When former teachers Diane Lang and Michael Buchanan were at a book signing, they met a young man who had been bullied from fourth to eighth grade for being overweight.
As the child told them, Buchanan said, he was eventually told by his doctor to be proactive in improving his health, and eventually his confidence grew, making him able to stand up for himself and be less of a target.
IF YOU GO* What: Sneak peek screening of “The Fat Boy Chronicles,” followed by Q&A with authors and screenwriters Michael Buchanan and Diane Lang.* When: 7:30 p.m. Monday.* Where: Chattanooga Choo Choo Centennial Theatre, 1400 Market St.* Admission: Free.* Phone: 752-0300.* Website: www.thefatboychronicles.com.* What: Connecting the Dots Summit.* When: 9 a.m. Tuesday.* Where: United Way Community Room, 630 Market St.* Admission: Free.* Phone: 752-0300.* Website: www.uwchatt.org.
The encounter inspired Lang and Buchanan to create the character of Jimmy Winterpock, an obese ninth-grader who is the central character of “The Fat Boy Chronicles.”
The book, which has also been adapted into a film, is written in the form of a journal, from Jimmy’s perspective.
“It’s his journey to kind of realize that everybody has issues,” Buchanan said of the book’s central character.
Lang and Buchanan will be in Chattanooga next week as part of the Department of Education, Arts & Culture’s Connect the Dots summit, where they will screen the movie and answer questions from audience members. Lang and Buchanan, along with artist and education advocate Sean Lane, will lead sessions on combating bullying and childhood obesity.
“You can easily tell from the first few people you interact with if there is a schoolwide effort to control bullying,” said Buchanan, who often travels to schools with Lang. “What I might try to crack down on in one class might not be what they get in the next one. It really does need to be a schoolwide effort — and an ongoing one. We haven’t been in a school where bullying does not exist.”
The key, he said, is getting the kids to be part of the solution. In reading “The Fat Boy Chronicles,” children are able to see the long-term effects that bullying can have on others.
“The Ph.D’s and everyone else can talk about bullying, but you have to connect that message to the kids also,” Buchanan said, “the kids who are the bullies finally see what they really didn’t have access to.”
Contact Holly Leber at hleber@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6391. Follow her on Twitter at twitter.com/hollyleber.