Reviews (162)

Frustrating and offensive
It seems to me that there is FAR too little focas on the entireity of those who suffer from eatig disorders and self injurous behavior. I do mean suffer, because there is more to the whole picture than hurting themselves.
Book holds valuable information.
As I read through the reviews of "The Best Little Girl in the World", I just had to throw in my two cents.
Worthy of a read
While I understand that people view this book as setting anorexic standards to the anorexic, I do consider this to be a good book. I think it is important to bear in mind the time period that this was written in (it's a pretty early book on ED considering it was first published in 1979).
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Subjects:  1. Eating Disorders - General    2. Fiction    3. Fiction - General    4. General    5. Self-Help / Eating Disorders   

Editorial Review

"I fell for the great American dream, female version, hook, line, and sinker," Marya Hornbacher writes. "I, as many young women do, honest-to-God believed that once I Just Lost a Few Pounds, suddenly I would be a New You, I would have Ken-doll men chasing my thin legs down with bouquets of flowers on the street, I would become rich and famous and glamorous and lose my freckles and become blond and five foot ten." Hornbacher describes in shocking detail her lifelong quest to starve herself to death, to force her short, athletic body to fade away. She remembers telling a friend, at age 4, that she was on a diet. Her bizarre tale includes not only the usual puking andstarving, but also being confined to mental hospitals and growing fur (a phenomenon called lanugo, which nature imposes to keep a body from freezing to death during periods of famine). ... Read more

Reviews (366)

The Good, The Bad and The Ugly
I never truly left this book until it was done. I stopped at points and it took perhaps a week to finish, but it was always on my mind. I rolled over her story in my head as I went about my days (or daze).
Excellent, witty and very honest book
I've read a few lame teenage oriented, moralistic, politically correct books about eating disorders, but THIS is something completely different! Not only because Marya is a real, tallented writer, but even more because her writing is so honest, detailed and yet humorous in some strange way. She doesn't whin about her situation, she doesn't blame all the world and society, but she neither powders herself with ashes. She just tells her story, a story of a very seriuos, determined, tallented and unique girl who decided to become really thin and pushed her dieting obsession to its very limits, to the very edge of death. Details of her starving and purging practices, and of her inventive, deceiving methods to convince her family, friends and medical personel that she's fine, are scary, but this brutal realism makes you really think about eating disorders. Her eating disorder is not just a disorder, it's a real full-time job, a lifestyle, a dedication, and it's extremly frightening. I found her comments about her recent life very good and revealing too.
Fantastic Book
Marya Hornbacher paints a real and vivid image of her experience with anorexia. This is the best book on anorexia and bulimia I have ever read. I keep coming back to this book- I could read it again and again just because of Hornbachers talent for writing. She truely has a gift!
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Subjects:  1. 1974-    2. Anorexia nervosa    3. Biography    4. Biography & Autobiography    5. Biography / Autobiography    6. Biography/Autobiography    7. Bulimia    8. Eating Disorders - General    9. Health    10. Hornbacher, Marya,    11. Patients    12. Psychopathology - Eating Disorders    13. Specific Groups - Special Needs    14. United States    15. Women    16. Biography: general    17. Coping with eating disorders    18. Hornbacher, Marya    19. Reading Group Guide   

Reviews (11)

Disappointing
I was hoping this might integrate Mintz's insight that thinness is about the symbolic control of consumption with the diet industry.Well, it did in a way, but only by going the tired route of muddling up eating disorders and attempts to control weight, while seeing 275lb women who wanted to lose as the victims of an uncaring society, just like the 130 lb college girls who also wanted to lose.I'm starting to wonder where, if anywhere, we might find sense on this topic.Here we sit, surrounded by size 20s on one hand at size 2 models on the other.There is a genuine crisis.But I can't recommend anything I've read hitherto - except Sidney Mintz.Curious.
Horrible Book!!
This is the worst book I have ever read.The entire book is filled with made up statistics and made up people, giving made up quotes.The author was not subjective at all in her research and is extremely biased towards men!I think that this author had some serious self issues while writing this book!I would never recommend anyone to read this garbage!The author basically spents the entire time, telling how women always forced to starve themselves to get anywhere in this society, which is far from true!And then places the blame on men for the women that do starve themselves, and then insists that men are very subjected to the pressures of society!To prove this point tell me that last time that a male was in the medai, that has body hair on his entire body!!!DON"T READ THIS BOOK!

