294 pages
Genre: Young Adult
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Source: The library
Purchase: Barnes and Noble | The Book Depository
Goodreads Summary: A lonely obese boy everyone calls "Butter" is about to make history. He is going to eat himself to death-live on the Internet-and everyone is invited to watch. When he first makes the announcement online to his classmates, Butter expects pity, insults, and possibly sheer indifference. What he gets are morbid cheerleaders rallying around his deadly plan. Yet as their dark encouragement grows, it begins to feel a lot like popularity. And that feels good. But what happens when Butter reaches his suicide deadline? Can he live with the fallout if he doesn't go through with his plans?
With a deft hand, E.J. Lange allows readers to identify with both the bullies and the bullied in this all-consuming look at one teen's battle with himself.
With a deft hand, E.J. Lange allows readers to identify with both the bullies and the bullied in this all-consuming look at one teen's battle with himself.
My Review
Hmmm… what to say about Butter? This was a very interesting unique read, and also very disturbing. Yet, there was plenty of comic relief, making the book easier to read. I think Lange did a wonderful job approaching such a hard subject, and it was truly a well written story.
If I’m going to be completely honest, sometimes I felt sick when the main character Butter’s eating habits were described. (It was just too much when he was binge eating.) Although I liked Butter, He had an overly woe is me attitude, an everything sucks perspective that was also hard to read at times. At first this was very off-putting, until I realized something; this book is sharing what I’m sure many other teenagers and people of all ages out there feel at some point in their lives. Something that maybe should be talked about more. Sometimes it was hard for me to feel bad for Butter. Although, I was always hoping he would grow (which he does) and work everything out. Therefore, I think to sum up Butter's character is just to say that he is a unique character that at times I felt nothing for and at other times I wanted to fiercely hug. To say the least, he was way better than the supporting characters in this book.
What bugged me the most about this book? In the end…no one told an adult about Butter’s website, the one where he claims he is going to eat himself to death on new year’s. I mean these high school students are cheering him on!!! This made me so mad, but I also thought that maybe, or should I say probably, to an extent, this does happen in real life. I hope kids that read this book realize that speaking up is the way to go. On that note, I think Butter would be a good discussion book for a teen book club, heck, even an adult book club, especially for parents. There are many different social issues that are brought up that sometimes people don’t talk about enough. I think that in the end it will help the reader become less judgmental about obese people, or at least I hope so, and realize that any kind of bullying is horrible. This book is obviously very moral driven.
I say get this one from the library next time you go. I did and I don’t regret it. It didn't take me long to read and it definitely made me think a little bit.
RATING 3.5/5
I've never heard of this book before, but it kinda sounds like Empty by K.M. Walton, and I'm kinda wary of books like these two. Still, I'm glad you enjoyed it! Wonderful review! :D
ReplyDeleteThanks! It was an interesting book.
DeleteYikes with this one! You should see how my face changed while reading that synopsis. Let's just say I don't look very pretty right now. Even with the comic relief I don't think this one is for me. I am afraid what I'm about to say could sound mean, but to be honest, I can be very finicky when it comes to poor eating habits and morbid obesity, like not very sympathetic when the choices you make are bad ones. And how could what he's doing not get mentioned to an adult? But I understand that the message is important. And I hope some people learn from it.
ReplyDeleteIncreased adiposity and decreased muscle mass contribute substantially to age-dependent disease and disability. In particular age-related increase in adiposity is quickly becoming a major threat to public health throughout the world. Although the hypothesis that age-related changes in body composition are due to lifestyle choices alone is well accepted, it is a vast oversimplification.
ReplyDeleteObesity continues to be a major problem for global public health, affecting not only adults, but increasingly also adolescents and even young children. Moreover, obesity and diabetes are no longer limited to wealthy societies: rates are also rising in low- and middle-income countries. Summarizing some of the key issues in obesity treatment and prevention, this publication promotes novel and interdisciplinary approaches and explores cutting-edge ideas that span child development, nutrition, behavioral sciences, economics, geography and public health.
ReplyDeleteObesity is a major contributor to cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes which impact millions of people. As physicians who are on the front line treating these diseases, we want people to pay attention to the seriousness of obesity. Even if an obese person does not currently display any other health problems, we know that obesity significantly increases the risk for other serious health complications down the road, including high blood pressure, diabetes, heart problems and some forms of cancer. Addressing obesity before these complications arise will prevent future patient suffering.
ReplyDelete