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tanviuma's review against another edition
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
i loved this book - clearly as i read it in one day. i related to rachel a lot and found it comforting to have a similar experience written out in front of me. however i think people in ed recovery should be wary of reading this, as although it could be helpful in some cases it can also be very triggering. especially the first half of the book. however i think melissa broder did not intend for it to be triggering and i applaud her amazing writing.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Eating disorder, Dysphoria, Fatphobia, Incest, and Vomit
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Antisemitism, Biphobia, Lesbophobia, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Outing and Suicidal thoughts
ditzybub's review against another edition
challenging
lighthearted
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Eating disorder
Moderate: Incest
garynoplastie's review against another edition
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Eating disorder, Dysphoria, and Sexual content
Moderate: Emotional abuse and Incest
Minor: Biphobia, Religious bigotry, Antisemitism, Grief, Suicidal thoughts, Lesbophobia, Vomit, and Homophobia
kplouzeiro's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
inspiring
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Sexual content, Fatphobia, and Eating disorder
Moderate: Homophobia
Minor: Incest
rhii_reading's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse and Eating disorder
Moderate: Incest
Minor: Homophobia
rpoe's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
It’s a quick read, but I didn’t enjoy all of the writing. The main character’s internal dialogue was uncomfortable to read. Lots of awkward sexual themes (incest) and fatphobic/fetish comments.
The representation of queer relationships as well as eating disorders was grossly portrayed and uninformed.
The representation of queer relationships as well as eating disorders was grossly portrayed and uninformed.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Eating disorder, Incest, Fatphobia, Homophobia, and Sexual content
burnyayhayley's review against another edition
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
*this rant review is filled with spoilers, so proceed with caution*
I genuinely tried to like this book, and I remained as open-minded as possible throughout.
This book is NOT a good or accurate queer representation. This book is also blatant in its fetishizing of fat women and an incestuous desire to conquer a mother who didn't parent her daughter well (read: the MC wants to f*CK her mom).
While I do think either of those latter points could be used as plot points and could even be explored in a way that–while still uncomfortable – does something useful for the story, this is not a case where that happens.
Throughout reading this I wanted to redeem it and give it the benefit of the doubt. But the writing feels manipulative. I found the obsessive thoughts about food to be interesting, and probably the least offensive part of the book (however, dear god, read the CW!!! Don't go into this book blind please) purely because of the accuracy I can detect, but they were overt and descriptive in a way that felt unnecessary. But that is because I think the author's approach is to be overly provocative, and call that a "style".
However, past this, the Freudian fever dream of sex with a mother figure was one thing. I could even excuse the discomfort of that for its metaphorical purposes– but the obsessive writing about Miriam, the fat object of desire for the MC, is entirely another.
Not only was this character underdeveloped and barely explored, but she was also entirely there to be a place for the MC, Rachel, to spotlight her obsessions. What a package! She can think about food and controversial sex with a mother figure all at once! Because fat women are automatically mothers and mother stand-ins, right??
Garbage.
In every moment that reads initially as wholesome on the page, I wanted to like this relationship. I wanted to happily see my own history in the relationship on the page. I wanted this to feel like a mirror.
But then the MC would be vague and strange about her own desires, conflating them with other parts of her psyche, creating a sort of haze in which the reader cannot see where one ends and another starts. And the MC goes so far as to basically deny her queerness, to "blame" it on other things.
If a book will make me see myself, even in flickers, and then make me question the reality of my experience, then the book is doing something wrong. And it is definitely not representing queerness and queer desire correctly.
Honestly, I can barely even go into the fatphobia that is used throughout this book. Again, I think such things could be used for a purpose, and contextually it made sense because the MC is anorexic, but it was gross, and it felt like a harmful undercurrent to the entire book, but also like the book was actively denying it was happening. Ew.
The last thing I have contempt for is the ending, and how Rachel had "changed" by the book's conclusion.
