A heartwarming novel about larger-than-life characters and second chances.

Former academic Arthur Opp weighs 550 pounds and hasnt left his rambling Brooklyn home in a decade. Twenty miles away, in Yonkers, seventeen-year-old Kel Keller navigates life as the poor kid in a rich school and pins his hopes on what seems like a promising baseball career-if he can untangle himself from his family drama. The link between this unlikely pair is Kels mother, Charlene, a former student of Arthurs. After nearly two decades of silence, it is Charlenes unexpected phone call to Arthur-a plea for help-that jostles them into action. Through Arthur and Kels own quirky and lovable voices, Heft tells the winning story of two improbable heroes whose sudden connection transforms both their lives. Like Elizabeth McCrackens The Giants House, Heft is a novel about love and family found in the most unexpected places.