Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Unavailable
    Fat Cat
    Unavailable
    Fat Cat
    Unavailable
    Fat Cat
    Audiobook8 hours

    Fat Cat

    Written by Robin Brande

    Narrated by Kirsten Potter

    4/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    Read the ebook instead

    About this audiobook

    You are what you eat. . . .

    Cat smart, sassy, and funny-but thin, she's not. Until her class science project. That's when she winds up doing an experiment-on herself. Before she knows it, Cat is living-and eating-like the hominids, our earliest human ancestors. True, no chips or TV is a bummer and no car is a pain, but healthful eating and walking everywhere do have their benefits.

    As the pounds drop off, the guys pile on. All this newfound male attention is enough to drive a girl crazy! If only she weren't too busy hating Matt McKinney to notice. . . .

    This funny and thoughtful novel explores how girls feel about their bodies, and the ways they can best take care of their most precious resource: themselves.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPenguin Random House Audio
    Release dateOct 13, 2009
    ISBN9780307579911
    Author

    Robin Brande

    Award-winning author Robin Brande is a former trial attorney, entrepreneur, martial artist, law instructor, yoga teacher, wilderness adventurer, and certified wilderness medic. Her novels have been named Best Fiction for Young Adults by the American Library Association. She was selected as the Judy Goddard/Libraries Ltd. Arizona Young Adult Author of the Year in 2013. She writes fantasy, science fiction, contemporary young adult fiction, and romance.   

    Related to Fat Cat

    Related audiobooks

    YA Social Themes For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      Cat Videos and #MeToo

      Feb 5, 2018

      “We use the nature we find, then make up the rest,” goes a line by Alexis Madrigal, my favorite sentence in an anthology of writing about cat videos, Cat is Art Spelled Wrong. Actually, I would add, using nature and making it up often amount to the s

      5 min read

    • Article

      A feline CATASTROPHE MICHELE A’COURT

      Dec 5, 2021

      On a pretty regular basis I will read about a fancy piece of research reported in what I still call “the newspaper” (by which I mean a reputable source on my phone) and I think, “Yeah, I could have told them that.” Not in a smug way, more in an affir

      2 min read

    • Article

      Muse Mail

      Nov 1, 2019

      Muse Mail
      4 min read

    • Article

      I can SPEAK DOG!

      Aug 27, 2020

      Laura Vissaritis, 38, Melbourne, Vic Feeling overwhelmed with sadness, I buried my head into my dog Spotty’s silky soft fur. ‘We’ll get through this together,’ I told him. I was 11 and grieving after losing my beloved dad to brain cancer. Devastate

      3 min read

    • Article

      A for Adoption

      Dec 1, 2019

      A for Adoption
      5 min read

    • Article

      The Source Of All Evil

      May 19, 2022

      I’ve worked it out. I’ve worked out the reason for the parlous state of the world. It’s cats. Hear me out. I love cats. But they’re the source of all evil. I didn’t always think like this. And I still love them, which speaks volumes about me, I dares

      2 min read

    • Article

      Muse Mail

      Nov 1, 2020

      Muse Mail
      4 min read

    • Article

      From The Editor-in-chief

      Jan 15, 2023

      From The Editor-in-chief
      2 min read

    • Article

      AFFIRMATIVE: Meow.

      Mar 16, 2023

      AFFIRMATIVE: Meow.
      2 min read

    • Article

      What Do Dogs Know About Us?

      Sep 16, 2022

      What Do Dogs Know About Us?
      7 min read

    • Article

      Good Companions

      Mar 9, 2022

      Okay, I admit, I screamed. At the other end of her lead Tatty was finishing off the biggest, fattest rat since the Black Death. Owning a dog turns out to be quite eventful. That was her third rat to be notched up alongside the multitudinous other ver

      3 min read

    • Article

      Let’s Put A Stop To This Crap

      Aug 26, 2021

      Let’s Put A Stop To This Crap
      6 min read

    • Article

      Cats That Got The Cream

      Apr 29, 2021

      Cats That Got The Cream
      2 min read

    • Article

      Our House Is A ZOO

      Oct 8, 2020

      Our House Is A ZOO
      3 min read

    • Article

      Litter Bugs

      Oct 23, 2023

      Decisions, decisions. Which one would it be? Should I choose the one that cares most about the cost of living? Or the one claiming to be organic? Or perhaps I should choose the one that reckons it can hide the fact that things stink? You’d have thoug

      2 min read

    • Article

      Starting Out ON THE RIGHT FOOT

      Jan 22, 2021

      Starting Out ON THE RIGHT FOOT
      2 min read

    • Article

      Nine Lives Of Satchmo

      Oct 2, 2023

      Nine Lives Of Satchmo
      2 min read

    • Article

      What Is My Dog Thinking?

