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Me and the Fat Man
A frigid English waitress uses her looks to make extra money by having sex with strangers. One day she meets a very fat man with connections to her drowned mother--she was orphaned as a girl--and a love affair blooms.
216 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1998
96 people want to read
About the author
Julie Myerson
25 books181 followersJulie Myerson is the author of nine novels, including the internationally bestselling Something Might Happen, and three works of nonfiction. As a critic and columnist, she has written for many newspapers including The Guardian, Financial Times, Harper’s Bazaar, and the New York Times.
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
July 15, 2023
I like weird, strange and unusual books. This is one. It has only a small number of characters, which is smart because you get deeply invested in the intimacy of the story. It is strange and bizarre and has the kind of quietly realistic details that make it really believable. Could these things really happen? Yes, they could. Could a married woman sit on park benches and prostitute herself, when not working at her working class restaurant job? Could she save the money, secretly depositing it into a bank account her husband knows nothing about and then make her escape, meeting an odd man who would also be connected to her past? I won't give it away but it is one of my all time favorite books and I've read it three times. I may read it again. It is one of those novels that will stay with you for a long time. You keep thinking about it and marvel again at how writers can come up with the strangest and most original and unique story-lines and how damaged people always seem to find a way to find each other and sometimes even be happy....This book comes highly recommended.
August 14, 2017
I did not really know what to expect from Julie Myerson's Me and the Fat Man (although the cover did its bit to incite a growing curiosity in me to get to grips with the story.) The synopsis on the back cover sounded promising and reasonably original. Who wouldn't be swayed by a waitress protagonist married to a less-than-ideal spouse, who picks men up from a local park for the express purpose of diligently depositing the money thus earned in her ever-growing building society account? Amy comes complete with a colourful and chequered past, the illegitimate daughter of a girl barely out of her teens who ultimately died by her own hand, resulting in Amy being pushed unceremoniously into the less-than-perfect fostering system.
When she meets the slightly menacing older man Harris who claims to have known her mother in his youth, Amy is intrigued. She has many unanswered questions about her origins, and the chance of having some of these issues resolved, convinces her to cast caution to the winds and to allow Harris into her life. But it becomes clear that things are not necessarily what they appear to be. Harris is anxious for Amy to meet Gary (the fat man of the title), ostensibly his lodger, and according to Harris a man who could do with Amy's tender ministrations. But the pervasive aura of menace and unspoken intentions is always present, hanging like a dark pall over the proceedings. In time Amy and Gary drift into one of the most beguiling love affairs I've ever had the privilege of experiencing on the printed page. Gary is a magnificent creation, and undoubtedly one of my favourite characters in a long while. I felt drawn to him from his first unassuming appearance, and waited on tenterhooks to see how the author intended to flesh him out as the story developed.
Meyerson writes so exhilaratingly about the intricacies of all things sexual -- whether the clinical and uneasy encouters between Amy and her clients, or the euphoric and liberating sex with Gary -- you'd be ready to swear on a stack of bibles that she had just this minute sat down and invented the whole idea of sexual intercourse all by herself. Her observations and viewpoints in this regard are startlingly innovative. She writes with dazzling insight of the sublime surrendering to the needs of the flesh, and expertly conveys the tension you would expect from hurried liasions where the unpredictability quotient generated by loveless sex is always part of the very fabric of the anonymous hook-up. I think the considerable erotic content of the novel is the glue that binds its seperate strands together and makes it into a cohesive whole. And make no mistake, Myerson is not interested in glossing things over when it comes to the in-your-face crudities and the uncompromising demands of a sexual relationship. And when the darkness sets in as it inevitably must, Meyerson will break your heart as she thrusts you into the midst of unthinkable tragedy.
When she meets the slightly menacing older man Harris who claims to have known her mother in his youth, Amy is intrigued. She has many unanswered questions about her origins, and the chance of having some of these issues resolved, convinces her to cast caution to the winds and to allow Harris into her life. But it becomes clear that things are not necessarily what they appear to be. Harris is anxious for Amy to meet Gary (the fat man of the title), ostensibly his lodger, and according to Harris a man who could do with Amy's tender ministrations. But the pervasive aura of menace and unspoken intentions is always present, hanging like a dark pall over the proceedings. In time Amy and Gary drift into one of the most beguiling love affairs I've ever had the privilege of experiencing on the printed page. Gary is a magnificent creation, and undoubtedly one of my favourite characters in a long while. I felt drawn to him from his first unassuming appearance, and waited on tenterhooks to see how the author intended to flesh him out as the story developed.
