Staying fat for Sarah Byrnes

Sarah was severely burned when she was just three years old when she meets Eric they become best friends because he was overweight. When Eric joins the swim team he starts to lose weight but he still continues to overeat to not let Sarah feel left out. Sarah happens to be in a psychiatric unit because she refuses to talk to anyone even though she understands exactly what they are saying. Eric visits her every day to figure out why she is silent, he finally decides to go talk to their once bully turned friend Dale Thornton. Dale proceeds to tell him that Sarah’s face wasn’t burned by a pot of boiling spaghetti but that her dad held her face to the burning stove and that his aunt who worked at the hospital told him. When finding out the truth Eric, Sarah and their teacher Mrs. Lemry set out to find her mother and get Sarah away from her abusive father.

This book started a little slow for me but it started picking up speed during the middle. I love the friendship between Sarah and Eric; he does everything he can to make sure Sarah knows he won’t leave her behind. This story is about the friendship and loyalty between two people who were once bullied who stuck together. 

Crutcher, C. (1993). Staying fat for Sarah Byrnes. New York: Greenwillow Books

Other books by this author can be found at his website: Chris Crutcher