{"product_id":"burger-wuss-isbn-9780763694326","title":"Burger Wuss","description":"\u003cb\u003e“Savaging young love, male adolescence, and . . . the fast-food business. . . . Did somebody say McSatire?” — \u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews \u003c\/i\u003e(starred review)\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAnthony has never been able to stand up for himself—that is, not until his girlfriend is in someone else’s arms. Then Anthony vows revenge and devises the Plan. It begins with getting a job at the fast-food restaurant where his nemesis happens to be a star employee. But when the Plan is finally in place, will Anthony’s hunger for revenge be satisfied? Will he prove he’s not a wuss?\"M.T. Anderson has an uncanny ear for how a generation speaks - his dialogue crackles with authenticity.  But it is his humor, his satiric eye tempred with real feeling, that sets this book apart.\" –  Kathryn Lasky \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Ferociously funny.\" – Tim Wynne-JonesI told them I was there for the interview. A beeper went off. For a second, the girl stared at me. The beeper was still going off. \"That’s the quality control beeper,\" she explained. \"I’ll go get Mike. He talks to people about working. Excuse me.\" She turned around. I smiled in a secret way. I thought, They will suspect nothing. I look as calm and normal as can be.\u003cbr\u003eMike was the manager. He wore blue, and everyone else wore green. He seemed very friendly and held out his hand. I shook it. He said, \"I’m Mike. Nice to meet you. You’re Anthony?\"\u003cbr\u003eI said, \"Yes. It’s nice to meet you, too.\"\u003cbr\u003eHe said, \"Let’s sit down. Would you like a shake?\" We walked out into the dining area. He said, \"Now to talk, would you prefer a booth or a free-standing table?\"\u003cbr\u003eI shrugged. I said, \"Booth, I guess.\"\u003cbr\u003eHe grinned. \"Good!\" he said. \"That will be fine!\"\u003cbr\u003eWe sat down at a booth. I carefully put my hands on my lap. Over my head was a cardboard mobile of Kermit O’Dermott, an elf who talked to hamburgers. The sun was coming through the windows and searing the tile floor and the plastic vines and rhododendrons. \u003cbr\u003eI said, \"It looks very cheerful in here today.\"\u003cbr\u003eHe said, \"Isn’t it nice? Corporate Headquarters just sent us some new signage. It’s very effective, don’t you think? Now.\" He had a clipboard with him. My application was on it. I felt very nervous. I thought to myself, Green sateen. Green sateen. I thought this for private reasons. There are times when you have to hide what you’re really up to.\u003cbr\u003eI said, \"So.\" The cardboard Kermit O’Dermott was playing his magical harp. In commercials, it made beverages dance.\u003cbr\u003eHe said, \"So. Could you tell me some things you could say about yourself?\"\u003cbr\u003e\"Yes,\" I said. \"I could tell you I’m sixteen—\"\u003cbr\u003e\"Can you drive?\"\u003cbr\u003e\"Yes,\" I said, \"but I don’t have a car. I can walk here from home.\"\u003cbr\u003e\"Do you have any previous work experience?\"\u003cbr\u003e\"Yes,\" I said. \"I had a paper route for three years. I know that isn’t making burgers or anything, but, you know . . . \" \u003cbr\u003eHe was looking out the window over my shoulder. There was a Kermit O’Dermott-themed jungle gym out there, and some kids were playing on it. He turned back to me and grinned. He said, \"Good, good. The reason you would like to work at O’Dermott’s? Just a few words.\"\u003cbr\u003eI could not tell him the real reason. I had prepared a clever and cheerful-sounding fake reason. I told him, \"I really like people. I like meeting people and I like talking with them. People are so different, and it’s great to see people from all over. In a job like this, I would get to see all sorts of people that I couldn’t see otherwise. Maybe I’d learn something about people that I can’t even know yet.\"\u003cbr\u003eHe laughed. \"That’s the spirit!\" he said. \"We work as a team here. We even play as a team.\" He looked out the window again at the kids on the jungle gym. \"That’s how it is. Should kids be doing that?\" \u003cbr\u003eI turned around and looked out the window. I shrugged. I said, \"I think kids pretty much always hit each other like that.\"\u003cbr\u003eHe said, \"Little kids’ skulls are really soft, though. You don’t know that until you have your own kids. My wife just had kids.\"\u003cbr\u003e\"Oh,\" I said. \"More than one?\"\u003cbr\u003eHe said, \"Two. Twins. Two twins.\"\u003cbr\u003eI said, \"I think the skull thickens after a few months or something.\"\u003cbr\u003eHe said, \"Well, Anthony, it just so happens that we have a position open at the moment. Do you know Diana Gritt? She also goes to Taft High. She just quit and left a cashier position open.\"\u003cbr\u003eI rubbed my knees with my fingertips. I considered evil. I thought, Green sateen. Green sateen. I said, \"Oh, yeah? I know Diana Gritt.\"\u003cbr\u003eHe said, \"Small world. I have a few more interviews this week, but I should be able to call you back pretty quick.\"\u003cbr\u003eI said, \"Really? That would be great.\"\u003cbr\u003eHe said, \"Great. Now let’s talk about hours.\"\u003cbr\u003eThrough the plastic undergrowth I could see Turner come out of the back, dressed in green. I watched him. Turner was the reason I was there. Turner and anger. He stood behind his register. He ran his hand over his greasy blond crew cut. Mike and I talked about hours. I saw Turner see me. I thought that suddenly he had an ugly look on his face. He shook his head. I laughed to myself and looked again. Now I couldn’t tell if he had recognized me. I thought maybe the ugly look had just been him cleaning his molars with his tongue. Maybe he had not recognized me at all. \u003cbr\u003eMike and I were done with the interview. We stood up to shake hands. I banged my knee on the table. I hunched over. When I swore, it was quietly. Mike reached out to give me a hand. I tried to smile. I was bent over a little. I rubbed the knee. Mike was saying, \"We are part of a team here. I hope you’ll become part of our team. I think you’ll really like it here.\"\u003cbr\u003eHe turned and walked toward the counter. Turner faced the other way. Before I left, I stood for a moment. I thought, Green sateen, and stared at him. I stared at his back. His neck was a boiled red. We stood there for a long time like that before I left. \u003cbr\u003eSome paramedics were ordering Happy Lunches. Maybe for someone else. They pointed at the board. They specified their prizes. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBurger Wuss. Copyright (c) 1999 M.T. Anderson. Candlewick Press, Inc., Cambridge, MA","brand":"Candlewick","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46303135170789,"sku":"NP9780763694326","price":8.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780763694326.jpg?v=1767723188","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/products\/burger-wuss-isbn-9780763694326","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}