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3.98 AVERAGE
3.98 AVERAGE
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
absolutely incredible, thought-provoking story, with one of the most amazing, breathtaking writing styles i've ever read. loved just about everything about this book. adored the character development, adored how unique the perspective from an unlikable, unreliable, unstable narrator, adored the execution of non-linear narrative (which i know is very tricky to do, but is my favorite type of storytelling).
the ways how this is different from other eating disorder stories:
- the characters don't recover after just one stint at an institution; not all disordered characters were even institutionalized.
- the path to recovery is not linear; relapse is a common theme for some characters. while some characters don't even recover. very realistic take on the "community."
- we follow "older" sufferers — most eating disorder fiction follow adolescents/teenagers who recover after a year or so in therapy. the main characters were in their mid-twenties at the start of the story, and we see flashbacks from when the disorder began in their pre-teen years. that's a decade, which is actually the reality for most eating disorder sufferers.
- the talk about recovery — just stunning. i was relapsing a bit, and it just made me want to continue doing my best in recovering.
- very modern in a sense that it discussed pro-ana groups and even fad diets.
**this book has A TON of trigger warnings, so look them up before reading.
the only thing i didn't like was that it ended so abruptly, i was surprised. 😭😭 still worth a 5-star rating from me, though.
so much praise for this book. i read it on my kindle, but i'm definitely buying a physical copy to reread and annotate one of these days.
the ways how this is different from other eating disorder stories:
- the characters don't recover after just one stint at an institution; not all disordered characters were even institutionalized.
- the path to recovery is not linear; relapse is a common theme for some characters. while some characters don't even recover. very realistic take on the "community."
- we follow "older" sufferers — most eating disorder fiction follow adolescents/teenagers who recover after a year or so in therapy. the main characters were in their mid-twenties at the start of the story, and we see flashbacks from when the disorder began in their pre-teen years. that's a decade, which is actually the reality for most eating disorder sufferers.
- the talk about recovery — just stunning. i was relapsing a bit, and it just made me want to continue doing my best in recovering.
- very modern in a sense that it discussed pro-ana groups and even fad diets.
**this book has A TON of trigger warnings, so look them up before reading.
the only thing i didn't like was that it ended so abruptly, i was surprised. 😭😭 still worth a 5-star rating from me, though.
so much praise for this book. i read it on my kindle, but i'm definitely buying a physical copy to reread and annotate one of these days.
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Eating disorder
Loved this story. Really gripping story, interesting to consider the perspective of each sister.
dark
emotional
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
honestly i shouldn’t have read this, but i did and i finished and here we all are! the rating is arbitrary (maybe closer to 3.5? unsure) since i’m undecided on this book in most respects. the writing style is a little ‘AO3 author with a MFA’ if you catch my drift, but it works; it’s imo a pretty balanced mix of cliched purple prose and instances of cleverly/uniquely articulated insights. there’s a deliberate ~quirkiness~ here which only bothered me in certain cases (the characterization of kat mitchell comes to mind) but if you’re someone who tends to dislike humorous (albeit with a blatantly dark undercurrent) approaches to serious issues, this will decidedly not do it for you.
as others have said, this book is CHOCK full of triggers, mainly relating to disordered eating but also including: rape, physical abuse, internalized homophobia and suicide ideation, among others. at times this reading experience impacted my mental health to a crushing degree lmao and this coming from someone who has never up to this point felt the urge to DNF any kind of media due to finding the material too triggering. make of that what you will! thin girls offers an EXTREMELY in depth look at the lifestyle of someone living with an ED, from common habits to the mental processes (mental gymnastics...) used to justify & even encourage them. is it accurate? yeah, absolutely. was it NECESSARY for the author to cram in that many examples of life threatening ‘diet’ techniques (conveyed through our protagonist, who is effectively pro-ana for the bulk of this book) to make her point? idk! i don’t feel comfortable making that judgment call, especially considering the author has almost definitely struggled with an ED herself based on the contents of this book. but i sympathize with reviewers who have derided thin girls as a dangerously irresponsible ‘how to’ on developing and maintaining an ED despite that this (of course) was not the intent going in. thin girls is obviously severely triggering but there is an element of catharsis to it as well - not by ANY means something i would recommend to readers with an ED, but i respect the way clarke chooses to grapple with the topic here, and (again) suspect this came from a highly personal place. i think there’s enough of value here to more than justify this book’s existence, but ymmv and proceed with caution, etc.
anyway i’m feeling some kind of awful so i’m going to go find something a little less um...this, to occupy my brain lol!
