Staying+Fat+for+Sarah+Byrnes

By: Brianna First of all, the book I read was called Staying Fat For Sarah Byrnes. The author of this book is Chris Crutcher. I really liked this book, and for many reasons. In the beginning of the book I wasn’t sure if I would like it or not. But, by the middle and near the end of the book I really liked the book. There wasn’t a lot that made the book stand out, other then having many conversations then a lot of books don’t have. And the whole story that was being told about Sarah. Next, the plot in my book is very interesting. In the beginning it talks about how Sarah ended up getting burned by her father when she was 3 years old. She only told one person what happened to her, which ended up to be a person who bullied her. Then near the beginning she finally told Eric what really happened to her. In the middle of the book they were having a conversation in the CAT class about abortions. It ended up that one of the students in the class had an abortion and got really mad. After that one of the kids who is on Eric’s swim team had an overdose on drugs because of what happened during the conversation. In the end of the book Sarah and the teacher went out to find her mom and Lemry gives her a surprise. I liked the whole thing. Especially the really emotional parts. I didn’t really dislike any of it. I can’t make that many connections to my life. A lot of the things that happened in my book have never happened in my life. This plot doesn’t relate to any other books I’ve read. In addition, there are two main characters in my book. One of them is Eric Calhoune. He is a very nice person and always tries to help Sarah whenever he can. For a couple of years Eric had stayed fat so he could make Sarah feel better about her scars. But, when he joined the swim team it was hard for him to stay fat. So when he would finish swimming he would eat a ton of food to try and stay fat. Instead of doing that sometimes he wouldn’t go anywhere Sarah wouldn’t. Like to sleepovers or just getting together with friends. Sarah Byrnes is very different. Sarah is the kind of person who never gives up on anything, anyone, or herself. She got in fight with Dale Thornton who wanted her lunch money and they kept punching her and knocking her down. But, she never gave up and fought back. Her father burned her when she was just 3 years old. And during that time her mother left her. Her dad is a very bad person and threatens to kill her every day. Sarah is also very emotional and gets upset easily. There are no connections similar to the characters and me. I have never been a part of a family as bad as Sarah’s. I like that Sarah never gives up and keeps fighting back. When something bad happens she still gets very upset and mad, but continues to fight and get through it. Eric however, doesn’t usually act like that. He never stands up for himself or someone else. I think if he would stand up for himself like Sarah does, then he could help Sarah more. I don’t have any similar connections to myself. But, I have a different connection. My dad has never left me like Eric’s dad. My dad hasn’t done anything like Sarah’s dad has done either. Not many characters in other books relate to the characters in this book. Mainly because a lot of the books that I have read don’t have the same background or story being told. Finally, I would recommend this book for others to read. It is a very good book, and if you like stories that are very emotional, then you will love this book. It has a lot of action and many things going on at one time. It may be confusing in the beginning, but in the middle and near the end of the book, the story really starts to come together. I would recommend this book to many of my friends and some family.

Shauna

Chris Crutcher called the book I read Staying Fat For Sarah Byrnes. I really liked the book. This book is very graphic. When the author tells you what’s happening it feels like you experiencing it all for yourself. It’s a journey of its own.

First off, in this book there are two friends who are very unattractive and fat. Eric (the boy) joined the schools swim team and is loosing weight. Sarah (the girl) has stopped talking because of her abusive and crazy father. I personally like the part in the end when Lemry, the schoolteacher she was staying with, adopts Sarah. A connection I can make is to when Lemry adopted Sarah. I have a family member who was adopted. His Name is Tate and he is from Taiwan. I have read another book that is like this where you have to guess to find out what happens. It’s a book of a bunch of murders and you have to think about what you read really hard to know who committed the crime. That book reminds me of Staying Fat For Sarah Byrnes because of her crazy father and there were some crazy people in this book.

On the other hand the main character is Eric. In the begging he was fat and really ugly. He recently joined the swim team and lost a lot of weight. Sarah Byrnes is another main character, she too is fat and ugly. She also has terrible burns on her face. The two characters were kind of alike in some ways. They both grew up being picked on. I really liked how both of the characters were really tough and very brave. They didn’t let a little comment ruin there week. They just kept on going like nothing had happened. I guess you could say that I am like them. When someone makes a horrible statement towards me ill just brush it off. After that I would act like it never happened. I saw a devastating movie on a war and the fighters kind of reminded me of the two characters how they were brave and tough.

Lastly, I would recommend this book to other people to read if you really like books that keep you on your toes at all times. This book is thrilling and a whirlwind of excitement. Its a book that you want to read when its raining outside and there’s nothing to do. Once you start reading it you wont be able to put it down. I would recommend this book to people around there teenage years. Not for the little kids because you really have to think about this book. Also anyone who is older will definitely love it also. Its just such a great book that anyone who reads it will enjoy.

By:Taylor

I read the book called Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes by Chris Crutcher. I loved the book. I feel that Chris Crutcher did an amazing job with the story line. I thought that it was interesting because it was written in first person, but it explained the events of others lives as well. The story is good and it kept my attention for the entire book.

Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes was a very interesting story about two misfits and why they fit together. Eric Calhoune is a chubby swimmer and outcast. His best friend is Sarah Byrnes. Sarah Byrnes is a tough girl that has burns on her face. She is indeed another outcast. This is why Eric and Sarah are such good friends. They don’t have anyone else to be friends with so they stick together. Throughout the book, it reveals Sarah’s story about how she was abused by her father. In fact, that’s how Sarah got her burn marks. Eric manages to help Sarah’s life become a lot better just by sticking with her. Eric always tries to help Sarah and even managed to get himself in danger for her. I can relate to Eric because I would do anything and everything for my friends as well.

