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claudiaswisher 's review for:
Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes
by Chris Crutcher
2018 update: This was one of the first Crutcher books I read in 2006, as I was creating my idea of his work...his mission. THIS reading was one of revisiting, of savoring, of recognizing those patterns I love so much...and a line I rushed right by hit me like a ton of bricks: "Boy, ain't it a trip where heroes come from?" THIS. This is the essence of his books. Heroes rise. Families create themselves. Bonds are strengthened. Lives are saved.
Eric (Moby) has learned the self defence many bright but different kids have learned -- that snarky, smart mouth to deflect. For him, it's to deflect jokes about his size. His roundness. For Sarah Byrnes, it's to deflect from the horror of her face. The burns she has worn since she was a toddler. They are a team...until Moby discovers swimming, but he hangs onto his blubber so Sarah Byrnes doesn't feel as if her only friend abandons her.
Unlikely alliances, secrets that must be told, and heroes. And as always, Crutcher's youngsters stand up against adults who fear their independence, and rely on those who have their safety at heart.
Sarah Byrnes is one of those characters who grabs hold of you and makes you face what are the depths and the heights of the human spirit. She's stayed with me all these years and revisiting her made my heart sing.
I know Crutcher just spent time at MS Douglas High School last week, and his words ring: "Boy, ain't it a trip where heroes come from?"
Eric and Sarah Byrnes (don't call her 'Sarah') are an amazing team. Like all Crutcher books, the kids solve their own problems without adults intervening. Eric is courageous, opinionated, and verbal...like all Crutcher's boys. Sarah is so strong...I love them both.
Eric (Moby) has learned the self defence many bright but different kids have learned -- that snarky, smart mouth to deflect. For him, it's to deflect jokes about his size. His roundness. For Sarah Byrnes, it's to deflect from the horror of her face. The burns she has worn since she was a toddler. They are a team...until Moby discovers swimming, but he hangs onto his blubber so Sarah Byrnes doesn't feel as if her only friend abandons her.
Unlikely alliances, secrets that must be told, and heroes. And as always, Crutcher's youngsters stand up against adults who fear their independence, and rely on those who have their safety at heart.
Sarah Byrnes is one of those characters who grabs hold of you and makes you face what are the depths and the heights of the human spirit. She's stayed with me all these years and revisiting her made my heart sing.
I know Crutcher just spent time at MS Douglas High School last week, and his words ring: "Boy, ain't it a trip where heroes come from?"
Eric and Sarah Byrnes (don't call her 'Sarah') are an amazing team. Like all Crutcher books, the kids solve their own problems without adults intervening. Eric is courageous, opinionated, and verbal...like all Crutcher's boys. Sarah is so strong...I love them both.