Meyerson writes so exhilaratingly about the intricacies of all things sexual -- whether the clinical and uneasy encouters between Amy and her clients, or the euphoric and liberating sex with Gary -- you'd be ready to swear on a stack of bibles that she had just this minute sat down and invented the whole idea of sexual intercourse all by herself. Her observations and viewpoints in this regard are startlingly innovative. She writes with dazzling insight of the sublime surrendering to the needs of the flesh, and expertly conveys the tension you would expect from hurried liasions where the unpredictability quotient generated by loveless sex is always part of the very fabric of the anonymous hook-up. I think the considerable erotic content of the novel is the glue that binds its seperate strands together and makes it into a cohesive whole. And make no mistake, Myerson is not interested in glossing things over when it comes to the in-your-face crudities and the uncompromising demands of a sexual relationship. And when the darkness sets in as it inevitably must, Meyerson will break your heart as she thrusts you into the midst of unthinkable tragedy.
September 5, 2014
I found this novel hard to get into at first and I almost quit after about 70 pages. But I'm glad I didn't. The plot got more interesting once the book found it's pace. Not exactly a "happy" read, but full of unexpected and shocking surprises. Heartbreaking in so many ways, but definitely worth reading, especially if you're used to British authors and don't mind the different style (including dialogue without quotation marks) and ample Britishisms throughout.
December 13, 2007
loved this book. dark, tight and well-written.
September 13, 2021
I received this book free with the UK newspaper “The Times” many years ago. I started reading it then, but put it to one side after a few pages as it was difficult to read - but those few pages stayed with me and I could remember what I read vividly.
Fast forward a few years and I decided to give it another go, as my curiosity kept gnawing at me to find out what happens.
This book is raw. Brutal even. I cried so badly when [it] happens.
I actually don’t recommend anyone reading this as life is hard enough as it is. I will, however, look out for more by this writer.
The blurb is quite inaccurate.
Fast forward a few years and I decided to give it another go, as my curiosity kept gnawing at me to find out what happens.
This book is raw. Brutal even. I cried so badly when [it] happens.
I actually don’t recommend anyone reading this as life is hard enough as it is. I will, however, look out for more by this writer.
The blurb is quite inaccurate.
November 23, 2018
The main character is Amy, a 20-something married woman who was raised by foster parents after her mother killed herself. Amy waitresses and picks up men in the park and doesn't really know what she's doing with her life. Out of nowhere, a man named Harrison comes into her life, saying he knew Amy's mother and offering to tell her about her long-dead mother. He also introduces Amy to his fat friend, Gary. Amy, unexpectedly, falls in love with Gary. The book is sad, and I wasn't sure about the ending, but I like the way Myerson wrote about sex, and her portrayal of said "fat man" was actually pretty sympathetic in the end, which I liked. I'm not entirely sure how I feel about this book (it got rather bad reviews on Amazon.com) but pieces of it stuck with me for a long time afterward, which usually means there's something powerful about the book, even though it may be flawed.
March 31, 2008
dark and disturbing. it took some unexpected turns and i would never have predicted the ending.
July 16, 2009
Such an unusual book. You can't help but feel sorry for this girl who has hard a sad childhood and now falls by accident into prostitution. Very enjoyable.
January 20, 2014
dark. waited for the big reveal. not what I'd hoped for.
November 27, 2012
Quite a disturbing read but intriguing nonetheless
September 1, 2013
This is a difficult novel to read. A troubling, dark, sad story told in a no holds barred way. But this is what Julie Myerson excels at
January 7, 2018
myerson makes the distress palpable and personal. the characters are unusual but perfect.
April 8, 2021
Disclaimer: I read this book while operating on two hours of sleep, which probably influenced how I felt about it. It'll be interesting to see whether my feelings change or not when I reread it while less tired.
WHOA. Whoa. This is so extremely upsetting and engrossing. Just, the whole thing, start to finish. It rocks you into a sense of comfort and tenderness, then it dumps cold water on your head and beats you with a rock, not necessarily in that order. It's one of those stories I feel like I can't say a lot about beyond just assuring that it's good and left me with a feeling of "whoa" at the end. I will try to vaguely express some of my feelings, though--
It's definitely not for everyone and bound to really, really trigger some people, particularly in regards to the subject of which is not at all what I expected going in.
This is bar none the most sex-heavy novel I've read in a while. It manages to make it all seem eloquent if not always erotic, particularly in regards to the more unpleasant encounters with men other than the eponymous fat man (he's an incredibly good character, by the way, and so is the narrator).
It's also romantic. Just. Wow. I struggle to recall the last time I read something so intimate and genuine.
I hesitate to give this novel a five star rating if only because there were some things that even the flowy poetry of the prose couldn't distract me from in terms of logic problems--particularly the motivations of the antagonist. I don't know, maybe it would make more sense to me if I read it a second time with the ultimate reveals in mind.
