John Young writes with the humor of David Sedaris and the insight and humanity of John Updike.--Aileen Grever

This often-comic novel is not 'Christian' or 'religious, ' although the narrator is a 7-foot-tall minister ... who becomes obsessed with growing the world's largest pumpkin.

John Crackstone is cracking under the pressure of working with the wrong people in the wrong place. And he's aching for success.

What begins as backyard lark swells into a hilarious and absurd idea to build a pumpkin empire by making everything from snacks to toilet paper. It becomes his chance to flip the tables on his affluent and perpetually disappointed deacons.

Getting Huge resonates deeply with readers, showing how the pursuit of other people's goals and ideas of success can cloud judgment.

Follow John Crackstone's humorous--and touching--pursuit of success and sense of belonging, which culminates on an unforgettable Christmas evening.

John Young wrote the novel When the Coin is in the Air and Fire in the Field and Other Stories. He graduated from Indiana University and Emerson College (MFA), taught English, and worked as a copywriter and creative director. After 20 years in Massachusetts, he now lives in Cincinnati, Ohio.