The Great Cool Ranch Dorito in the Sky: (National Book Award Finalist)

by Josh Galarza

Overview

Notes From Your Bookseller

This is a big-hearted story about making sense of things when everything seems out of control — mom's sick, school's a total drag, and life is all around really hard and complicated for Brett right now. This poignant portrayal of a teen’s struggle with disordered eating, anxiety and bullying marks Josh Galarza as a force to be reckoned with in young people’s literature.

NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FINALIST

Perfect for fans of Mark Oshiro and Adam Silvera comes a fiercely funny and hopeful story of one boy's attempts to keep everything under control while life has other plans.

Ever since cancer invaded his adoptive mother’s life, Brett feels like he’s losing everything, most of all control. To cope, Brett fuels all of his anxieties into epic fantasies, including his intergalactic Kid Condor comic book series, which features food constellations and characters not unlike those in his own life.

But lately Brett’s grip on reality has started to lose its hold. The fictions he’s been telling himself – about his unattractive body, the feeling that he’s a burden to his best friend, that he’s too messed up to be loved – have consumed him completely, and Brett will do anything to forget about the cosmic-sized hole in his chest, even if it's unhealthy.

But when Brett’s journal and deepest insecurities are posted online for the whole school to see, Brett realizes he can no longer avoid the painful truths of his real-life narrative. As his eating disorder escalates, Brett must be honest with the people closest to him, including his new and fierce friend Mallory who seems to know more about Brett’s issues than he does. With their support, he just might find the courage to face the toughest reality of all.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781250377920
Publisher:	Square Fish
Publication date:	07/22/2025
Pages:	320
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.10(h) x 1.00(d)
Age Range:	14 - 18 Years

About the Author

Josh Galarza is a writer, printmaker and book artist from Northern Nevada. After a career in Montessori education, he earned a BA in English and BFA in art from the University of Nevada, Reno, where he later taught printmaking. He currently lives in Richmond, VA, where he teaches at Virginia Commonwealth University while completing an MFA in creative writing. His heart’s home will always be the Sonoran Desert, and he is the three-time reigning world champion of extreme trampoline air-drumming, a sport he invented himself.

Editorial Reviews

"Brett’s quirky voice . . . tempers this funny yet bruising narrative about one teen’s experience with grief and disordered eating in which debut author Galarza carefully touches on issues surrounding underage drinking, body dysmorphia, and internalized anti-fatness." —Publishers Weekly, starred review

From the Publisher

2024-05-04
A teenage boy in Tucson struggles with grief and disordered eating in this emotional debut.

At almost 16, Brett has worked out how to make himself feel better. All it takes is a “Costco-sized bottle of vodka,” a generous assortment of treats from every drive-thru restaurant in the area, and the privacy to dream up new adventures for Kid Condor, the hero of his own lovingly crafted comic-book universe. And lately, he’s needed a lot of cheering up: Between his adoptive English professor mom’s cancer diagnosis and new tensions with best friend Reed, who has taken to young adulthood with more grace, game, and abdominal muscles than Brett can fathom, there’s a lot of fear to push away. Enter Mallory, a fat classmate who recognizes Brett’s eating disorder for what it is before he’s found the words to describe it himself. She takes Brett under her wing, demonstrating a path away from diet culture and the shame it enforces. Galarza brings humor and sensitivity to the story, permitting his characters to move organically through even the uglier moments of growth. Brett’s internalized fatphobia brings a body-focused valence to his friendship with Mallory, but not at the expense of Mallory’s depth of character. Mexican American Brett is mestizo, and his roots play an important role in his storytelling in the Kid Condor universe. Other major characters are white.

A moving, funny story expressing the tenacious voice of a survivor. (author’s note, resources) (Fiction. 13-18)

Kirkus Reviews