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danimae1981's review against another edition
4.0
The Girls at 17 Swann Street is a story that really dives into the topic of eating disorders, anorexia in particular. We experience the story from the point of view of Anna, a married woman in her mid-20's who is suffering from anorexia and a variety of other health issues as a result. It is written from 2 point of views: 1st person in the "present" (2016) during Anna's stay at 17 Swann Street, a treatment facility for women with eating disorders; and 3rd person when looking at the events of Anna's past that lead up to the present.
The book really provides a lot of insight into anorexia, both through Anna's internal struggles and seeing the various ways eating disorders affect the other girls at 17 Swann Street. I think it does a good job at portraying that this is a disease, it is very difficult to overcome, and can be deadly if not treated. It was no surprise to me that it was a story with many sad parts, but I'm glad that we are also able to see a lot of growth in the main character, leaving us with a sense of hope.
I feel like I came away from this book with a better understanding of eating disorders and how they affect both the person with the disorder and those that love them. There were a few parts that I think I would have like to have more information about (Anna's brother, Valerie), but overall, it was a powerful story.
The book really provides a lot of insight into anorexia, both through Anna's internal struggles and seeing the various ways eating disorders affect the other girls at 17 Swann Street. I think it does a good job at portraying that this is a disease, it is very difficult to overcome, and can be deadly if not treated. It was no surprise to me that it was a story with many sad parts, but I'm glad that we are also able to see a lot of growth in the main character, leaving us with a sense of hope.
I feel like I came away from this book with a better understanding of eating disorders and how they affect both the person with the disorder and those that love them. There were a few parts that I think I would have like to have more information about (Anna's brother, Valerie), but overall, it was a powerful story.
szirbel's review against another edition
4.0
A tough read about a young woman who’s battling anorexia and ends up as an inpatient in a facility. Her journey back from the edge is powerful and hopeful.
erikajay's review against another edition
5.0
Honestly one of the best books I have read! It is heartbreakingly beautiful. And I loved it!
I listened to this and the narration was amazing!
I listened to this and the narration was amazing!
rereader33's review against another edition
5.0
Holy crap, what an amazing book! Seriously, this novel exceeded every expectation that I had and was such an incredible book to read! There are only two things I really want to discuss, in an effort to keep this review short and also to avoid spoilers, which are the writing style and the focus on the physical aspects on eating disorders.
Writing style first. Zgheib made what I consider to be a bold move telling her story in vignettes. This is easily one of my favorite writing styles and the one I used while taking creative writing classes, so to see an author write an entire novel in this style made my heart swell with joy. It ended up being the best way to write the story because it kept thoughts, actions, descriptions, etc concise yet strong. Rather than bog down the story with paragraph after paragraph of daunting descriptions and dialogue, the vignettes explained clearly what was going on, what was being said, moving the story and a good pace. Every time I would start reading, I would read huge chunks at time because the pacing was so good thanks to the vignette-style writing. Zgheib's writing alone was phenomenal, but I've gushed enough so let's move on.
Now, about eating disorders. What this novel did that very few novels about eating disorders do is focus on the physical aspects of said disorders. To illustrate what I mean, I'll give a brief example from the novel. Anna is reminiscing about going to an amusement park with her husband (this occurred while she was anorexic) and she describes the pain she felt going on a roller coaster. She was in pain because, being so thin, when they would go around sharp turns or where bumping around, her bones when bang against the ride. This, and other scenes, were important to mention because they show how fun or every day activities could cause pain for someone with anorexia. Yet scenes like these don't come up in most books dealing with this topic. I've read a handful myself, and usually the only thing they mention is the character being cold or having stomach problems. Yes, these are accurate to what an anorexic would go through, but it doesn't tell the whole story. Giving the reader scenes where Anna would sit on the floor only to regret it because getting back up would be painful, or how her bones cracked and popped when she moved a certain way, allows the audience to get much wider mental picture of what an anorexic goes through daily. Now, this novel does go into some detail about other eating disorders, specifically bulimia, but not as much as anorexia which makes sense since that's what Anna suffers from. Anyway, I was really impressed that Zgheib made an effort to show the physical ramifications of anorexia and I think she did a stellar job.
I don't have much to say about the characters aside from loving Matthias and Anna's relationship. Seriously, it renewed my faith in romance and I loved it. The other girls at the house were great and offered new perspectives on eating disorders while being genuinely interesting characters.
That's about all I want to say, only to spare you from reading my gushing, love-filled rant any longer. If anyone is interested in reading a novel centered around eating disorders, this is the best I've read so far. Even if you aren't interested in this specific topic, give it a read anyway. It's easily one of the best books to come out this year.
Writing style first. Zgheib made what I consider to be a bold move telling her story in vignettes. This is easily one of my favorite writing styles and the one I used while taking creative writing classes, so to see an author write an entire novel in this style made my heart swell with joy. It ended up being the best way to write the story because it kept thoughts, actions, descriptions, etc concise yet strong. Rather than bog down the story with paragraph after paragraph of daunting descriptions and dialogue, the vignettes explained clearly what was going on, what was being said, moving the story and a good pace. Every time I would start reading, I would read huge chunks at time because the pacing was so good thanks to the vignette-style writing. Zgheib's writing alone was phenomenal, but I've gushed enough so let's move on.
Now, about eating disorders. What this novel did that very few novels about eating disorders do is focus on the physical aspects of said disorders. To illustrate what I mean, I'll give a brief example from the novel. Anna is reminiscing about going to an amusement park with her husband (this occurred while she was anorexic) and she describes the pain she felt going on a roller coaster. She was in pain because, being so thin, when they would go around sharp turns or where bumping around, her bones when bang against the ride. This, and other scenes, were important to mention because they show how fun or every day activities could cause pain for someone with anorexia. Yet scenes like these don't come up in most books dealing with this topic. I've read a handful myself, and usually the only thing they mention is the character being cold or having stomach problems. Yes, these are accurate to what an anorexic would go through, but it doesn't tell the whole story. Giving the reader scenes where Anna would sit on the floor only to regret it because getting back up would be painful, or how her bones cracked and popped when she moved a certain way, allows the audience to get much wider mental picture of what an anorexic goes through daily. Now, this novel does go into some detail about other eating disorders, specifically bulimia, but not as much as anorexia which makes sense since that's what Anna suffers from. Anyway, I was really impressed that Zgheib made an effort to show the physical ramifications of anorexia and I think she did a stellar job.
I don't have much to say about the characters aside from loving Matthias and Anna's relationship. Seriously, it renewed my faith in romance and I loved it. The other girls at the house were great and offered new perspectives on eating disorders while being genuinely interesting characters.
That's about all I want to say, only to spare you from reading my gushing, love-filled rant any longer. If anyone is interested in reading a novel centered around eating disorders, this is the best I've read so far. Even if you aren't interested in this specific topic, give it a read anyway. It's easily one of the best books to come out this year.
pam2375's review against another edition
3.0
This book was well written and interesting enough in content, however, I just was not able to connect with any of The Girls at 17 Swann Street.
Many thanks to Netgalley and St Martin's Press for this advanced readers copy.
Many thanks to Netgalley and St Martin's Press for this advanced readers copy.
deanab's review against another edition
5.0
Where to begin. I absolutely loved this novel. It was heart wrenching, heart warming, sad, and enlightening all at the same time. The style of writing with the story from Anna’s point of view along with the treatment plans made it very hard for me to put down. I kept thinking, just a few more pages. I’m not sure if the author has first-hand knowledge of anorexia, but she really made you feel as if she did and could have been telling her own story. The only thing I can say bad about this novel is that I didn’t want it to end. I wanted to know so much more about the characters and their futures.
sunnyk13's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
5.0
sandeecheekz's review against another edition
2.0
Where do I even start? I guess I gave it two stars because I felt bad about what I’m going to say.
This book was not for me, in fact, I can’t imagine who this book could actually be for.
One word that comes to mind when I think about this book is surface. It was not deep at all, which is shocking because it is a book about a young woman with anorexia.
There was a lot of missed potentials here. Deaths in the family that was skimmed over completely, just barely got a mention or two. It lacked character development for every single character. More missed potential, I mean you don’t learn much about who the women are that she spends her life with for a month (I’ll get to that later), they all have their own stories and events that have led up to why they are at this treatment facility and yet, not much information.
Everything just fell so flat.
Girl has problem, goes to treatment facility, doesn’t really struggle, and cures herself in one month.
One. Month.
And I say she cured herself because in the scenes when she is talking to her therapist she doesn’t say anything. How in the world was she cured then? She could have just done it on her own.
Tons of inconsistencies, I felt like it wasn’t well researched at all. The staff were all completely unrealistic for health care workers in the United States in 2016. None of this book felt believable at all.
Like the part when an ambulance came to pick up a girl with the lights on, yet “crept” down the driveway and slowly drove away? They wouldn’t have their lights on then.
Also, “too vanilla” to wear red lipstick, that doesn’t make sense but ok.
Overall, I feel like the plot was good but lacked in character development and the story was not believable. At all.
And the writing was just dull and boring, and again... not for me or anyone I could imagine, other than a young teen maybe. Or someone with very low reading comprehension skills.
Seriously. Girl has anorexia, gets one month of treatment, cured. The end. It was like the author couldn’t bare to have any conflict. No ups and downs.
Ok I need to stop ranting.
This book was not for me, in fact, I can’t imagine who this book could actually be for.
One word that comes to mind when I think about this book is surface. It was not deep at all, which is shocking because it is a book about a young woman with anorexia.
There was a lot of missed potentials here. Deaths in the family that was skimmed over completely, just barely got a mention or two. It lacked character development for every single character. More missed potential, I mean you don’t learn much about who the women are that she spends her life with for a month (I’ll get to that later), they all have their own stories and events that have led up to why they are at this treatment facility and yet, not much information.
Everything just fell so flat.
Girl has problem, goes to treatment facility, doesn’t really struggle, and cures herself in one month.
One. Month.
And I say she cured herself because in the scenes when she is talking to her therapist she doesn’t say anything. How in the world was she cured then? She could have just done it on her own.
Tons of inconsistencies, I felt like it wasn’t well researched at all. The staff were all completely unrealistic for health care workers in the United States in 2016. None of this book felt believable at all.
Like the part when an ambulance came to pick up a girl with the lights on, yet “crept” down the driveway and slowly drove away? They wouldn’t have their lights on then.
Also, “too vanilla” to wear red lipstick, that doesn’t make sense but ok.
Overall, I feel like the plot was good but lacked in character development and the story was not believable. At all.
And the writing was just dull and boring, and again... not for me or anyone I could imagine, other than a young teen maybe. Or someone with very low reading comprehension skills.
Seriously. Girl has anorexia, gets one month of treatment, cured. The end. It was like the author couldn’t bare to have any conflict. No ups and downs.
Ok I need to stop ranting.
jabreads23's review against another edition
5.0
Anna is battling anorexia and the story starts with her husband dropping her off at an inpatient treatment center. We learn about how her eating disorder began and her treatment. I would have liked to learn more about the other girls and even more about the Direct Care workers but it was a compelling story that read in two days.
starrysea98's review against another edition
4.0
Heartbreaking. Although it’s fiction, it rings true and is compelling to the very last word.