When Zachary Beaver Came to Town

April 9, 2001
When "the fattest boy in the world" rolls into Antler, Tex., in a trailer, 13-year-old Toby's perspective can't help but change. In a starred review of this National Book Award winner, PW praised the "well-developed characters, all fantastic and flawed in their own ways, add plenty of spice." Ages 10-up.

Starred review from October 13, 1999
Holt (My Louisiana Sky) sets her heartwarming and carefully crafted novel during 1971, but her message of tolerance is one that contemporary readers will appreciate. The moment Zachary Beaver, "the fattest boy in the world," rolls into Antler, Tex., in a trailer, 13-year-old Toby Wilson stands in line with his $2 in hand, waiting for a peek. Toby can't imagine what life is like inside the cramped trailer for the 643-pound boy. When Zachary's guardian suddenly takes off, leaving him--and the trailer--in the Dairy Maid parking lot, Toby and his best friend, Cal, become his caretakers of sorts, and eventually, his friend. Through this friendship, Toby learns sympathy and respect--not just for the misfit boy but for his own recently estranged parents and a string of other quirky characters who struggle with personal tragedies. While a few of the plot points feel predictable, the well-developed characters, all fantastic and flawed in their own ways, add plenty of spice. There's Toby's mother who aspires to be the next Tammy Wynette; Scarlett, the pouty-lipped teen dream, who hopes to escape Antler by becoming a model; and Miss Myrtie Mae, the town librarian who sacrificed her one chance at love to care for her brother. Picturesque images such as Zachary's baptism in a man-made lake and the novel's culminating scene drive home the point that everyday life is studded with memorable moments. Ages 10-15.

November 1, 1999
Gr 5-8-When Zachary Beaver comes to town, 13-year-old Toby Wilson, his friend Cal, and other curious townspeople wait in line behind the Dairy Maid in their small Texas town and pay their $2 to see the 643-pound boy. Toby can't help thinking, "What a sorry life Zachary Beaver must have, sitting every day in a cramped trailer while people come by to gawk at him." Toby has troubles of his own: the girl of his dreams is interested in someone else and his mother has gone off to Nashville to pursue her career as a country-and-western singer. Then Zachary's guardian and business partner disappears, leaving the teen alone. Curiosity leads Toby and Cal back to the trailer, and over the course of the summer, the boys learn about themselves and the true meaning of love and friendship. Toby immediately draws readers into his story. His voice is believable, and he exhibits the typical problems of a 13-year-old. Then, of course, there is Zachary Beaver. The characters' reactions to him, ranging from the townspeople who look at him as a sideshow attraction to those who grow curious/concerned about him as a person, are equally well drawn. The setting and Vietnam-era time frame are deftly realized. Holt has crafted a remarkable story about finding yourself by opening up to the people around you. An excellent choice to read alone or aloud.-Margaret Jennings, Orange County Library System, Orlando, FL

Copyright 1999 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from September 15, 1999
Gr. 6^-9. Nothing much happens in Antler, Texas, a place too small and boring for 13-year-old Toby Wilson's mom, who has left to try and be a country music star. She used to work at the Bowl-a-Rama Cafe, which sits across the road from the Dairy Maid. It's the summer of 1971. Toby's best friend is Cal, whose older brother is away serving in Vietnam. Then a stranger comes to town. He is Zachary Beaver, a 600-pound teenager, "the fattest man in the world," who never leaves his trailer. At first Toby and Cal come to gape at the freak show with everyone else, but when Zachary's manager disappears, the boys slowly get to know Zachary. They fight off the gawkers. With others in the town, they bring him food. Eventually, they help him step outside--not that Zachary is sweet and grateful. He's a mean liar, rude and angry, as well as achingly vulnerable. They all are. As in her first novel, "My Louisiana Sky" (1998), a "Booklist" 1999 Editors' Choice, Holt humanizes the outsider without sentimentality. Through Toby's first-person, present-tense narrative, readers get to know the place in all its flashy particulars and its gentleness. Teens will recognize how people can shut themselves into spaces that are too tight and how even a best friend can be a dork, especially when there's jealousy and failure. Some scenes are unforgettable: when Cal's mother gets the news that her son is dead in Vietnam, when Toby tries to apologize to Cal for not being able to face the funeral and their furious quarrel gives way to tears and laughter. In the tradition of many southern writers, Holt reveals the freak in all of us--and the hope of redemption. ((Reviewed September 15, 1999))(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 1999, American Library Association.)