Review: ALSO KNOWN AS LARD BUTT by Ann Herrick

It's Jr. high school, and Laura is looking for a change, to sprout from her cocoon and spread her colorful wings. If only she can escape her horrible nickname, the one branded on her by the little red-headed, crooked-toothed punk.
 
This definitely took me back to the cruel school days of teasing, pranks, and bullying. Mostly these are things that you get over, but being labeled "fat" sticks with you. And with her "generous" proportions, it was difficult for Laura to hide and shrink away from the other kids. Well, no more! She vowed to make a big splash this year. Why not join the swim team? Boy, it would be really hard to hide all her fat in a bathing suit.

Throughout the story, the reader is regaled by the insecurities, fears, and obsessions of a fat girl in the blasé world of Jr. high. Still, Laura tries to make the best of it by having fun with the swimming, exercising, and eating a piece of flan at her friend's Mexican restaurant. Of course, the best--and often more ubiquitous--scenes of Jr. high are the ones where you make a total fool of yourself.

Story is simple and relatable, albeit a bit mediocre at times, but I think that we would all be able to see a little of ourselves in Lard Butt.

My rating: 3 stars