Fat Boy vs. the Cheerleaders/Gabe Johnson Takes Over
Written by Geoff Herbach

Publisher’s Summary:
Join a cast of quirky misfits as fat boy Gabe, aka Chunk, goes up against the high school cheerleading team in a battle over control of the school’s soda machine. A marching band geek who drowns his dysfunctional family woes in a voracious soda habit, Gabe relishes his role as class clown, fending off harassment from students and teachers with his own brand of irreverent, self-deprecating humor. But when the cheerleading team takes over the funds previously collected by the band, Gabe will not stand for it. Something must be done.

Primary Source Pairing:
Gabe Johnson is mad, and his dependency on Code Red Mountain Dew doesn’t help him think straight. The pop machine is more expensive and his ability to justify the expense is gone since the money is not going to the band anymore. It’s going to the dance team. This book’s evolution is a fascinating one. When it was published in paperback, not only did it get a new cover, it also got a new title. Read more about that on Stacked Books blog site: http://stackedbooks.org/2015/06/hardcover-to-paperback-makeovers-5.html. For this primary source pairing, invite students to study both versions of the cover and discuss the change in artwork and the new title.

Questions for Discussion:

• Describe what you see.
• What do you notice first?
• What people and objects are shown?
• Which book cover are you most intrigued by?
• Which book cover and title do you think most represents the book?
• What would you add or take away from the book covers to make them represent the story more?
• If you were to design your own book cover, what would you include?

Credits:
Book Covers and Summary: Follett