Food, Girls, and Other Things I Can't Have Book

FOOD, GIRLS, AND OTHER THINGS I CAN'T HAVE is the story of a boy who doesn't fit--in his pants, in his family, in his school, or in his life.  If Andrew Zansky can only be thin enough, smart enough, or popular enough, he thinks everything in his life will be perfect. His father will come back home. The pretty girl in school will fall in love with him.  His Mom will be happy again.

While he's working to achieve this fantasy future, Andrew eats.  A lot.  He buries his problems in his Mom's mini-snacks, analyzing his world while stuffing down his feelings. "When I chew loud enough," he says, "I can't hear myself think. It's like a little vacation."  FOOD, GIRLS, AND OTHER THINGS I CAN'T HAVE follows Andrew's journey to self-awareness and self-acceptance (by, unexpectedly, joining the high school football team). By the end of the story, Andrew stops living in his head and starts participating in life. Perhaps most importantly, he comes to understand that feeling different doesn't make him weird or special; it makes him just like everyone else.

Publishers Weekly

Readers who wade through a series of painful scenes early on in Zadoff's debut YA novel are in for a treat. Andy Zansky is the (second) fattest kid in school and pays dearly for it on a daily basis (on the first day of sophomore year, he discovers he may not fit into the new desks). Then, out of nowhere, popular football star O. Douglas takes a liking to Andy, who goes out for football and makes the varsity team. Out goes self-deprecating Andy (for the most part), making room for a more confident, funny and likable Andy. Becoming popular, albeit gradually, doesn't cure all of Andy's woes—both football and popularity come with quite a few complications—nor does it magically empower him to lose the weight. But watching Andy's transformation, his three steps forward and one step back rhythm, is both entertaining and moving (“That's the thing about being fat,” he reflects. “People can't see the real you, so you have to work really hard to show them”). Boy makeover books are rare, and this one is a gem. Ages 12–up. (Sept.)