      Sep 26, 2023

      What Is My Dog Thinking?
      7 min read

    • Article

      New Furkid On The Block

      Feb 2, 2018

      New Furkid On The Block
      2 min read

    • Article

      Sam Delaney Is At Home

      Mar 4, 2024

      Should they get elected, the Labour Party have said they will train up “positive male influencers” to go into schools and teach young lads not to be dickheads. This, they reckon, is a necessary response to the insidious influence of internet weirdos

      2 min read

    • Article

      The Rat Race

      Jun 18, 2021

      It’s about 10 pm. My husband, wearing a head torch, has just walked out of the back door with a jar of peanut butter in one hand and a spatula and bottled water in the other. The cats and I silently raise our eyebrows at one another, then carry on ab

      3 min read

    • Article

      Pleased To Meet You

      Jul 22, 2020

      Pleased To Meet You
      4 min read

    • Article

      Letters

      Jul 22, 2020

      After all the negative letters on the renewal of shotgun/firearm certificates, I can only thank Suffolk police at Martlesham Heath for their super-fast service. I sent my application in on 3 July and received my new certificate on the 8th. Well done

      4 min read

    Reviews for Fat Cat

    4/5

    146 ratings22 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 4/5
      For her science research project, Cat decides to live as a hominum did, reverting to as natural a diet and way of life as possible. Within a few months, the nickname Fat Cat no longer fits her, and her relationships and self image begin to change.
    • 4/5
      For more reviews, Cover Snark and more, visit A Reader of Fictions.I’m grateful that Rose recommended Fat Cat by Robin Brande, because I’m not sure if I would have ever gotten around to it otherwise. Somehow it had been almost entirely off of my radar, which is a shame because this book is pretty damn awesome. It’s one of those books very driven by narrative voice, and I happen to love Cat’s voice. Brande tackles some sensitive issues, like weight and diet, thoughtfully and with an eye towards making healthy choices, not to conforming to society.Fat Cat is one of those books where the fat heroine does lose a lot of the weight by the end, so if that’s not what you want be warned. However, I do think it happens in a really great way. Cat doesn’t lose the weight through a crash diet or anything and she does so for herself with lifestyle changes. I love that at the end it’s stressed that Cat lost the weight for herself and not so that people will think of her differently. She also really considers the behavior of people towards her, and looks askance at those that only liked her after she lost the weight. Brande definitely does not come across as fat-shaming Cat, which I think is the most important thing.Cat’s got a really great voice. She’s funny and a little judgmental. She’s also inquisitive and set in her ways. She has a lot of trouble looking past her own viewpoint, which is completely accurate. Fat Cat is Cat’s emotional journey to self-awareness and self-acceptance. One of the things she learns, that I also learned and continue to learn even at 26, is that a lot of beauty lies in confidence. If you feel ugly and uncomfortable, you project that and people are more likely to perceive you that way. Looking back at my high school photos, all of my smiles look pained, because, though I’d gotten cuter than in middle school, I still felt ugly and unwanted; in my middle school photos, I mostly just glowered. If you hate yourself, it shows and makes other people more tempted to do the same. That’s hackneyed, but it also happens to be true. Brande really stresses the fact that it’s your opinion of yourself that matters more than any other.In addition to Cat, I love Amanda, and their friendship. She and Amanda are very different people in a lot of ways, but they have one of the best YA friendships. Amanda and Cat support each other, even if it’s sometimes inconvenient. Cat agrees to give dating a try because Amanda thinks it might be good for her. She also agrees to help Amanda keep a restaurant going. In turn, Amanda’s fully supportive of Cat’s project to live like a hominin, despite believing the project to be overambitious. What’s great is that they don’t always agree but they do help out as much as they can; they express dissenting opinions but agree on a course of action together and have each other’s back all through the process.The romance was really well done too, with Cat getting to date a couple of different guys before hooking up with the ship, who I totally called by the way and, yes, I ship it. I love the YA novels where the heroine doesn’t HEA with the first guy she ever dates. Even better, Cat very clearly has difficult handling emotions and figuring out whether she’s interested in a particular guy. Then there’s the divide between emotional and physical attraction; I loved the way she was carried away by lust with Nick, despite herself. Such things do not happen enough in YA novels.The one aspect I didn’t super love was the science fair thing. First of all, this school sounded ridiculous to me, because it’s public but has all of these classes I don’t think most public schools offer, like this advanced science course all geared towards the science fair or sign language. There were a few more, but they escape me at the moment. Anyway, the science fair projects that both she and Matt do don’t really seem particularly original, which would be fine if Cat didn’t make them out to be the best teen scientists to ever happen. The ending helped with this a bit, but I got bored of this aspect really quickly.Fat Cat made me laugh and smile many times. It’s a fluffy, heart-warming book full of humor and great attitudes. This is a book that I think needs a whole lot more buzz. I’ll definitely be looking for more Robin Brande, because this was fabulous.
    • 4/5
      When Cat has to choose a science project for school, she embarks on an incredible mission - to give up technology and live (as closely as she can) like the early hominids. That means no soda, no processed food (including sugar), no TV, no cell phones (or any phones, for that matter)... Cat aims to win the annual science fair and rub it in the face of her arch-nemesis (and ex-best friend) Matt McKinley, but she's also hoping to see some changes in herself. As Cat loses weight, she gains self-confidence. I liked the story, but I felt like there was too much going on. The novel would have been better with a little more focus. That said, it's an original concept that's sure to inspire some teens to examine their own diets and possibly try to eat healthier. It does this, for the most part, without getting too preachy.
    • 3/5
      Cat is obsessed with hating Matt Mckinney. All she wants is to beat him in the science fair. Then she gets the picture and her science fair project takes on a life of it's own. She's eating the way the hominids did and kicking technology out of her life. As she changes her diet and walks everywhere, the pounds start melting off and the male population takes notice.

