Review: Huge by Sasha Paley

Aug 28, 2010 by shanyn

Title: Huge
Hardcover, 272 pages
Author: Sasha Paley
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Publication Date: May 22, 2010
Source: Purchased
Buy: Amazon

Book Summary:
April and Wil couldn’t be more different, but both of them are spending the summer at Wellness Canyon — otherwise known as a weight-loss camp.

April knows that if she could just drop a little weight, she would be popular like she’s always wanted. She’s saved up for months to afford Wellness Canyon, which is more like a posh spa than a sleepaway camp. While April can’t wait to jump into all the activities, Wil can’t wait to get out of there. Her parents own a chain of high-profile fitness centers, and she’s pretty sure her mom and dad sent her to Wellness Canyon to slim down before any embarrassing stories about their obese daughter hit the gossip pages. To get revenge on her parents, Wil decides she’s going to gain weight at Wellness Canyon.

It’s bad enough that they have to share a room, but things really get ugly when April and Wil both fall for Colin, the sarcastic camp hottie. Are April and Wil destined to be frenemies all summer, or can they overcome their sizeable differences? Filled with everything great about summer camp (and none of the calories), this is a funny, emotional novel about learning to accept yourself — no matter what your size.

Review:
I really love summer camp. I went to one for 14 years (!!!) including working on staff for a few summers. Unfortunately I don’t see many books written in this setting – but was very excited to get a copy of Huge on an outing to a bookstore.

Huge is based at a weight loss camp, which kind of reminded me of Heavyweights (the movie). Unlike Heavyweights, I had a bit of a problem choosing which character to root for – because, quite frankly, I didn’t like Wil OR April, the two roommates we follow through the camp adventures. After awhile they do start to grow on you, so they weren’t ALL bad. I just found Wil to be a little too negative/rude and April a little too whiny/awkward for my tastes.

Regardless, the story was fun and I kept picking up the book to read more. There are the usual “Camp Olympics” (doesn’t it seem like every book about camp involve Olympics?), and most of the events were very predictable, but those interested in reading this particular book are probably looking for entertainment rather than a deep, thought provoking read, and I think that this book certainly qualifies for the former.

Pretty predictable but fun nonetheless, Huge is a great summer or beach read, especially for those that have attended camp themselves!

(ABC Family has a new television series based on this book – appropriately titled “Huge” – I think I will check it out to see if it’s any fun!)