eyes of my secondary students. I was excited to read Staying Fat after reading the many positive reviews. The first 67 pages were great, wonderful character development and real problems that most kids suffer through. Then on page 67 I find our dear hero staying up late watching (graphically explained) porno. Excuse me? And he explains that his mother permits it because she is always "completely open about sexual stuff". Am I to understand that being "completely open about sexual stuff" means having porno in the house? Good parents and good teachers don't expose their children/students to porno.

Spoilers. This was my first Chris Crutcher novel, after seeing his blurb on the back of Sherman Alexie's The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, and now I can't wait to read the rest of his novels. The premise of Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes is disturbing, and becomes all the more so when we learn that Sarah's scars weren't caused by a pot of spaghetti falling on her but by her evil, sadistic father. Meanwhile, narrator Eric Calhoune (nickname Moby, for his weight), is devoted to Sarah Byrnes but also trying to figure out who he is without all the extra weight.

Crutcher's descriptions of the power of swimming, the speed and the sheer energy of it and what it means to Eric animate this book. So do his budding romantic relationship, his single mom and her boyfriend, and his mentor, teacher and swim coach Mrs. Lemry. Eric is somewhat tough on the outside, having endured taunts from his peers, but he's also bold and Crutcher imbues him with a morality that means he is constantly questioning what the right thing to do is. The issues presented here, both through Lemry's Contemporary American Thought Class (abortion, personal responsibility), and through Eric's friendship and attempts to help Sarah Byrnes, are profound. This isn't an easy or a simple book and the horrors of child abuse presented are enough to make anyone cringe.

Crutcher packs a lot into one fast-paced novel, and the very idea that Eric would spend a year "staying fat" for his friend, lest he suddenly become popular and dilute their friendship, says a lot about him. Sarah Byrnes is a challenging character because she is so stoic, out of necessity. All are extremely memorable. A powerful, riveting book I'd recommend for older (high school age) teenagers.