      I really enjoyed reading this. Cat was incredibly funny and I loved the relationship she had with Amanda, Jordan and her parents. The relationship she developed with her brother was just amazing to watch and reminded me of how my relationships with my sister developed.

      I also really appreciated that the book was't preachy about the diet and technology give up. Yes Cat clearly felt this was working very well for her but it didn't feel like it was pushing it b/c it was more about Cat's internal change. I was also happy that the author stressed that even though Matt could be considered the catalyst for the change, really Cat did everything for herself.

      I did have to giggle a little bit about what Cat would sometimes consider a "technology worthy emergency". They were very much teenage girl type emergencies. Also Amanda was an amazing friend and everyone should be so lucky to have a friend like that in their life.
    • 4/5
      For her science research project, Cat decides to live as a hominum did, reverting to as natural a diet and way of life as possible. Within a few months, the nickname Fat Cat no longer fits her, and her relationships and self image begin to change.
    • 4/5
      This YA book was wonderful! I have not read enough YA books to generalize but FAT CAT offers the reader a strong teenage female lead which is always a good role model for the age group reached by this book (Unusual back in the day when I was reading YA because I was a YA.) Cat is a bright high school junior trying to win a science fair. The topic was randomly assigned by picking a picture from a group the teacher provided. Cat was hoping for insects but instead ended up researching Hominids (female cave dwellers). To personalize the project she decides to live as much like a Hominid as possible in the 21st century. During the 7 months it takes to complete the project Cat not only transforms herself, but learns some important life lessons along the way. Cat and her best friend Amanda are smart, creative, talented, and just sassy enough to make them believable teenagers. This book does deal with some issues like being overweight, friendships and dating/family/sibling relationships but does so in a positive way. For myself as a reader, the only negative was that the book “preached” a little with regards to the benefits of a vegetarian diet. There is nothing wrong with that per se, but seeing the target reading audience is impressionable young people (girls) who may be battling weight issues of their own (be they real or perceived) … I felt the message just a little too strong.
    • 5/5
      I picked this book up because Meg Cabot praised it on her blog, and I was glad I did! Cat's struggles as an overweight but ambitious teen really struck home for me--and her struggle to survive (literally, at times!) her science project was riveting! I wish I could demonstrate the strength she shows in "living like a primiative homo erectus" for a year, but I just love my Pepsi Max a little bit too much....
    • 5/5
      I read a review for this book more than 2 years ago that pretty much said great things. So, when I saw this at my library, I immediately picked it up. I'm so happy I did because I absolutely loved this book!The book starts out with Cat getting an assignment, an assignment that is known around the school to give students a meltdown for how important it is for their grade. At the end of the year the students take their project to a science fair. For the assignment the students have to draw a picture and come up with a project from the picture. Cat draws a picture of early hominids. So she decides that she is going to start living like the early hominids did. No processed food, no soda, no internet or TV. This is going to be hard for Cat because all she eats seems to be junk food. But she's determined because this year she is going to beat her ex best friend at this science fair.I pretty much loved all the characters. I loved Cat and her best friend, Amanda, and even though Cat defines Matt as a jerk throughout most of the book, I also loved him. This book is mostly about Cat eating healthy and getting back into shape. Since she can't use cars to get her around she ends up walking almost everywhere, and she starts cooking everything for herself. I loved reading about Cat's transformation. I also loved reading about Cat's dating experiences. They're were plenty of time where I found myself laughing out loud. Which pretty much sums up the whole book. It's very funny and lighthearted, but also serious at times. I loved this book and I wish it got a little more attention.
    • 5/5
