FOOD, GIRLS, AND OTHER THINGS I CAN'T HAVE

FOOD, GIRLS, AND OTHER THINGS I CAN'T HAVE, by Allen Zadoff (Egmont 2009). Sophomore Andrew Zansky has a forty-eight inch waist and weighs in at 306.4 pounds, and he's only the second fattest kid in school. His mom's a caterer, his dad's a lawyer (they're divorcing), his sister is thin, he's being plagued by a bully, and April, the girl of his dreams, just transferred in to his high school.

To impress April, he jumps at the chance to join the football team, where he's immediately made starting center and, for a while, enjoys the rise in popularity and new-found fame. But then he discovers that things just might not be as they seem...

FOOD, GIRLS, AND OTHER THINGS I CAN'T HAVE will resonate with everyone who's ever been on the outside looking in and everyone on the inside looking to get out. Andy is smart and engaging and the supporting cast also feels real and well-rounded. In short, FOOD GIRLS, AND OTHER THINGS I CAN'T HAVE is a funny and sometimes bittersweet tale of a boy who's just growing into himself.