as others have said, this book is CHOCK full of triggers, mainly relating to disordered eating but also including: rape, physical abuse, internalized homophobia and suicide ideation, among others. at times this reading experience impacted my mental health to a crushing degree lmao and this coming from someone who has never up to this point felt the urge to DNF any kind of media due to finding the material too triggering. make of that what you will! thin girls offers an EXTREMELY in depth look at the lifestyle of someone living with an ED, from common habits to the mental processes (mental gymnastics...) used to justify & even encourage them. is it accurate? yeah, absolutely. was it NECESSARY for the author to cram in that many examples of life threatening ‘diet’ techniques (conveyed through our protagonist, who is effectively pro-ana for the bulk of this book) to make her point? idk! i don’t feel comfortable making that judgment call, especially considering the author has almost definitely struggled with an ED herself based on the contents of this book. but i sympathize with reviewers who have derided thin girls as a dangerously irresponsible ‘how to’ on developing and maintaining an ED despite that this (of course) was not the intent going in. thin girls is obviously severely triggering but there is an element of catharsis to it as well - not by ANY means something i would recommend to readers with an ED, but i respect the way clarke chooses to grapple with the topic here, and (again) suspect this came from a highly personal place. i think there’s enough of value here to more than justify this book’s existence, but ymmv and proceed with caution, etc.
anyway i’m feeling some kind of awful so i’m going to go find something a little less um...this, to occupy my brain lol!
At first, this was just another "oh, girl with ED in a facility, also she's dealing with her sexuality" book. And then, suddenly, it wasn't. It was supposed to feel familiar because it's the reality of being a woman--we either have experienced disordered eating or know a half dozen other women who have. The character development in this book was incredible, and I so appreciate a story where there isn't a single bad, evil, petty, or flat woman to be found. The writing itself was beautiful, too.
It took a little bit for me to get into it because it is dark and a very particular voice but I really liked it and the payoff was great. Definitely not for everyone because the subject matter can be very triggering and upsetting (eating disorders, domestic abuse, sexual assault, horribly incompetent rehab facilities).
Wow, what a raw, heartbreaking novel. The premise of this book, revolving around eating disorders, sexuality, and abuse, is clearly a heavy subject that the author manages to portray incredibly well. But what has left me speechless is Clarke’s incredible writing style - beautiful, realistic, and brutal - she brings such emotion to this story and I am truly in awe.
Please be cautious of content warnings before picking up this book.
Please be cautious of content warnings before picking up this book.
disclaimer: this review will discuss eating disorders/disordered eating. i'll put a full cw at the bottom
I'm on a Unhinged Girl Literary Fiction kick, I guess. Normally I don't do myself the disservice of reading about eating disorders - like for a lot of others out there, body image and unhealthy relationships with food are a rough thing to think about, and I generally prefer to dwell on other things. However, Thin Girls caught my eye while just scrolling through the e-library catalogue from the title alone, and I read it in one sitting. Oops.
But honestly? I enjoyed it, as much as you can truly enjoy a book that makes you uncomfortable to your very bones and makes you want to crawl out of your skin. It's a deeply fucked up book, and on second thought it falls into a lot of the stereotypes that a lot of eating disorder books fall into. (I thought too long and knocked it down a star because it really, really does, but you know what, at least this book isn't marketed towards teens?) I did find Rose and Lily compelling enough to have me keep reading, and their complicated sibling relationship and Rose's underlying sexuality crisis throughout the book made it more than just an Eating Disorder Novel.
Compelling as it was, I'd suggest not reading this if you have a history of eating disorders or disordered eating, because I can see this book being incredibly triggering. (God, but the title of this book would probably be enticing to people with eating disorders, which is ... probably not good.
content warning | eating disorders & disordered eating behaviours, diet culture, fatphobia, body image, self-harm, abuse, sexual assault
I'm on a Unhinged Girl Literary Fiction kick, I guess. Normally I don't do myself the disservice of reading about eating disorders - like for a lot of others out there, body image and unhealthy relationships with food are a rough thing to think about, and I generally prefer to dwell on other things. However, Thin Girls caught my eye while just scrolling through the e-library catalogue from the title alone, and I read it in one sitting. Oops.
But honestly? I enjoyed it, as much as you can truly enjoy a book that makes you uncomfortable to your very bones and makes you want to crawl out of your skin. It's a deeply fucked up book, and on second thought it falls into a lot of the stereotypes that a lot of eating disorder books fall into. (I thought too long and knocked it down a star because it really, really does, but you know what, at least this book isn't marketed towards teens?) I did find Rose and Lily compelling enough to have me keep reading, and their complicated sibling relationship and Rose's underlying sexuality crisis throughout the book made it more than just an Eating Disorder Novel.
Compelling as it was, I'd suggest not reading this if you have a history of eating disorders or disordered eating, because I can see this book being incredibly triggering. (God, but the title of this book would probably be enticing to people with eating disorders, which is ... probably not good.
content warning | eating disorders & disordered eating behaviours, diet culture, fatphobia, body image, self-harm, abuse, sexual assault
I don’t know how to rate this book. It’s incredibly well written. It’s disturbing and thought-provoking but could be very triggering for some people. I’m going to be thinking about this book for a long time.