When Zachary Beaver Came to Town deals with two particular social issues, divorce and obesity, but it also touches upon the plight of migrant workers, racial issues, the Vietnam War, and the elderly. Toby experiences great difficulties in accepting his mother's leaving, and Holt takes him through several of the stages that children go through when parents divorce: denial, anger, grief, and, finally, acceptance. Society's curiosity about the unusual takes form in the lines of people staring at Zachary Beaver, the fattest boy in the world. The difficulties faced by the morbidly obese are portrayed quite realistically and empathetically in Holt's story. Zachary rarely leaves his trailer. When he does, he can barely squeeze through the door; he must ride in the bed of the pick-up truck; and his condition makes him dependent on others for his daily care.

Juan and his dream of becoming a...