Kelly's Review: Butter by Erin Jade Lange

Butter is a morbidly obese high school student who introduces readers to his world in this young adult fiction novel. Butter seems to want the same things other kids his age want, but it is harder for him to attain them because of his weight. He is often taunted, but for the most part is the invisible kid at school. He longs for a relationship with his classmate Anna, and he sort of has one with her. Butter pretends to be a kid who attends a nearby high school over the internet to win Anna’s heart. Butter’s discontent with life reaches a boiling point and he proclaims via a blog that on New Year’s Eve he will stream live footage of him eating himself to death. Soon thereafter Butter becomes the most popular kid at school.

It is the aftermath of Butter’s proclamation that makes the story most interesting. Why would anyone think what Butter was doing cool? Do they really want to watch him die? Do they really like him once they get to know him? I asked myself these questions often, and found some answers by the ending. Lange shows us how cruel kids can be to each other, and how blinding the incentives of popularity can be.  

         

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