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3.8 AVERAGE
3.8 AVERAGE
While the epilogue was good, I can't in good conscience give this book anything more than 1 star. I read some other reviews while I was listening to this book that said that it essentially reads like a how-to-have-an-ED guide, and I completely agree. If I had read this book 2 years ago I would have stolen her diet-of which she goes into extreme detail, so far as the amounts she ate of specific foods and the calorie content of those portions.
If you have had an ED in the past or are currently recovering from one and thought to pick this up for motivation to make it through recovery, PUT IT DOWN. This book is extremely triggering. While I haven't restricted in over a year, this book had me wavering.
I understand that Portia wanted to share her story, but I find it incredibly irresponsible.
If you have had an ED in the past or are currently recovering from one and thought to pick this up for motivation to make it through recovery, PUT IT DOWN. This book is extremely triggering. While I haven't restricted in over a year, this book had me wavering.
I understand that Portia wanted to share her story, but I find it incredibly irresponsible.
(I don't know why I'm interested in reading about eating disorders right now -- it's Thanksgiving, I guess.) I thought her descriptions of what it feels like to have an eating disorder were excellent and she was very honest about her feelings, a trait I really respect. But she's so self-absorbed -- is that a fair criticism of a memoir? -- she just goes on and on about what she wanted from other people but not really able to see things from their point of view. She seems so ruthless, so lacking in compassion and kindness (not just to other people, but with herself), and so concerned about playing a role in every single relationship she has rather than just being herself. For a celebrity memoir, it's well-written, but I didn't really like her in the end (I will still enjoy her in Arrested Development, though).
This book was hard to read at times because, while I don't have an eating disorder, I suffer from BDD and recognize a lot of her feelings in myself. It's hard to read about sometimes debilitatingly low self-esteem in others if you also have it because it makes you realize how truly awful it can feel.
I thought the book was well written and shows how low she went, which was shocking at times. I don't recommend this book to anyone who could relapse by triggers, because this book has a lot of them. I also don't recommend this book to anyone who still suffers from an eating disorder because it could be said that this book has a lot of disordered "ideas." It has a happy ending though, which a lot of books about eating disorders do not have.
I thought the book was well written and shows how low she went, which was shocking at times. I don't recommend this book to anyone who could relapse by triggers, because this book has a lot of them. I also don't recommend this book to anyone who still suffers from an eating disorder because it could be said that this book has a lot of disordered "ideas." It has a happy ending though, which a lot of books about eating disorders do not have.
I wanted it to be written more strongly than it was. It is repetitive and I'm not 100% sure there's a message that gets through beyond people can recover from eating disorders. I applaud Ms. de Rossi, for her brutal honesty. That must have been very hard to put out there into the public eye.
I am mixed about this, feels like a bit of a ‘how to’ guide unfortunately and whilst the ending was inspiring it felt very ‘glossy’. It does always just shock me though how you can watch somebody in a tv show or film and have completely no idea what’s going on beneath the surface. A reminder for us all…
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
I loved this book right up until the epilogue. After a long, detailed decline into anorexia, I felt it wrapped up too quickly. I would have been very interested in her recovery, and it felt brushed over, which was disappointing. I also felt like there should be more detail of her relationship with Ellen, since she credits Ellen for helping her self-worth so much. But it was fascinating (disturbing, horrifying) to step into her head as an anorexic, and I appreciated how she kept it in the moment, not as one recovered and looking back. It made it real. And scary. I couldn't put the book down.
Unbearable Lightness is a quick but intense read. De Rossi's candid depiction of her patterns of disordered eating is often a bit gruesome (I definitely found myself in a weird state of mind after finishing this book); her straightforward portrayal of her life is pretty astounding. She's incredibly honest and a bit brutal, sharing intimate details with an openness that makes it possible to tap into the mindset of someone who is constantly scrutinizing themselves while also feeling the pressure to conform to social ideas about looks, weight and body shape, sexuality, and professionalism in acting, all while living under the gaze of the public eye.
I couldn't explain this book any better than the reviews on the back do. It's hypnotic, extraordinary, blunt, and shocking.
Interesting read going into the mind of someone with an eating disorder. Obsession doesn't even begin to describe Portia's daily thoughts. One of the best memoirs I've read so far.