      This book is so much more splendid than its cover. Cat goes on a diet, becomes hot, finds happiness. Cat is smart and hilarious, and a good friend - she is not a cardboard cut out of a fat girl with a skinny girl waiting to get out. Her weight loss is part of a science experiment about healthy lifestyles - she is awesome before the diet, and has a great life, she's not moping in a corner. I loved Cat, her honesty, her best friend, her complicated relationship with her ex-best friend a ex-crush - the whole book was delightful. I love that Cat was powerful, and the change in her appearance has so much more depth than a girl gets makeover and life changes story. I'd give this book to people looking for a funny teen school story or romance.
    • 2/5
      I really wanted to love Fat Cat. When I first read the summary I thought that Fat Cat sounded like a really unique and fun read. While the plot make have been unique, I don’t feel that it was executed very well. I honestly don’t even have much to say about Fat Cat.Fat Cat started off well. I enjoyed reading about Cat and her body image issues. Overall, Cat was a very intelligent and likeable character. In particular I enjoyed reading about her relationship with her little brother. The moments shared between Cat and her brother were very touching and sweet. I also liked how Cat eventually becomes a vegetarian. I’m a vegetarian so I thought it was a nice touch.The biggest problem with Fat Cat was that it really started to get very preachy at some point. I already knew that junk food was bad for me before reading Fat Cat. I didn’t need to be lectured about the negative effects of it! This just annoyed me so much that it keep me from enjoying much of the second half of the book. I eventually started to skim through the second half because I still wanted to see the outcome. Once I started skipping over some of the nutrition advice I actually started to enjoy Fat Cat again.Overall, Fat Cat started off really well but, somewhere along the line it turned into an issues book. I would recommend Fat Cat to anyone thinking about making a change in their diet or wanting to learn more about nutrition. As for everyone else, I would tell them to skip it unless they want to feel guilty for eating Oreos!
    • 4/5
      Recommended to me by a coworker, I was apprehensive, based on the cover photos (measuring tape) and the title. But it turns out I should have trusted my coworker. Robin Brande's novel was pretty damn awesome. It's about being overweight, it's about dealing with it -- and with the people around you. It's all wrapped up a bit too nicely, but sometimes that's exactly what you need.
    • 5/5
      Loved, loved, loved this one. What a fantastic take on a coming of age story. You've got a strong MC who is also very smart, best friends that truly care for one another, and some fun love interests. When you mix those wonderful characters together with excellent writing and a well thought out plot, you get Fat Cat.Anyone will love Cat. She is very smart and very in to science. But she is also very funny. She is over weight, because she eats junk food as a way to relieve stress. (Who can't relate to that?) She takes on this big science project for school. She will live the life of a Hominine. This means a very natural diet and no modern technology. (For the most part) Through this experiment, Cat's whole life changes. She loses weight, becomes more active, and generally becomes a happier person. I loved the healthy approach to losing weight in Fat Cat. It wasn't the "I hate my body" then crash diet scene. Teens and adults alike can learn to take a healthier approach to their food from this book. I know I couldn't even look at chips while reading. I went for the strawberries. I adored Cat's best friend, Amanda. They were exactly how best friends should be, looking out for one another and rooting each other on. I hope to see more friends like this in YA.When Cats loses the weight, the boys start to notice. This brings in the love interests. I knew very soon who I wanted Cat to be with. Cat had to grow as a person before she could be with the right guy, and this made the story realistic for me. I enjoyed this book from cover to cover. It made me grow not only as a reader, but as a healthier person as well. And Fat Cat did it in a way that kept a smile on my face the whole time. I think Fat Cat is a book that anyone can enjoy. This talented writer has me hooked as a reader. I will definitely be reading more from Brande, no matter what her covers look like.
    • 5/5
