Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes

Sarah Byrnes and Eric Calhoune are two teenage outcasts united in elementary school by their physical flaws- Sarah's face is disfigured by terrible burn scars which she claims were caused by spilling a pot of spaghetti on herself when she was young, and Eric is very overweight. They cope with the teasing and isolation differently; Sarah's scars have made her tough and spunky whereas Eric's fat has made him timid. They are both smart and resourceful, and find a way to avenge the bullies: a humorous underground newspaper poking fun at their enemies with cruelly funny National Inquirer style articles.
In high school, Eric finally begins to gain confidence. Though he is still uncool, he makes friends and a becomes a dedicated swimmer, losing weight on a swim team coached by his wonderful English teacher. However, he and Sarah remain close and inseparable friends. Until Sarah winds up in a psych ward.
Sarah suddenly and inexplicably stops talking, and Eric must watch his best friend, once so fiery and spirited, stare vacantly into space in a hospital. Eventually, however, Eric coaxes her out of her silence, and discovers that Sarah had been considering suicide. Slowly, the horrifying secrets of her past emerge.
This book is simultaneously tragic and funny, and very thought-provoking. It is fast-paced and engrossing.All the characters have amazing depth; you love the heroes and emphasize with their hardships. You despise the villains, yet eventually begin to feel for them as well. Though I thoroughly enjoyed it, I wouldn't recommend this book to everyone; there isn't heavy violence or sexual content but there's quite a bit of profanity. It also deals with a lot controversial issues including child abuse, abortion, suicide and religion.
If anyone else has read this, I'd love to hear your thoughts! ^_^