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tas_takes_down_the_man's review against another edition
emotional
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
Wish I had this damn book when I was writing my master’s thesis! Very informative and validating.
hexedmaiden's review against another edition
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
I loved this book. While I have come a long way in my life as a fat person and having been so a vast majority of my life, there was still so much in this book that I took away. I feel like this another book that I would say that everyone needs to read. It doesn't matter if you're fat, average, or skinny, everyone could learn something from this book. Because fatphobia doesn't just have an affect on fat people, fatphobia hurts everyone.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Eating disorder, Fatphobia, and Body shaming
Moderate: Medical trauma, Ableism, and Racism
Minor: Sexual assault, Transphobia, and Homophobia
quasinaut's review
challenging
emotional
informative
medium-paced
4.0
I appreciated Aubrey Gordon as author and narrator for the audiobook.
My biggest complaint: I'm not sure who the audience is. If you already recognize the harm of antifatness (or listen to Maintenance Phase), some sections might help you reflect deeper, but overall you'll already be familiar with the content. If you don't - or you're someone new to the idea of fat activism - then I'm not sure this book is written in a way that will change your mind. The book is repetitive at times - perhaps as a way to try to convince readers who need these points to be driven home again and again for them to start sinking in - but I'm not sure that repetition alone is enough to be convincing.
My biggest complaint: I'm not sure who the audience is. If you already recognize the harm of antifatness (or listen to Maintenance Phase), some sections might help you reflect deeper, but overall you'll already be familiar with the content. If you don't - or you're someone new to the idea of fat activism - then I'm not sure this book is written in a way that will change your mind. The book is repetitive at times - perhaps as a way to try to convince readers who need these points to be driven home again and again for them to start sinking in - but I'm not sure that repetition alone is enough to be convincing.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming and Fatphobia
Moderate: Ableism and Eating disorder
vickizliu's review against another edition
4.0
I am new to fat activisim and general anti fat bias discourse and I found this to be a very digestible, eye opening, and well structured read. I also had the pleasure of attending an online book launch and discussion by the author Aubrey Gordon and Virginia Sole Smith and their different perspectives really emphasized that there are even different levels of discrimination for every size/"level" of fat. The book seems very well researched and most if not all cited sources are primary sources. I also appreciated that at the end of each chapter were reflection questions and section for opporunities for action. It's uncomfortable to confront your biases and examine them closely and the book does help guide you in a way so as to not raise your defenses. I was also particularly impressed with her dedication to intersctionality--how anti fatness and anti-blackness can go hand in hand and she touched on how anti fatness harms other marginalized groups (trans, LGBTQ+ groups, indigenous, PoC, disabled). The last chapter in particular touches on systesm of oppresion and how we must actively fight against them.
laurenscholle's review against another edition
5.0
despite my parasocial relationship w Aubrey…..absolutely incredible and I ask EVERY SINGLE PERSON read this esp if you’re not fat
pickled_pisces's review against another edition
informative
slow-paced
3.0
This book made a lot of really great points that really opened my eyes to how we perceive fatness within the US. However as a fan of the Maitence Phase podcast, many of the talking points I have heard before, and by the end of the book many things were repeated multiple times. I think this book would have benefited from being a little shorter. Also not usually a non fiction reader so its was almost a force to keep reading.
bookph1le's review against another edition
4.0
As an unabashed Aubrey Gordon fangirl who listens to Maintenance Phase religiously, has read Aubrey's What We Don't Talk about When We Talk about Fat, and who pre-ordered this book back in October, I cannot wait to read this. It's not overstating things to say that Aubrey Gordon and Michael Hobbes have really reshaped my thinking and transformed my worldview. I wish I could make everyone in America read her books and listen to her podcast.
A lot of this will already be familiar to diehard listeners of Maintenance Phase, as I am. Regardless, it's an excellent primer on some of the biggest myths surrounding anti-fatness and debunks in a thoughtful, research-backed way--and this is one of the things I appreciate most about Aubrey Gordon's work. There are so many misconceptions about fatness that really need to be addressed in order to make the structural inequalities fat people face clear to those for whom they're invisible. I also appreciate that Gordon's work is always intersectional, pointing out the additional challenges that BIPOC, lgbtq+, and disabled people face. This book contains challenging questions that encourage readers to think deeply about their own anti-fat biases, as well as practical suggestions about what people can do to help dismantle systems of oppression. This book isn't always easy to read--getting into the weeds about any form of discrimination never is, but it is enlightening and empowering.
A lot of this will already be familiar to diehard listeners of Maintenance Phase, as I am. Regardless, it's an excellent primer on some of the biggest myths surrounding anti-fatness and debunks in a thoughtful, research-backed way--and this is one of the things I appreciate most about Aubrey Gordon's work. There are so many misconceptions about fatness that really need to be addressed in order to make the structural inequalities fat people face clear to those for whom they're invisible. I also appreciate that Gordon's work is always intersectional, pointing out the additional challenges that BIPOC, lgbtq+, and disabled people face. This book contains challenging questions that encourage readers to think deeply about their own anti-fat biases, as well as practical suggestions about what people can do to help dismantle systems of oppression. This book isn't always easy to read--getting into the weeds about any form of discrimination never is, but it is enlightening and empowering.