Let's all whine "suppression" of women
Hesser-Biber uses the subject of women and their body image to give her opinion on how "evil" capitalism is. The first four or so chapters are all about how the horrible, terrible, capitalist pigs who just want money are responsible for eating disorders, low self esteem, and everything else. The rest of the book she spent time telling stories, as though we didn't get the point all ready that people are unsatisfied with how they look.
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Subjects:  1. Body image    2. Eating disorders    3. Leanness    4. Psychological aspects    5. Psychopathology - Eating Disorders    6. Social Science    7. Social aspects    8. Sociology    9. Sociology - General    10. Women's Studies - General    11. Cultural studies    12. Fitness & diet    13. Psychology & Psychiatry / Eating Disorders    14. Psychology | Clinical    15. Women's studies   

Editorial Review

Kaz Cooke knew women needed a book that cut through the confusing and cruel messages about body image, beauty, eating disorders, diets, and cosmetic surgery. "Mostly, we needed a book that wasn't trying to sell us anything except self-confidence and the truth," says Cooke. "I couldn't find one so I had to write one." Written in the spirit of life, liberty, and the pursuit of body acceptance, Cooke playfully challenges some of the most oppressive misogynists of the 20th century: the beauty, fashion, and diet industries. Simultaneously funny and reassuring, Cooke boldly asserts her opinions and research on push-up bras (they dig and hurt), cellulite (it's a cosmetic company-induced condition, not a medical condition), and fashion models ("some of the most insecure, tortured souls around"). The cartoon illustrations offer comic and compassionate accents to this poignant discussion. ... Read more

Reviews (32)

Guide to self-soothing
"Road to Hell is paved with good intentions" - that's an exact characteristic of this book. Busting the unrealistic self-image sold to (or stuffed into) us by media and corporations is a great intention.But the book runs to the opposite extreme. Its main message repeated over and over is "Whatever you are - that's normal. Don't do anything, trust you body in its candy cravings and food selection and be happy, even if you ARE looking like a space-porker." Excuse me, but our modern environment, food quality and living habits are far, far away from being normal. And to restore the balance, to get close to a slight resemblance of normal the huge work needs to be done, including strict restraining yourself from over-eating over-processed over-refined food and getting a lot and lot of exercise. Suggested 15-20 minutes three times a week is laughable, you might as well call pushing button on your TV remote an exercising...

Give Yourself a Break From Your Own Negativity
Who is Kaz Cooke and why haven't I heard of her? Cooke is another creative artist from down under. The Australian writer, cartoonist, filmmaker and columnist has a slew of works to her name. She is the creator of Hermoine, the Modern Girl, a colourful caricature who's also featured between the pages of Real Gorgeous.
Laughter is the best medicine
Real Gorgeous is a well-rounded myth-buster about various aspects of the beauty and diet industries. The cartoons are crazy and humorous, the writing easy and witty. While definitely geared toward adolescents and young adults, the information isn't exclusively helpful to that age range. Recommended for any girls entering puberty or your Cosmo-obsessed friends who buy every new moisturizer & wrinkle-cream on the market. Actually, recommended to everyone just for the one cartoon about the devil and food. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Beauty, Personal    2. Body image    3. Feminine beauty (Aesthetics)    4. General    5. Psychological aspects    6. Psychology    7. Self-esteem in women    8. Women's Health - General   

