



The New David Espinoza
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- £4.99
Publisher Description
This story from the acclaimed author of The Closest I’ve Come unflinchingly examines steroid abuse and male body dysmorphia. Perfect for fans of Jason Reynolds and Matt de la Peña.
David Espinoza is tired of being messed with. When a video of him getting knocked down by a bully’s slap goes viral at the end of junior year, David vows to use the summer to bulk up— do what it takes to become a man—and wow everyone when school starts again the fall.
Soon David is spending all his time and money at Iron Life, a nearby gym that’s full of bodybuilders. Frustrated with his slow progress, his life eventually becomes all about his muscle gains. As it says on the Iron Life wall, What does not kill me makes me stronger.
As David falls into the dark side of the bodybuilding world, pursuing his ideal body at all costs, he’ll have to grapple with the fact that it could actually cost him everything.
A Chicago Public Library Best Teen Fiction Selection
A Banks Street Best Children's Book of the Year
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In this engrossing story about the harsh realities of teen steroid use, 17-year-old David Espinoza, who recently lost his mother to cancer, lives near Orlando with his authoritative Mexican father and his little sister. Six feet tall and skinny, David is frequently ridiculed, particularly by a fellow student who slaps him in the locker room and posts the unflattering video to YouTube, where it goes viral. Humiliated and determined to bulk up, David joins a local gym, where he is quickly introduced to "gear" steroids that have created nearly superhuman muscles in other gym-goers. David, desperate to change his body by the end of summer, is receiving regular injections, avoiding his concerned friends and girlfriend, and lashing out at his father. The shame David feels about his body and self-image, despite a caring father and supportive girlfriend, is masterfully conveyed through frenetic fluctuations between self-doubt and self-admiration. Through an authentically told story that is both gripping and gut-wrenching, Aceves (The Closest I've Come) clearly shows the risks, side effects, and consequences of David's physical and mental battle. An author's note details the author's own experience with steroids as a teen. Ages 14 up.