The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things

BIBLIOGRAPHIC INFORMATION:

The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things. Mackler, Carolyn. Candlewick Press, Cambridge. ISBN: 0-7636-1958-2

PLOT SUMMARY:

Virginia is fifteen and overweight. She lives by the Fat Girl Code of Conduct after hearing a fat joke on the radio. She meets once week with Froggy to make out. Virginia thinks that Froggy is embarrassed about being with a fat girl, so she pushed him away. Her mother is an adolescent psychologist and her father works with computers. She has an older brother and sister that she thinks are perfect. They are the model family. Or so everyone thinks. Virginia is so self- conscious about her weight, her mother buys her clothes that flatter her figure and takes her to see a doctor to discuss her weight. To top it all off, her best friend just moved to Washington. Will Virginia me able to move past her insecurities and begin to enjoy her sophomore year in high school?

CRITICAL EVALUATION:

Virginia is every girl that has ever had a problem with weight. The issue is never food; it is why you turn to food for comfort. Virginia’s quest to be as perfect as the other members of her family leads her down a road that is filled with numbness. Her family doesn’t help: the only communication she has with her mother is about her weight, her father thinks that only thin women are attractive, her older sister is in Africa, and the brother that she idolizes treats her like a second class citizen. Virginia keeps all of her feelings inside. The change in Virginia comes when she buys the plane ticket to visit her best friend in Seattle. While in Seattle, she begins to feel again. Without the pressure of family and image, she can be herself. In Seattle she realizes that she no longer feels numb. It is the beginning of starting to like herself for who she is; something she feels that her family does do. When she comes back from Seattle, Virginia begins to do things that she wants to do; not the things that her family thinks she should do. Virginia begins as an insecure teen and transforms into the person that she wanted to be. This is a must read for every teen girl; not just the overweight ones.

READER’S ANNOTATION:

Virginia is a sophomore and overweight. Her weight dictates the life she leads…but not for long.

AUTHOR:

Carolyn Mackler writes books for teens because; they (along with some good friends) saved her from teen misery many times. Things were great for Mackler though the fifth grade. When other girls were moving onto boys, she was still playing with dolls. Her best friend that lived three doors down got her through this tough time when Mackler felt like a misfit. Her childhood is the reason why she writes for teens.

Mackler graduated from Vassar College with a degree in Art History. While living in Manhattan, she took a class at NYU called “Beginning Your Novel”. It was during this class that she started her first book Love and Other Four Letter Words. Mackler has published four books after that: The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things, Vegan Virgin Valentine, Guyaholic, and Tangled. She is currently working on her next book.

GENRE:

Fiction, Realistic

CURRICULUM TIES:

New York State: English, Health

BOOK TALKING IDEAS:

Teenage insecurity
Purple hair and nose rings

READING LEVEL/INTEREST AGE:

Age 14 and up

CHALLENGE ISSUES:

Sex, language

In order to prepare yourself should this book be challenged you may wish to take the following steps:

•Read the book or familiarize yourself with the book and its contents.
•Refer to the library’s collection development policy.
•Read the book reviews from sources such as Booklist, School Library Journal, Voice of Youth Advocates (VOYA), Publisher’s Weekly, or BookSpot.com
•Seek the opinion of teen readers that have read the book.

Should this book be challenged you should follow the additional steps below:

•Advise the senior staff of the challenge.
•Let the patron know that their challenge will be filed and that senior library management will review their request and notify them once a decision has been made.
•Offer any further assistance

WHY DID I INCLUDE THIS BOOK?

The author was named in our class group presentations.