      Catherine Locke, a Junior in High School has always loved science and math. Which explains her dreams of becoming a famous scientist one day. This is the reason why she takes Mr. Fizer's Topics in Science Research class, in which participating in the Science Fair is a requirement of the class. Most of all she wants to beat Matt McKinney in the science fair, the boy who broke her heart in Middle School in which we learned they were once the best of friends long before.When Cat is asked to go up to Mr. Fizer's desk to pull out a picture from his file (A folder filled with pictures from a variety of magazines that Mr. Fizer collects)in which the picture determines what your science project will be about, Cat gets the surprise of her life. What seems to be a lousy topic (A picture of two hominims surrounding a dead animal) turns out to be a window of opportunity.And so begins Cat's crazy, funny, ingenious tale of changing her liefstyle to that of the early hominims. No processed food, no technology, and lots and lots of walking! Not to mention that she has a good chance of seeking revenge from Matt McKinney if she wins the Science Fair. With the support of her best friend Amanda, Cat starts to physically evolve into a person completely different then before- She begins to loose weight (Hence the name Fat Cat)Cat was once a physically fit girl. She used to love swimming and she even participated in a few competitions. But once she entered puberty, her body began to have mind of its own and the pounds began to build up. Pretty soon a few people started calling her Fat Cat. But nothing could top off what she overheard Matt McKinney say at the science fair during 7th grade. This being the very reason why to this day Cat is no longer his friend and feels nothing but loathe and hate for him.I love how Cat is so smart, witty, yet insecure. She's so different from most girls we read about in contemporary fiction, let alone in YA fiction. There is nothing artificial in this character, even though she is a work of fiction, many girls who read this book will bond with Catherine. I can't explain just how touched i was reading how Cat dealt with her weight issue. I know how it feels to be ridiculed because of one's weight. But what truly matters is who we are inside and how our minds and intellect can surpass the physical aspect.If there is one thing i have learned when it comes to writing a book or a story, your characters should be as life like as possible and the reader should be able to relate to them, especially the protagonist. Robin Brande does an incredible job with the characters in this book, especially Cat! She truly captures the struggles that many teen girls go through because of their body image!As well as the meaning of true friendship. The dialogue between Cat and Amanda is wonderful and true. While reading this book i felt very connected with Cat. I laughed, i felt heartache and i cried as i read her story. A story of a girl and friendship, heartache, love, ideas, and most of all- Forgiveness.All my girls! Please check out this book! You will not be disappointed!
    • 4/5
      This young adult novel is one of my all-time favorites. It's funny, sweet and meaningful. Cat is an amazing heroine and her journey can be enjoyed by anyone.
    • 4/5
      I liked this book a lot. Cat is smart and realizes by the end that the changes she has made were for herself. I think that’s a valuable lesson for teen girls. All too often this is where the framework is laid for women to become pleasers, side-lining our own desires and needs. She re-discovers some of her interests that she had given up long ago. Her parents were involved, present and had a healthy outlook. (It seems as soon I started to remark on the lack of presence of parents in YA books, I bombarded with books of parents very involved. Lol) She approaches her diet changes in a healthy manner also. She consults a dietician and monitors all aspects of her experiment. The only thing that frustrated me at times were Cat’s ability to hold a grudge. I’m not the grudge bearing type of person, so I was shocked by her tenacity in that manner. Her devotion to her family and friends was exemplary. The cover was unique and beautiful (you had to know I’d love that purple). I would say this is a read for 15 and up.
    • 4/5
      Overachieving high schooler Cat is determined to ace her science project and beat her ex-best friend Matt McKinney at the science fair. Since the competition is so intense, Cat knows she has to do something drastic -- she will use herself as a test subject. She has always struggled with her weight, so decides to essentially live like a caveman by eating unprocessed foods and walking everywhere. What starts as an experiment changes Cat in unexpected ways and may just change her long-strained relationship with Matt.Cat's transformation is inspiring, especially since it comes from a healthy relationship with food. The ending is fairly predictable, but the journey is fun and full of characters that you can't help but love.
