Reviews for The earth, my butt, and other big, round things

School Library Journal
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Gr 7-10-Sophomore Virginia Shreves lives in Manhattan and attends a prestigious private school. She lives by her Fat Girl Code of Conduct. She has a budding romance with Froggy the Fourth, but she doesn't want his wandering hands to feel her fat. Her baggy clothing helps her to "hide." Her mother, Dr. Phyllis Shreves, is an adolescent psychologist obsessed with her imperfect daughter's weight, and her father is rarely around. Her older sister joined the Peace Corps to escape mom, and brother Byron is big man on the Columbia campus-until he's suspended for date rape. Finally, Virginia stands up to her mother and takes charge of her life. Strong points in the novel are the issue of date rape and its consequences and, however glossed over, eating disorders. Parental pressure is overdone. Mom and dad are stereotypical of adults so involved in themselves that they cannot see their child for who she is. Some passages are very well done, but the book has an uneven quality in prose style and character development. Told through first-person narrative, journal entries, and e-mail, Virginia's story will interest readers who are looking for one more book with teen angst, a bit of romance, and a kid who is a bit like them or their friends.-Gail Richmond, San Diego Unified Schools, CA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.


Kirkus
Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

"Froggy Welsh the Fourth is trying to get up my shirt," begins this eminently accessible journey from self-hatred to confidence. Virginia is 15 and likes fooling around with Froggy, but she's mortified by her fatness, a shame fueled continually by her emotionally distant and pressuring family. Has she been switched at birth? Why isn't she perfect like her adored, overachieving older brother? But her brother isn't perfect after all, and he commits a horrifying act that rocks her world—and prompts her to begin questioning her family's values. Readers will be rooting for Virginia all the way as she moves from isolated TV-watcher to Website-creator with purple hair and an eyebrow ring. Sexuality, refreshingly, is treated as a good thing. Virginia's emotions progress from despondence to anger, joy, and strong independence, all portrayed with clarity. An easy read with substance and spirit. (Fiction. YA) Copyright ŠKirkus Reviews, used with permission.


Publishers Weekly
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A "chubby" New York City teen faces pressures from her family to get thin, and her brother is suspended from college on charges of date rape. "The heroine's transformation into someone who finds her own style and speaks her own mind is believable-and worthy of applause," according to PW. Ages 14-up. (July) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved


Horn Book
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

When Virginia's brother, whom she worships, is found guilty of date rape, she finally begins to acknowledge her picture-perfect family's dysfunctions. An insecure girl desperate for the approval of her weight- and appearance-obsessed family, Virginia believably transforms into a confident young woman. Mackler does a fine job introducing girls to a very cool chick with a little meat on her bones. (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.


Publishers Weekly
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

"Chubby" New York City teenager Virginia Shreves is having a hard time: not only is her best friend, Shannon, spending the school year out west, but Virginia's being pressured about her weight by her family-especially her formerly fat mother, a prominent adolescent psychologist. Lonely and insecure, Virginia has even started to hurt herself. When the brother she worships is suspended from college for date rape, the news shocks Virginia into realizing that her "stellar" family isn't as perfect as her mother says it is, and that she doesn't have to conform to her mother's expectations. Mackler (Love and Other Four-Letter Words) occasionally uses a heavy hand when it comes to making her points ("Recently, I've been finding it harder to pretend that everything is A-OK"), and some of the plot elements, such as the overweight teacher who looks out for Virginia, or Virginia's discovery that a popular girl has an eating disorder, seem scripted. The date rape story line, on the other hand, is gutsy; her brother wasn't just accused of date rape, he actually committed the crime. Ultimately, readers will find it easy to relate to Virginia; she loves junk food, gets nervous about finding someone to sit with in the cafeteria and can't believe that Froggy, the boy she has secretly made out with after school, could be interested in her, not just using her. The e-mails she exchanges with Shannon, and the lists she makes (e.g., "The Fat Girl Code of Conduct") add both realism and insight to her character. The heroine's transformation into someone who finds her own style and speaks her own mind is believable-and worthy of applause. Ages 14-up. (Aug.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved


Book list
From Booklist, Copyright © American Library Association. Used with permission.

Gr. 7-10. Fifteen-year-old Viriginia Shreves is the blond, round, average daughter in a family of dark-haired, thin superstars. Her best friend has moved away, and she's on the fringes at her private Manhattan school. She wants a boyfriend, but she settles for Froggy Welsh, who comes over on Mondays to grope her. The story follows Virginia as she tries to lose weight, struggles with her imperfections, and deals with the knowledge that her idealized older brother has committed date rape. There's a lot going on here, and some important elements, such as Virginia's flirtation with self-mutilation, are passed over too quickly. But Mackler writes with such insight and humor (sometimes using strong language to make her point) that many readers will immediately identify with Virginia's longings as well as her fear and loathing. Her gradually evolving ability to stand up to her family is hard won and not always believable, but it provides a hopeful ending for those trying stand on their own two feet. --Ilene Cooper Copyright 2003 Booklist


School Library Journal
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Gr 7-10-Overweight 15-year-old Virginia Shreves is the misfit in what she perceives as her perfect, thin, good-looking, exceptional family in this novel by Carolyn Mackler (Candlewick, 2003). Her usually absent father and adolescent psychologist mother are so stifling that Virginia's older sister joins the Peace Corp to escape. Big brother Byron is universally adored by all, particularly Virginia, until halfway through the novel when he is suspended from college for date rape. Virginia slowly comes to realize that Byron is the cause of many of her insecurities, and she is the only one in the family to acknowledge and do something about the fact that he did commit this terrible crime. The absence of Virginia's best friend, romantic entanglement with Froggy Welsh, and the many casual cruelties perpetrated on her by the in-crowd cause Virginia stress and create a serious lack of self- esteem. However, once she realizes her perfect family isn't quite as flawless as she thought, Virginia is empowered to stand up to her awful but well-intentioned mother, reestablish contact with Froggy, and even do the ultimate in teen defiance-get a body piercing. Johanna Parker is a superb narrator for this first person novel. She successfully portrays the angry mother, clueless father, whiny and irresponsible brother, vapid in-girls and, best of all, the appealing main character. Pacing is excellent and Parker perfectly conveys the nuances of teen insecurity in all its painful glory. While the author tries to deal with too many issues and ends up giving many of them short shrift, teens will certainly care and root for the marvelous Virginia Shreves.-B. Allison Gray, John Jermain Memorial Library, Sag Harbor, NY (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

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