Opening
In these chapters, Libby Strout steps toward the life she wants—even as the world tries to shove her back—while Jack Masselin buckles under peer pressure and his own secret fears. A cruel cafeteria stunt becomes the spark that collides their lives, shattering illusions and forcing both to decide who they are in public, not just in private.
What Happens
Chapter 21: Libby
Libby sits with her father, Will Strout, replaying the Damsels dance team video, electricity buzzing through her as she imagines herself on that stage. Will, cautious and loving, asks if she’s sure about auditioning. Libby says she isn’t—but she’s going to try anyway: “You can’t protect me from everything. If I fall on my face, I fall on my face, but at least I’ve done it.”
Will signs the permission slip. As he hands it back, he admits that having Libby “out in the world” is harder than he expected. The moment pairs his protective fear with her blooming bravery: he agrees to let her risk pain because he sees she’s choosing life again.
Chapter 22: Jack
In his cluttered basement workshop, Jack takes apart and reassembles objects, wishing he could do the same with himself. The phone rings. It’s his friend Dave Kaminski, breathless from being chased by Libby after the parking-lot incident. Kaminski crowns her the “golden ring” for a vicious game—“Fat Girl Rodeo”—daring everyone to see who can hold on to her the longest.
Revulsion hits Jack. He calls it lame, blames Seth, insists Libby doesn’t deserve this. Kaminski mocks him—“What, you going to take her to prom?”—and goads him with slurs. Cornered by the fear of losing the only social ground he has, Jack caves: “Whatever, man. Do what you want.” He hangs up shaken, already hating himself.
Chapter 23: Jack
Jack writes a list: “What I Stand to Lose if I Tell My Friends to Fuck Off.” First is Kaminski and Seth—the only two faces he can consistently recognize because of his prosopagnosia. New friendships feel nearly impossible when faces won’t hold still in his mind, embedding him deeper in a crowd he can’t stand.
Next is the persona: “Jack Masselin,” the popular, funny mask that keeps his “screwed-up” self and messy family life hidden. Strip that away, and high school’s sharks will smell blood. Finally, he writes, “Me.” If the mask goes, he fears he goes with it. The desperation of Loneliness and Isolation explains why he clings to the wrong people at the cost of his conscience.
Chapter 24: Libby
On her new bed with “All Right Now” in her ears, Libby remembers watching neighborhood kids while she was housebound, inventing a world where she was a “regular-size girl” and her mom was still alive. Today, facing Kaminski, she felt anger—but not anxiety. No racing pulse, no breathless spiral. That matters.
She studies her Damsels application. Under “assets,” she wrote: “I’m big, eye-catching, and can dance like the wind.” She is reframing herself—refusing shame, choosing power. It’s a leap forward in Self-Acceptance and Body Image. Life won’t return to what it was before her mother died, but she feels a new version of “all right” coming into focus.
Chapter 25: Jack and Libby
At his computer, Jack drowns in guilt. His parents raised him better than this. He imagines Libby humiliated or hurt and decides on a coward’s compromise: send an anonymous warning. “I’m not a shitty person, but I’m about to do a shitty thing,” he types, trying to protect her without outing himself.
The next day in the cafeteria, a girl named Iris shadows Libby, as if expecting a stereotype—the “Badass Fat Girl with Attitude.” Irritated, Libby moves to escape and nearly collides with Jack. They side-step until Kaminski bellows, “HOLY SHIT, IT’S ON!” Panic streaks across Jack’s face before he throws himself onto Libby and hangs on. Libby freezes. A memory seizes her—being stung by a jellyfish, trapped under something that clings and hurts. The roar of the room snaps her back. Fury floods her. “NOOOOO!” She peels Jack off and drives her fist into his mouth.
Character Development
Libby Strout
- Libby insists on risk and joy, pushing past her father’s fear to audition.
- In the cafeteria, anger replaces panic; she fights back instead of collapsing.
- She claims her body as an asset, not an apology, and chooses her own narrative.
Jack Masselin
- Jack’s revulsion at the “rodeo” clashes with terror of social exile.
- His list exposes how prosopagnosia, secrecy, and image-traps fuel his paralysis.
- He tries to do right anonymously, then participates anyway—moral compass vs. cowardice.
Will Strout
- Loving and protective, Will signs the form while admitting his fear.
- He chooses trust in Libby’s judgment, letting her step into risk and adulthood.
Themes & Symbols
Seeing Beyond Appearances
- Jack knows the stunt is dehumanizing, but his fixation on how he looks to others trumps what he knows is right. The “rodeo” literalizes the danger of judging by bodies, not people.
Self-Acceptance and Body Image
- Libby reframes size as strength and spectacle. Her punch is bodily autonomy in action—a refusal to be touched, grabbed, or turned into a game.
- Jack’s prosopagnosia isolates him inside a crowd. The mask of “popular Jack” becomes survival gear, making betrayal of himself feel safer than being alone.
Symbols
- Jack’s Workshop: A haven where broken things can be fixed, mirroring Jack’s wish to disassemble and rewire his life—his face-blindness, his persona, his friendships.
- The Jellyfish: Libby’s flashback compresses violation into sensation—something that latches without consent, burns, and frightens—transforming fear into a catalyst for resistance.
Key Quotes
“You can’t protect me from everything. If I fall on my face, I fall on my face, but at least I’ve done it.”
- Libby claims agency in front of her father, reframing failure as participation. It signals a shift from survival to living.
“Whatever, man. Do what you want.”
- Jack’s capitulation is small in words, huge in consequence. It captures how peer pressure erodes morality in increments.
“What I Stand to Lose if I Tell My Friends to Fuck Off.”
- The list title foregrounds Jack’s stakes: friendships, identity, and selfhood. It’s a confession of how fear of isolation drives self-betrayal.
“I’m big, eye-catching, and can dance like the wind.”
- On her application, Libby weaponizes what others use against her. She turns visibility into power and declares joy as a right.
“I’m not a shitty person, but I’m about to do a shitty thing.”
- Jack acknowledges his own moral fracture. The anonymous warning is damage control, not courage.
“HOLY SHIT, IT’S ON!”
- Kaminski’s rallying cry exposes the cruelty-as-sport mentality of the crowd, turning the cafeteria into an arena.
“NOOOOO!”
- Libby’s roar breaks the freeze response from past trauma. It’s a line in the sand—no more consenting to harm by silence or stillness.
Why This Matters and Section Significance
This sequence ignites the book’s central conflict in public view. The “Fat Girl Rodeo” moves the story from private longing and secret shame to consequences neither character can dodge. Libby’s punch cements her as someone who refuses to be handled, mocked, or defined by others; Jack’s role brands him with a failure he can’t excuse, no matter his intentions.
From here, their relationship must grow in the wreckage of a shared trauma: her righteous anger versus his guilty complicity. The chapters knit together courage, cruelty, and the costs of belonging, setting the stage for hard conversations about empathy, apology, and the work it takes to be seen truly—and to see others the same way.