It's VERY good though. I feel like a film adaptation of it would be very, very Oscar bait-y.
...no, you know what, this is getting five stars, heck with it, it's good enough that I can overlook my nitpicks.
WHOA. Whoa. This is so extremely upsetting and engrossing. Just, the whole thing, start to finish. It rocks you into a sense of comfort and tenderness, then it dumps cold water on your head and beats you with a rock, not necessarily in that order. It's one of those stories I feel like I can't say a lot about beyond just assuring that it's good and left me with a feeling of "whoa" at the end. I will try to vaguely express some of my feelings, though--
It's definitely not for everyone and bound to really, really trigger some people, particularly in regards to the subject of which is not at all what I expected going in.
This is bar none the most sex-heavy novel I've read in a while. It manages to make it all seem eloquent if not always erotic, particularly in regards to the more unpleasant encounters with men other than the eponymous fat man (he's an incredibly good character, by the way, and so is the narrator).
It's also romantic. Just. Wow. I struggle to recall the last time I read something so intimate and genuine.
I hesitate to give this novel a five star rating if only because there were some things that even the flowy poetry of the prose couldn't distract me from in terms of logic problems--particularly the motivations of the antagonist. I don't know, maybe it would make more sense to me if I read it a second time with the ultimate reveals in mind.
It's VERY good though. I feel like a film adaptation of it would be very, very Oscar bait-y.
...no, you know what, this is getting five stars, heck with it, it's good enough that I can overlook my nitpicks.
September 16, 2019
It has the makings of a good thriller but just became so depressing and odd. I kept going with it just to see if my suspicions were correct and they almost were. Didn't see the need for the overtly sexual content either, it didn't lend anything extra to the the story. Not one I'd rush to put on a page grabbing best seller list
January 13, 2024
There was a lot of promise in this and I did really like the way the two main characters were built up as scarred people with tragic backstories and how the novel went for the first half or so. But after that it took a twist that was just really unappealing. The motivations of the antagonist didn't make sense and the ending was just bizarre and unrealistic.
December 16, 2013
Aan het verhaal zelf was niet veel aan. Het voelde onwerkelijk aan, en veel sympathie kon ik voor die dwaze Amy niet opbrengen. Het einde klinkt nog veel ongelooflijker. Ik kon me totaal niet inleven!
Julie Myerson schrijft zonder aanhalingstekens, waardoor de dialogen even vaag klinken als ze zijn. De fragmenten zijn gedetailleerd, maar tussenin vallen gaten en soms wordt er naar het verleden teruggesprongen.
Het moet doorgaan voor een 'thriller', maar zo spannend vond ik het nou ook weer niet (voorspelbaar!).
Een dun boekje, dat is de reden dat ik het meenam van de bibliotheek. Wat ontspanningslectuur moest worden, is een zwaar overgedramatiseerd romannetje gebleken.
Julie Myerson schrijft zonder aanhalingstekens, waardoor de dialogen even vaag klinken als ze zijn. De fragmenten zijn gedetailleerd, maar tussenin vallen gaten en soms wordt er naar het verleden teruggesprongen.
Het moet doorgaan voor een 'thriller', maar zo spannend vond ik het nou ook weer niet (voorspelbaar!).
Een dun boekje, dat is de reden dat ik het meenam van de bibliotheek. Wat ontspanningslectuur moest worden, is een zwaar overgedramatiseerd romannetje gebleken.
May 8, 2011
[Dutch]
Bloed kruipt waar het niet gaan kan. Programma's als Spoorloos en Vermist zijn mateloos populair. De zoektocht naar een verloren familielid lijkt een genetisch bepaalde drang. Het leven is niet compleet als men niet weet waar men vandaan komt en waarom. Zonder verleden schijnbaar geen toekomst. Dat die drang ook verkeerd kan uitpakken blijkt in Ik en de dikke man.
Lees meer op 8WEEKLY
Bloed kruipt waar het niet gaan kan. Programma's als Spoorloos en Vermist zijn mateloos populair. De zoektocht naar een verloren familielid lijkt een genetisch bepaalde drang. Het leven is niet compleet als men niet weet waar men vandaan komt en waarom. Zonder verleden schijnbaar geen toekomst. Dat die drang ook verkeerd kan uitpakken blijkt in Ik en de dikke man.
Lees meer op 8WEEKLY
September 22, 2013
Sorry Julie, I love your books but this one just didn't do it for me, I'm afraid I couldn't finish it.
September 19, 2014
x ray machines ?
February 23, 2016
What a weird book, the ending left you up in the sir, did Harris kill Jimmy? where was Harris, and it was overtly sexual.
May 3, 2018
nope! nope nope nope! awful. so so so awful. nope!
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews