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venetiana's review against another edition
Very much less my jam now than when I first read it as a teen.
Also really didn't age well (see whole list of CWs).
Also really didn't age well (see whole list of CWs).
Content Warnings
Minor: Alcohol, Body shaming, Classism, Fatphobia, and Sexual content
ophycore's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Xenophobia, Alcohol, Infidelity, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, Body shaming, Cursing, Fatphobia, Toxic relationship, Gaslighting, Homophobia, Alcoholism, and Eating disorder
Moderate: Dysphoria and Sexual harassment
Minor: Rape, Classism, and Pregnancy
strangeeigenfunction's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.25
I think the primary reason I read this was hearing it, or maybe the movie, mentioned in a discussion of '00s fatphobia. I haven't seen the movie.
I don't hate Bridget, but I don't really like her, either. In a certain light, this sort of reads as an averted tragicomedy, with Darcy ex machina wrapping up several of the looming tragic ends... or distracting from other ones. Despite enjoying relatively well-off circumstances, there's a lot wrong in Bridget's life that isn't really examined (by her or other characters) in a constructive way. One of those issues is that despite being at what is almost certainly a perfectly healthy weight, she's fixated on losing weight and erratically dieting, disordered eating masquerading as vanilla diet culture. I would also characterize her approach to alcohol as not so healthy, and at times she leans on cigarettes as a coping mechanism, but, while she does recognize these as issues, her attitude regarding quitting leans heavily on willpower in a way that seems naive in the 2020s. And the array of relationships of varying levels of toxicity surrounding her tend to entwine with the drinking and/or the dieting.
It is rather funny, but I'd consider it a bleak humor shaped by normalized dysfunctions.
(by the by, I'm a little peeved at the numbers summary at the end. While I don't care that much whether anyone went through and touted up the in-entry numbers exactly, and I paid less attention to the alcohol counts while reading (units is not that meaningful to me in the US I think), the averages implied by the totals... beg some questions:
5277=14 cigarettes average per day is possible. I'm not sure I think it's accurate (my impression is that about half the recorded days are 18-20+, with a few around 60), but it's not implausible.
3836=10.5 units alcohol average each day. Now, as I said, I paid less attention to the numbers here, but 10, while it happened, feels like it was somewhat atypically high for Bridget, and there were some days she did not drink, so this seems slightly implausible.
11,090,265= ...30,384 calories/day, or fifteen times the RDA. This is essentially impossible, especially as I don't think Bridget ever exceeded 10,000 calories in a day. I might buy something in the 2500 average range (~912,500 total) or even a round 1 million as the yearly total, although I'd guess that probably requires 3000 calories on unrecorded days. But not 30000 a day)
I don't hate Bridget, but I don't really like her, either. In a certain light, this sort of reads as an averted tragicomedy, with Darcy ex machina wrapping up several of the looming tragic ends... or distracting from other ones. Despite enjoying relatively well-off circumstances, there's a lot wrong in Bridget's life that isn't really examined (by her or other characters) in a constructive way. One of those issues is that despite being at what is almost certainly a perfectly healthy weight, she's fixated on losing weight and erratically dieting, disordered eating masquerading as vanilla diet culture. I would also characterize her approach to alcohol as not so healthy, and at times she leans on cigarettes as a coping mechanism, but, while she does recognize these as issues, her attitude regarding quitting leans heavily on willpower in a way that seems naive in the 2020s. And the array of relationships of varying levels of toxicity surrounding her tend to entwine with the drinking and/or the dieting.
It is rather funny, but I'd consider it a bleak humor shaped by normalized dysfunctions.
(by the by, I'm a little peeved at the numbers summary at the end. While I don't care that much whether anyone went through and touted up the in-entry numbers exactly, and I paid less attention to the alcohol counts while reading (units is not that meaningful to me in the US I think), the averages implied by the totals... beg some questions:
5277=14 cigarettes average per day is possible. I'm not sure I think it's accurate (my impression is that about half the recorded days are 18-20+, with a few around 60), but it's not implausible.
3836=10.5 units alcohol average each day. Now, as I said, I paid less attention to the numbers here, but 10, while it happened, feels like it was somewhat atypically high for Bridget, and there were some days she did not drink, so this seems slightly implausible.
11,090,265= ...30,384 calories/day, or fifteen times the RDA. This is essentially impossible, especially as I don't think Bridget ever exceeded 10,000 calories in a day. I might buy something in the 2500 average range (~912,500 total) or even a round 1 million as the yearly total, although I'd guess that probably requires 3000 calories on unrecorded days. But not 30000 a day)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Eating disorder, Fatphobia, Alcohol, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Sexual harassment, Sexual content, Toxic friendship, and Infidelity
Minor: Pregnancy and Classism
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