Editorial Review

Adolescent girls today face the issues girls have always faced: "Who am I?" and "Who do I want to be?" Unfortunately their answers, now more than ever before, revolve around the body rather than the mind, heart, or soul. "The body is at the heart of the crisis that [Carol] Gilligan, [Mary] Pipher, and others describe.... The fact that American girls now make the body their central project is not an accident or a curiosity," writes Brumberg, "it is a symptom of historical changes that are only now beginning to be understood." The historical photos, thorough research, and political even-handedness make this a book of worth and sincerity. Read more

Reviews (42)

Fair Attempt to Explain a Growing Problem
I bought this book because I see how girls/young women stuggle to achieve a very unrealistic ideal of beauty and how middle aged women stuggle to hang on to what they had as young women.As I approach 50, I know I am expected to stay trim, fit and muscular in spite of the fact that my body struggles mightly against it, especially since pregnancy and child birth.
Why "beautiful on the inside" doesn't seem to matter anymore
What happened to American girls, to women, over the past hundred years, that caused a quantum shift in how they present themselves to the world?
Unworthy of "American" in its title
The Body Project provides very selective leeway into the societal effects of African-American adolescent girls and their personal body projects. The main focus of this book is on the evolution of the white middle-class adolescent girl throughout American history. African-American and Jewish girls are mentioned briefly in a few chapters, while other ethnic groups are simply never discussed. Are these other various ethnic groups not worthy of their equal place in Brumberg's book?
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Subjects:  1. Body, Human    2. General    3. History    4. Psychology    5. Social aspects    6. Sociology    7. Sociology Of Women    8. Sociology Of Youth    9. Teenage girls    10. United States    11. Women's Studies - General    12. Young women    13. Current Events / General   

Reviews (156)

preachy and whiny
While this book brought up some very good issues about how terrible overweight people are treated, I found it preachy and many times got irritated with Lara's whining.
an okay book
This book wasn't entirely all bad and the premise is an interesting idea, a story about a girl who was popular but gains weight. Some of the things I didn't like about the book was how she had a made up disease. I guess apparently the author thinks that unless you have a disease that you can stop fat from happening that is super easy to control. That is not true at all. Weight can be a real struggle even without a disease to make things worse. The made up disease also gave the main character, Lara an excuse to feel superior to the other fat people in the book which was lead to some very nasty thoughts from her about them. It would have been much better if Lara had been 118 pounds, then her family began to go through the chaos described in the book and then all the new pain in her life lead her to overeat even though she was still trying to work out and trying to cut calories but she was failing with controlling her weight because she couldn't stop secretly eating when she was alone and sad. Or maybe if she was 118 pounds, thought that she should go on a diet and then started to try to cut her calories too far and then ended up overeating and unwittingly putting herself in a battle of the diet and scarf down food cycle, wrecking her metabolism. That angle of it would have made her more relateable also. Who can relate to someone who has a made up disease? I suppose maybe you could if you ignore how she got fat and if you had a weight problem but then her comments of being superior to people who gained weights for other reasons besides her made up disease really kill the possible of that either. Another problem I had with the book was by the end of the last chapter, Lara seemed to have believed that she had went through a transformation and was a better person. I didn't really see that at all. Her boyfriend, Jett in the book comes to more relizations than Lara herself. By the end of the book, Lara is proud of herself for being more accepting of fat women and people who she sees as geeks but she was not mean to them in the first place. She only thought nasty things about them and even in the end of the book, when she was terribly overweight, she couldn't grasp the concept of dating a fat boy or seeing past his appearence even though he was really nice to her. I also didn't like how that this book couldn't make being fat positive at all. All the characters that were fat openly hated their bodies and were insecure. There was not one fat person who seemed okay with themselves. Even the obese teacher who became Lara's friend confesses that her handsome boyfriend hates her body and will probably leave her. I was hoping that when I read the part about the teacher having a typical attractive boyfriend that Lara would see that the boyfriend loved the teacher and didn't care if she was short or skinny or fat or tall or blonde haired or burnette, white or black. That message is totally spoiled by the teacher saying her boyfriend hates her appearence which was really sad. I guess the author didn't think that a attractive person could fall in love with a fat person. Yet another problem in the book was how Lara's life looked so perfect (even to Lara) in the beginning and then radically changed, not just appearence but her entire family. I could understand it if her life looked perfect to others on the outside but even Lara believed. So, the entire time she was thin, she was able to block out her family problems? That doesn't make sense. I would still recomend reading this if you are curious to know how it feels and how people treat you diffrently if you gain weight but you may find Lara's attuide off putting and mean.