Sarah Byrnes is a very interesting character. Her physical appearance isn’t appealing to most. But, Sarah really doesn’t care about what other people think of her. I particularly liked Sarah’s personality because she has her own views and thoughts and doesn’t let anyone else persuade her. Eric Calhoune is another main character. Eric is a chubby seventeen year old. He is wimpy, and doesn’t stand up for himself often. But, overall, Eric is a good friend. He helped Sarah in her times of need. Eric is another of my favorite characters because he helps Sarah get through life. He did anything for her and I think that made Eric a respectable character. I don’t see myself a lot like either of the characters. But, I would describe myself as a good friend like Eric.

I would definitely recommend Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes to others to read. Overall, I thought it was an amazing book. Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes gave me a different outlook on how lucky I am compared to Sarah Byrnes. Also, it is very emotional. The story is one that should be read. Although, I would only recommend it to young adult readers.

By: Dylan

The book I just read was Staying Fat For Sarah Byrnes by Chris Crutcher. It was a pretty action-packed book toward the end. The book was very confusing at the beginning because it would go from past to present without any warning. The book was written in first person by the main character, Eric.

The main plot of the story was that Eric’s friend, Sarah, was in a huge predicament. She had tons of ugly burn marks on her face and everyone called her “Scarface.” I really like the plot because it left you hanging at some points in the book. The book reminded me of the when my grandma was in the hospital. Sarah was in the hospital a lot just to get away from her abusive father. At the same time, the book reminded me of the Olympics this year. I thought about Michael Phelps winning eight gold medals because Eric swam for the school swim team and was a pretty competitive swimmer.

Sarah is a hardheaded, stubborn girl. She doesn’t take insults lightly. Onetime, a bully named Dale was calling her “Scarface” so she started fighting him. She got beat up but she kept fighting and fighting. Eric is nice, loving guy. He tried to stay fat for Sarah so she wouldn’t feel left out or like she was alone. In addition to being nice he can be rude too. He was rude to a classmate and swim teammate named Mark Brittian. He would argue with him in CAT class a lot. I really liked Sarah’s character because she had a cool personality. She could just lie in bed and not say a word for as long as she wanted to. Eric would stick up for Sarah when nobody would. When he was staying fat he would eat twice as much just for her. I’m sort of like Eric because I am always nice to people. Also, I am the exact opposite of Sarah because I have a lot of friends.

As you can see, this is a pretty good book. I would recommend this book to anyone. It is a little difficult to understand in at some points but as the book moves along it gets better. The book was an eight out of ten in my opinion.

I read staying fat for Sarah Byrnes by Chris Crutcher. I dislike this book. The constant cussing made this book stand out a lot. Also the horrible things that happen to the characters constantly. The plot is telling never to give up no matter what happens because terrific things happen to people who never give up. And never wait to tell if something terrible happens because if you wait worse things will happen. I liked that it tells to never give up because that’s an important thing to have a successful life. I’ve heard things bad from friends never told. Never told anyone and bad things happened to that friend. Most books have a plot that says to never give up no matter what. Also I know a kid on a swim team. The main character is Sarah. She is tall, fat, and really rude. Eric is another main character. Eric was staying fat for Sarah so she wouldn’t feel like an outsider. Eric has short brown hair, brown eyes, and is about 5,2. Also there was Mr.Byrnes. He has short gray hair, green eyes, and is about 6,1. And these were the three main characters. I would recommend this book to girls. I would because it’s really boring and just was like a girl book. It was more of a girl book because it had too much emotion. It was like a boy book in three ways and that was that they constantly cussed. And bad things happened like when Sarah told Eric about how she got the burns. And when Mr.Byrnes put a knife to Eric’s neck and then Eric floored it and then slammed on the brakes and Mr.Byrnes flew through the window and then Eric ran and hid and then chased Mr.Byrnes in the car. So I would only recommend this book to girls.

By: Luke

BOOK REVIEW

To start things off the book I read was called Staying Fat For Sarah Byrnes. It was written by Chris Crutcher. I contemplated that this was a great book. Because of all the action twists and turns and even because of the dialogue. The book is about two main people Eric and Sarah Byrnes. As a child Sarah was given many burns on her face, by her father. For this purpose Sarah became more of an outcast. Eric was a porker so he also became an outcast and so those two became friends. That way they wouldn’t be left out. Most of the book Sarah doesn’t talk so Eric try’s to find out who gave her those scars and what it was done with. Though this book has its own theme and it’s got it’s got its own little dialogue. back round. It reminds of the book Regret. This also reminds me of when I fell into a fireplace and my arm caught on fire. Sarah is a skinny girl who has many scars on her face and hands. It didn’t say but I think she has long brown hair and she is at least five ft four in. Eric is a tall man who has short black hair. He is kind of tall. Dresses in stout guy cloths. So he wears saggy clothing. I thought that they were all very fascinating characters. Because of some of the stuff that they would get them selves into. For occurrence Eric chased after Sarah’s dad in the car he was driving. I can’t really make any associations to the book but I did think that they were really well thought out characters. I am knid of like Eric because I am tall and a porker like him. In conclusion I think that this is a great book. And anyone that likes a book about. Faithfulness, companionship and abusive fathers then this a book for you. In general I think Chris Crutcher did a tremendous job on this book and that you should read it.