    • 3/5
      Unusual premise: a girl uses the excuse of a science project to live as pre-historic people did, thus eliminated processed food and the over-use of technology. She drops weight and gathers the attention of the boys in her school. Very entertaining and thought-provoking
    • 3/5
      I had a lot of problems with this book, and I would have easily overlooked them if I had otherwise been enchanted. I wasn't. I enjoyed reading it while I was reading it, but I would not recommend it to people.I appreciated that no actual numbers are used, as they really can be triggering, and I certainly don't want to read about someone overweight and then find out that they supposedly weigh a good twenty pounds less than me. I grew angry with the best friend character (bfc), when Cat says she does not want to date right now, the bfc yells at her, tells her she will die alone as a dried up old hag, and kind of tricks her into meeting the blind date guy anyway.The plot is pretty predictable, and I guess I don't mind that, since what I really mind is the depiction of overweight people as unhappy slobs who got fat by eating three candy bars in a sitting and then Doritos for dinner. Cat makes a giant discovery that eating no/less meat, whole grains, and lots of veggies while also walking everywhere instead of driving will make you lose weight. ALERT THE MEDIA. While this is all true stuff, many of the overweight kids who would be drawn to this book are the ones who have tried to lose weight before and are frustrated, I don't think there is anything about this book that would have interested me if it weren't for my lifelong struggles with weight. So, the ease with which the fat "melts" off her body somewhat alienates the audience, I think. She suffers from cravings and caffeine withdrawal, but never backslides or "falls off the wagon".
    • 4/5
      Cat is smart and funny but she struggles with her weight. For a science project she decides to do an experiment with herself as the subject. She decides she is going to eat as close to the diet as the early hominids did as she can and see the effect it has on her health and body. She is also hoping this experiment will be enough to beat her rival, Matt McKinney, who was once her best friend and long time crush, in the annual science fair competition.Despite being somewhat predictable I really enjoyed this book. It was a quick read that I finished in one day. Once Cat dropped junk food from her diet, started walking everywhere and disconnecting herself from technology as much as possible the pounds started melting off. She soon finds herself the attention of several guys including Matt. Watching her various dates with a wide range of guys was funny and listening to Cat’s thoughts throughout this process was intriguing. There was also a cute side story regarding Cat’s younger brother and his own self-esteem. A thoroughly enjoyable read.
    • 5/5
      Cat has the best plan for her science class research and experimentation project. It’s practically guaranteed that she’ll beat Matt McKinney, her intellectual rival and ex-best friend who betrayed her in middle school on account of her weight. Using herself as a test subject, Cat plans to return to the days of the early Homo erectus and live a similar lifestyle: no processed foods, no modern utilities, no transportation except on foot.Her plan needs a bit of tweaking, but the thing that really needs to change is Cat’s attitude towards herself. She’s doing this for the grade and to beat Matt…or does she also want to not be fat anymore? And as more and more mediocre guys begin to pay attention to her, will Cat realize that the lack of spark may not be because she’s not interested in love…but rather that her heart was stolen already years before?Brilliance like this unfortunately still rarely exists in YA lit, and it’s a real shame, because YA lit needs more authors like Robin Brande. FAT CAT is funny, wise, super-intelligent, and heart-stoppingly romantic. It’s the kind of book that makes you smile weeks after reading it as you remember why you still enjoy and read YA contemporary realistic fiction.Readers of all shapes and sizes (body and brain) will be able to connect with Cat. Hers is the voice of a levelheaded, smart, yet insecure teenager. Brande does not dumb down her fictional teenagers, with the surprising yet joyful result that they will end up appealing to everyone. How often do we get to read about