Six star read!
How many books are there that you pick up to read after dinner and you are still reading in your room at midnight and you haven't even gotten up to go to the bathroom?Life in the Fat Lane is one of those books. It starts with a beauty pageant resume for Lara, and it ends with her almost a hundred pounds fatter. It is one of those books that make you feel all kinds of emotions. You are mad at Lara for her attitudes at the beginning, and then you kind of feel bad for her, and then you are so happy at what she has learned because you have learned it too. The book is very easy to read and doesn't have the kind of flowery stuff that you find in so many other books that might be assigned in school. It is all about Lara and all about the story. I have just started to read it again. That is how good it is! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Children's 12-Up - Fiction - General    2. Children: Grades 4-6    3. Eating disorders    4. Fiction    5. Health & Daily Living - General    6. Juvenile Fiction    7. Self-perception    8. Social Issues - General    9. Social Issues - Self-Esteem & Self-Reliance    10. Weight control    11. Weight loss    12. Juvenile Fiction / Social Situations / Self-Esteem & Self-Reliance   

Editorial Review

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Reviews (1)

wow!!
this book is good the best one i have readthis year. and i'm 14 years old and i alsohave truble with thatwell i 'll give it 10 stars if i could ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Body image    2. Body image in adolescence    3. Children: Young Adult (Gr. 10-12)    4. Eating disorders in adolescenc    5. Eating disorders in adolescence    6. Health & Daily Living - Diet & Nutrition    7. Juvenile Nonfiction    8. Juvenile literature    9. Psychology    10. Psychopathology - Eating Disorders    11. Self-perception   

Editorial Review

Adolescence is one of the most excruciatinglyembarrassing, developmentally difficult, and hormonallyintoxicating times of life. Whether you're a teen trying to dealwith the ineptitude of your parents or a parent trying to dealwith the turmoil of your teen, it's pretty likely that you coulduse some help. Enter Read more

Reviews (1)

This book would have made MY teen years easier!
I was prompted to buy this book when I read that Tyra Banks credits it as a major reason why she did not experiment with drugs or sex at an early age. As her mom had with her, I plan on sharing this book with my daughterwhen she is 10, in advance of all of the pre-teen and teen experiences andsituations she will undoubtedly find herself in. My expectation is that herknowledge about these topics and many more discussed in this excellent bookwill enable her to make more informed decisions. Thus, I believe it mayhelp her to resist a certain amount of negative peer pressure. This bookpresents a lot of information that would assist EVERY teen in navigatingthrough what are arguably the most difficult years of our lives. Read more

Subjects:  1. Adolescence    2. Children's Books/Young Adult Misc. Nonfiction    3. General    4. Health    5. Health and hygiene    6. Reference    7. Teenagers   

Reviews (2)

useless
As someone who has an eating disorder, and has actually worked with Nancy, this book is absolutly useless.There are many other more helpful books out there, I would recommend something by Zerbe.

Saving Grace
Nancy Kolodny's reader-friendly writing style will be a welcome change for those who are seeking help but not finding it in typical scientific-type analyses.The letters from people suffering from Anorexia Nervosa and Bulimia give the reader a marvellously comforting "you are notalone" feeling.Read more

Subjects:  1. Anorexia nervosa    2. Bulimia    3. Children's 12-Up - Psychology / Counseling    4. Children: Young Adult (Gr. 7-9)    5. Eating disorders    6. Health - Diet & Nutrition    7. Juvenile Nonfiction    8. Juvenile literature    9. Psychology    10. Social Issues - Drugs, Alcohol, & Substance Abuse