Teased and abused for being grossly overweight, Jimmy, a fourteen-year-old Scottish boy who dreams mysterious dreams and secretly aspires to become a chef, decides to turn his self-loathing life around by learning how to swim.

Two young men, Jim, the naive, scholarly son of a Dublin shopkeeper, and Doyler, a rough working boy, struggle with issues of political, religious, and sexual identity in the year leading up to the Easter uprising of 1916.

Called a “masterpiece” in a starred review from School Library Journal, award-winning author Chris Crutcher’s acclaimed Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes is an enduring classic. This bestselling novel is about love, loyalty, and friendship in the face of adversity. “Superb plotting, extraordinary characters, and cracking narrative make this novel unforgettable.”—Publishers Weekly Sarah Byrnes and Eric Calhoune have been friends for years. When they were children, his weight and her scars made them both outcasts. 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 current pulls them both under. Will appeal to fans of Marieke Nijkamp, Andrew Smith, and John Corey Whaley. “Once again, Chris Crutcher plunges his readers into life's tough issues within a compelling story filled with human compassion . . . with his characteristic intelligence, humor, and empathy."—ALAN Review An American Library Association Best Book for Young Adults

YA. Danny-Boy shaves his head for Grampa Dan's funeral and the barber tells him he looks like a POW. Danny-Boy doesn't care - he's on a downward spiral. Drinking, cutting school, obsessed with the lyrics of Skarrs. Lyrics based on the real-life nightmare that broke Grampa Dan.

Abigail dreads swimming lessons because all the kids yell, "Abigail is a whale", when she jumps into the pool. But when her swimming teacher suggests that she needs to think light in order to swim well, things begin to turn around. And soon Abigail starts thinking about a lot of things.

Bruni, restaurant critic for "The New York Times," tells his heartbreaking and hilarious account of his lifelong, often painful struggle with food.