From just reading the first few pages of “Heavy” it’s clear this book is very serious and the themes explored throughout are very personal and hold a lot of meaning for Kiese Laymon. Something that stood out to me is Laymon’s use of you in the epigraph. He writes Even though you were winning, even though we’d just won, you did not look at me. You kept pulling that handle and looking behind you.” (Laymon 13). At first I found this a bit confusing until I talked to others and then looked at it differently. His use of “you” helps make this feel raw and just real kind of more personal in a way. A big theme presented early in the book is Laymon’s struggle with obesity and fitting in with others, along with the theme of abuse. Laymon’s babysitter tells him she liked the way his legs and calves looked and then goes on to sexually abuse him putting her breasts in his mouth and even touching him inappropriately. On days when she doesn’t touch him he questions if the reason why is because there was something wrong with him writing “When she came over and didn’t choke me or ask me to keep it straight, I wondered what was wrong with me. I always assumed it was because my thighs and calves weren’t muscly enough. On those days when she didn’t touch me, I didn’t eat or drink and I did calf raises and squats in the bathroom until I cramped.” (Laymon 29). This line from the book shows Laymon’s desire to be accepted even if it’s from his abuser. It shows he believes the reason why she doesn’t abuse him is because there is something wrong with him that he needs to change. Overall this is a lot but I look forward to reading more about Laymon’s experiences and seeing if anything more serious than these themes comes up later on.