Reviews tagging 'Dysphoria'

13 Ways of Looking at a Fat Girl by Mona Awad

2 reviews

justreads93's review against another edition

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challenging dark sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

I don’t know if I liked this book or not. It felt more like a car crash I couldn’t look away from. I think the title is misleading, instead of 13 distinct ways of looking at Elizabeth the fat main character, all but two of the vignettes are told from her POV and all of the vignettes depict Elizabeth as a deeply unhappy and insecure person. I think if maybe we had the POV from her friend Mel, her mom, her dad, and maybe the nail lady we could have those more distinct “ways” of looking at a fat girl. I also feel like this story just ended and I feel like there’s a lot more of Elizabeth to explore but instead the book just ends. 

As someone who was a fat teen and is now a fat woman I could really relate to Elizabeth’s struggles with low self esteem and body image but at points this got uncomfortable to keep reading. The way that fat people are constantly depicted as gross and disgusting just felt over the top at some points, like we get it Beth hates that she is fat and is reflecting that on others as well but Christ.
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saoirsebb's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

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