Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes: A Novel

Bibliographic Information: Crutcher, C. (1993). Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes. New York, NY: Greenwillow Books.

Plot Summary: Eric Calhoune, also known as "Moby", had known Sarah Byrnes since grade school and they became "best friends". Eric was extremely fat and Sarah was severely scarred on her face and hands from an "accident" when she was a child. When Sarah was very little, all she remembered was a very volatile and abusive father who beat her mother regularly. It got to the point where, during one beating, Sarah felt her father, Virgil Byrnes, was going to kill her mother. Her mother got away, but poor Sarah got the aftermath of his anger. He scalded her face and hands in boiling water, disfiguring Sarah. He threatened Sarah with her life if she ever revealed the truth behind her scars. Sarah was terrified of her father. Consequently, Sarah became "hard", "smart" and "tough".

Sarah and Moby get picked on all the time because of their "conditions" as the novel goes back and forth between childhood memories and the present. The story mainly is set in Sarah and Moby's senior high school years. In high school, Sarah and Moby collaborate on writing an underground newspaper called Crispy Pork Rinds. The first edition of Crispy Pork Rinds focuses on the big, big bully of the school, Dale Thornton. Dale was so "big" because he was repeatedly held back and his father refused to have him promoted if he didn't pass his classes, despite his age and size.

Sarah ends up in a hospital because she has become catatonic and doesn't speak. Moby visits Sarah everyday and he knows deep inside that Sarah can talk, but she is scared. Moby has been swimming for the swim team and, as his physical condition gets better, he starts losing weight. Yet, due to Eric's friendship and caring for Sarah, he continues to eat excessively to stay fat so Sarah won't feel alone and "different". Through their daily visits Sarah starts communicating with Eric even though most days, Sarah's father, Virgil Byrnes, is watching. Sarah confides to Eric about her abusive past and swears him to secrecy.

Eric doesn't want to betray Sarah's trust but he can't stand the thought of doing nothing. He confides in his teacher and swim coach, Ms. Lemry. Ms. Lemry teaches CAT: Contemporary American Thought Class which explores many controversial subjects. In this class, while exploring topics such as abortion, suicide and religion... Eric develops a major crush on a classmate, Jody. It turns out that Jody had an abortion with her boyfriend, Mark Brittain, who promotes pro-life conservative religious values such as abstinence before marriage. Meanwhile, Ms. Lemry and Sarah head off to Vegas to try and find Sarah's mother who is the only witness to Virgil Byrnes' brutality. Sarah's mother backs down from supporting her only child. Virgil Byrnes hunts down Eric and stabs him in the back. Eric's mother's boyfriend, Carver, who is a former Vietnam Special Force Soldier, hides out in Virgil Byrnes house and captures him. Because of his service to his country and the atrocities that Virgil Byrnes committed, Carver receives a very light sentence. The Lemrys end up adopting Sarah Byrnes.

Critical Evaluation: Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes starts out a little slow, but as the story unfolds, it is one of the most engrossing, timeless and riveting novels I have ever read. Chris Crutcher's writing is remarkable for its humanity and reflection of human emotions. Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes reflects Crutcher's background in psychology and his work with students as a teacher, especially his work with troubled students. Through his writing, Crutcher enables readers to really feel passion, sympathy, hatred, in essence, a wide range of emotions toward his characters.

About the Author: Chris Crutcher was born in 1946 in Dayton, Ohio. He has written many young adult novels and he is also a therapy consultant. Chris earned his BA in psychology and sociology from eastern Washington State College. Many of Crutcher's novels deal with teenage athletes who have personal problems.

Because of the controversial nature of many of Chris Crutcher's novels they have been frequently challenged or banned. On Mr. Crutcher's website (http://chriscrutcher.com/) it is very apparent that he is an ardent supporter and advocate of freedom of speech. His novels, Running Loose and Athletic Shorts: Six Short Stories were on the 1990-2000 ALA's most frequently challenged books. Crutcher's writing "is noted for its wit and humor, and as a result of his propensity toward ribaldry (bawdy humor), is often considered to be the truest replication of adolescent thought patterns produced by someone over the age or 20".

Retrieved May 9, 2010 at: http://en.wikipedia.org/siki/Chris-Crutcher

Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Domestic Abuse, Body Image, Suicide, Abortion, Teen Pregnancy, Mental Illness, Coming of Age.

Curriculum Ties: Health, Mental Health

Book Talking Ideas: What would it be like growing up different and uglier than everyone around you? Sarah Byrnes and Eric have been friends for years. Sarah is terribly scarred and Eric is terribly overweight. How do Sarah and Eric endure years of humiliation?

Reading Level & Interest Age: 14 and older

Challenge Issues: Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes has been frequently challenged. In 2005, Westmoreland, New York, a parent requested the novel be banned from the ninth-grade curriculum because of language. The request was denied by the school board. In 1995 Smithville Public School District, Missouri, a parent request that the book be removed from the ninth-grade curriculum was approved. In 2006 the Smithville School Board reversed its decision to ban Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes and, consequently, the National English Honors Society, Smithville High School Chapter is called "Sarah Byrnes Society".
Retrieved May 9, 2010 at: http://www.chriscrutcher.com/content/blogcategory/88/65/

Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes has a lot of other controversial young adult issues, besides language, that would be ripe for challenges. A few examples are: Abortion, teen pregnancy and abuse.

Reason for Inclusion: Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes has won the California Young Reader Medal (1997), American Library Association Best Book for Young Adults (1994), School Library Journal Best Book (1993) and other awards. It is part of many high school curriculums, not only because it is an excellent novel, but because it deals with so many pertinent teen issues.