Fat on the Inside
Enclosed is my completed young adult novel, Fat on the Inside, which chronicles the life and toils of an obese young man. In many ways, I am that fat kid. Or at least I was. Now I am somewhere in the middle, but my battle with my waistline, my weight, and my self-image still rages on. Quietly. To my wife, I am a confident, loving husband and father. To my boy, I am superdad. To my students, I am together, funny, and cool. But fourteen years of fat jokes and fistfights took their toll. As a child, I covered up my pain with a clowning sense of humor, athletic excellence, and silent prayers. Young adult males continue to struggle in silence with this pain. If it’s not obesity, it’s bad skin or an ugly face or a lack of coordination. Fat on the Inside lends an ear to the voice of young males, who bravely put on a happy face each day, while their insides hurt from the stresses of puberty, school, family, and social settings. While not entirely autobiographical, the novel draws heavily from my experiences as an obese young man, with all of the peaks, valleys, wishes, and regrets that resulted.
Fat on the Inside begins with the lamentations of our main character -whom I never name because of an odd quirk I have about giving my students nicknames and avoiding the use of their given names- who is acutely aware that his love for food has finally caught up to him. After failed fad diets, the 5’2”, 180 pound eighth grader bemoans, “If I was 6’2” I’d be just about perfect.” This attitude epitomizes both the temporal hopelessness and genial resiliency of both the main character and the targ
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Fat on the Inside begins with the lamentations of our main character -whom I never name because of an odd quirk I have about giving my students nicknames and avoiding the use of their given names- who is acutely aware that his love for food has finally caught up to him. After failed fad diets, the 5’2”, 180 pound eighth grader bemoans, “If I was 6’2” I’d be just about perfect.” This attitude epitomizes both the temporal hopelessness and genial resiliency of both the main character and the target audience. The novel charts the main character’s journey as a young adult through a weight loss regimen that finally works and his ongoing shock that social settings still cause conflict and pain even after his waistline shrinks.
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