smart girls who are good at and into math and science? Not often enough; my inner physicist is jumping with happiness even as I write this and reflect on FAT CAT.Cat—and thus, us readers—learns an important lesson without sounding aggressively moralistic. The theme of FAT CAT is a powerful one, hinting at the harmful effects of our modern-day materialistic, processed consumerist culture. Cat’s development from bitter girl with a low body image to a happier, healthier, more energetic, and more creative young woman may just about turn smart readers off of junk food. I honestly laid off the Oreos for several weeks after reading this book, so unappealing the thought of sweets were to me. Rarely does a book have so strong a hold on me in the rest of my life!The first half of the story focuses on Cat’s science project, while the second half discusses more her relationships with other people. The change of scope is a little bizarre and disconcerting, most likely because the science part is so wonderful to read, but I appreciated the character development of this book. The main “cast” of characters is great, particularly Cat’s best friend, as well as Cat’s romance.FAT CAT is a story you catch yourself thinking about randomly even weeks after reading it. It’s also the book you’ll want to talk about to your friends, your mother, your teacher, that random middle-aged lady sitting next to you at the bus stop….It’s the book that you’ll hold up and say, “See? This is what quality YA literature is like. Now excuse me while I reread it; you may get your own copy elsewhere, if you’d like.”
    • 5/5
      This was a great book, I read straight through in 2.5 hours. I couldn't put it down. Brande's writing really took you into Cat's world, and kept you there. I haven't read any of Robin Brande's other books, but I thought this was a great book with a unique idea. So many chick-lit books are the same thing over and over, but this had an interesting new twist on it. The main character, Cat goes through a very interesting experiment for her science class. With this experiment she puts on herself, she finds some very drastic changes, mostly postitive but some negative. In Fat Cat, Cat really analyzes herself and is a great example of what would be great if so many girls could do. So much negative image is placed on girls that aren't the perfect size and shape. I really liked the message Brande was sending through her book. The character were written to seem very realistic and all had depth beyond the writing. Cat for example had the thoughts the average teenager would have, and nothing went perfect for her. She had her moments of doubt and such. Cat's best friend was the one who was always there for her and just brought so much more to the story through her compassion and kindness. I must say, just by reading the back of the book, this probably wouldn't have been a book I would've picked up. But after reading it, it was just great. It was different than the usual books I read, and I discovered a great new book. :)
    • 4/5
      At the tender age of 8, Catherine Locke realizes that she is overweight. But her best friend, Matt, has always been there for her. When seventh grade arrives and Cat overhears a conversation between Matt and a different classmate, she’s changed forever. How could she be friends with someone who thinks of her that way? Four years later, Catherine is still trying to get over Matt. She has a different best friend now! Cat doesn’t need Matt anymore. Being a Science ‘geek‘, Catherine decides that her Science experiment will be life-changing. Maybe she can lose a few pounds along the way. After losing a drastic amount of weight, all she needs is a boyfriend. But what if the person she is in love is the one she has been avoiding for four years?Fat Cat is another weight loss book, the theme that is a little over used nowadays. It’s hard for a book like that to seem unique, but with the eye-catching cover and the writing of perfection, I have a feeling this one will make it far in the Reader’s World. Catherine is a likable main character (something every book needs) and the challenges she faces aren’t all due to being overweight, which I find is a nice twist. To make it more interesting, Cat’s logic is completely the opposite of mine so whatever she does or says is surprising for me. I think the author could have done a better job with adding Cat’s relationship with her younger brother into the chapters she’s with her friends and such but, overall, I enjoyed this book. I am sure others will too!Publication date: October 13th, 2009Contains:*sensuality*inappropriate touching (which is portrayed as wrong)*some crude humor