What S Eating Gilbert Grape

“Wonderfully entertaining . . . This distinctive first novel goes down like a chocolate milkshake but boasts the sharpness and finesse of a complex wine” (Publishers Weekly). Gilbert Grape is a twenty-four-year-old grocery store clerk stuck in Endora, Iowa, where the population is 1,091 and shrinking. After the suicide of Gilbert’s father, his family never fully recovered. Once the town beauty queen, Gilbert’s mother is now morbidly obese and planted eternally in front of the TV; his younger sister has recently turned both boy-crazy and God-fearing, while his older sister sacrifices everything for her family. And then there’s Arnie, Gilbert’s younger brother with special needs. With no one else to care for Arnie, Gilbert becomes his brother’s main parent, and all four siblings must tend to the needs of their helpless, grieving mother. So Gilbert is in a rut—until a mysterious new girl named Becky arrives in this small town. As his family gathers for Arnie’s eighteenth birthday, Gilbert finds himself at a crossroads . . . This “completely original” portrait of a family (The New York Times), “charged with sardonic intelligence” (The Washington Post Book World), was the basis for a film starring Johnny Depp and Leonardo DiCaprio, and stands as one of the most memorable novels of recent decades. “Sometimes funny, sometimes sad . . . and always engaging.” —The Atlantic “By the book’s exhilaratingly luminous ending . . . we have already been mesmerized.” —The Philadelphia Inquirer “A funny, touching, caring first novel whose characters are familiar and moving in spite of (or perhaps because of) their peculiarities.” —Booklist

The coming-of-age of a 24-year-old grocery clerk who has spent his entire life in an Iowa town with a population of 1091.

A “funny and supremely moving”novel about a seven-year-old navigating a world of turmoil by the author of What’s Eating Gilbert Grape (Harper’s Bazaar). Seven-year-old Scotty Ocean decides that seven is going to be “his year.” But soon after his birthday, his artist-turned-alcoholic mother abandons the family—leaving Scotty and his two older sisters alone with their father. As his perfect year falls apart, Scotty begins to act out during school and takes a series of increasingly wild actions to try to win his mother back—and, when that doesn’t work, to replace her. Funny and deeply affecting, An Ocean in Iowa traces Scotty’s desperate attempt to hold on to his childhood while the foundation of his family disintegrates. As Scotty’s year as a seven-year-old flies by—and the dreaded eight approaches—Peter Hedges explores how Scotty sheds his childhood in a one-eighty of the year he hoped would be so perfect. Beautifully written, and with careful attention to period detail, this compelling coming-of-age novel sets the private turmoil of a disintegrating family against the backdrop of the Vietnam War and the turbulent 1960s. “A delightful romp through the age of seven with an endearing character who revels in life’s smallest details.” —The Christian Science Monitor

Insight Text Guide for Peter Hedges' What's Eating Gilbert Grape.

Hailed as the best actor of his generation when he was only 20 years old, Leonardo DiCaprio has repeatedly shocked the Hollywood establishment by turning down roles he felt were "too commercial" or "too mundane". This revealing book at this talented young star covers DiCaprio's fascinating life and successful film career. 40 photos.

Tim Welch is a popular history teacher at the Montague Academy, an exclusive private school in Brooklyn Heights. As he says, "I was an odd-looking, gawky kid but I like to think my rocky start forced me to develop empathy, kindness, and a tendency to be enthusiastic. All of this, I'm now convinced, helped in my quest to be worthy of Kate Oliver." Now, Kate is not inherently ordinary. But she aspires to be. She stays home with their two young sons in a modest apartment trying desperately to become the parent she never had. They are seemingly the last middle-class family in the Heights, whose world is turned upside down by Anna Brody, the new neighbor who moves into the most expensive brownstone in Brooklyn, sending the local society into a tailspin. Anna is not only beautiful and wealthy; she's also mysterious. And for reasons Kate doesn't quite understand, even as all the Range Rover- driving moms jockey for invitations into Anna's circle, Anna sets her sights on Kate and Tim and brings them into her world. Like Tom Perrotta, Peter Hedges has a keen eye for the surprising truths of daily life. The Heights is at once light of touch and packed with emotion and depth of character. Watch a Video

As USA TODAY, The Nation's No. 1 Newspaper, puts it, Johnny Depp "clearly has a blast transforming his handsome self into some strange cinematic characters." Depp's career took off in 1987 when he signed up to play a cop on the television series 21 Jump Street. His good looks earned him plenty of attention and plenty of money. But Depp had no interest in being a TV star or a teen idol. He wanted interesting roles in challenging films. He disappeared into the title roles in Edward Scissorhands, What's Eating Gilbert Grape, Donnie Brasco, and Ed Wood. Then in 2003, a new Depp character introduced the actor to a new generation of moviegoers. He became Captain Jack Sparrow the gold-toothed, swaggering, and completely untrustworthy leader of the Pirates of the Caribbean. In his third decade as an actor, Depp is respected by critics and popular with a wide range of fans. He's at the top of his career and still having a blast.

This demonization of the overweight by the media and politicians is unrelenting. Sarah Boseley, the Guardian's award-winning health editor, argues it's time we understood the complex reality of what makes us fat. Speaking to behavioural scientists and industry experts, yo-yo dieters and people who have gone under the knife,Boseley builds a picture of an obesogenic society - one where we're constantly bombarded by the twin evils of big budget food marketing and the diet industry. Filled with in-depth, original reporting, Boseley reveals just how widespread the problem is - 1 in 4 of us are obese - and makes the case that it is time to fundamentally change the way we live. The Shape We're In is essential reading for anyone interested in their health and the health of their children.