She cuts off all her hair, in an attempt to claim her queerness or her masculinity or something else, but the nuance of the conversation is that her experience of her own gender was clearly in question. But instead of going there, the MC assures the reader she is a woman (like six times in one sentence??? ok I hear you) and sleeps with a man while displaying yet more Freudian shit, penis envy.
I'm confused. How is she feeling? Does she even know who she is? Why can't her gender be a discussion in addition to the various other conversations?
The most offensive cherry on top is that Rachel is ~cured~at the end. She sleeps/loves/obsesses over a fat woman, and then she eats, self regulates, gains back some weight, and moves on from anorexia, basically overnight.
Hi, Broder, what the fuck???
Do you know anything about eating disorders and how fucking wrong that is? Have you met a fat woman, and figured out she is not a plot device for your protagonist's obsession with thinness??
With such absolute disregard for the experience of countless people, myself and my loved ones included, I have to question if this author has left her own fantasy world long enough to figure out that these plot devices are actually human beings.
I genuinely tried to like this book, and I remained as open-minded as possible throughout.
This book is NOT a good or accurate queer representation. This book is also blatant in its fetishizing of fat women and an incestuous desire to conquer a mother who didn't parent her daughter well (read: the MC wants to f*CK her mom).
While I do think either of those latter points could be used as plot points and could even be explored in a way that–while still uncomfortable – does something useful for the story, this is not a case where that happens.
Throughout reading this I wanted to redeem it and give it the benefit of the doubt. But the writing feels manipulative. I found the obsessive thoughts about food to be interesting, and probably the least offensive part of the book (however, dear god, read the CW!!! Don't go into this book blind please) purely because of the accuracy I can detect, but they were overt and descriptive in a way that felt unnecessary. But that is because I think the author's approach is to be overly provocative, and call that a "style".
However, past this, the Freudian fever dream of sex with a mother figure was one thing. I could even excuse the discomfort of that for its metaphorical purposes– but the obsessive writing about Miriam, the fat object of desire for the MC, is entirely another.
Not only was this character underdeveloped and barely explored, but she was also entirely there to be a place for the MC, Rachel, to spotlight her obsessions. What a package! She can think about food and controversial sex with a mother figure all at once! Because fat women are automatically mothers and mother stand-ins, right??
Garbage.
In every moment that reads initially as wholesome on the page, I wanted to like this relationship. I wanted to happily see my own history in the relationship on the page. I wanted this to feel like a mirror.
But then the MC would be vague and strange about her own desires, conflating them with other parts of her psyche, creating a sort of haze in which the reader cannot see where one ends and another starts. And the MC goes so far as to basically deny her queerness, to "blame" it on other things.
If a book will make me see myself, even in flickers, and then make me question the reality of my experience, then the book is doing something wrong. And it is definitely not representing queerness and queer desire correctly.
Honestly, I can barely even go into the fatphobia that is used throughout this book. Again, I think such things could be used for a purpose, and contextually it made sense because the MC is anorexic, but it was gross, and it felt like a harmful undercurrent to the entire book, but also like the book was actively denying it was happening. Ew.
The last thing I have contempt for is the ending, and how Rachel had "changed" by the book's conclusion.
She cuts off all her hair, in an attempt to claim her queerness or her masculinity or something else, but the nuance of the conversation is that her experience of her own gender was clearly in question. But instead of going there, the MC assures the reader she is a woman (like six times in one sentence??? ok I hear you) and sleeps with a man while displaying yet more Freudian shit, penis envy.
I'm confused. How is she feeling? Does she even know who she is? Why can't her gender be a discussion in addition to the various other conversations?
The most offensive cherry on top is that Rachel is ~cured~at the end. She sleeps/loves/obsesses over a fat woman, and then she eats, self regulates, gains back some weight, and moves on from anorexia, basically overnight.
Hi, Broder, what the fuck???
Do you know anything about eating disorders and how fucking wrong that is? Have you met a fat woman, and figured out she is not a plot device for your protagonist's obsession with thinness??
With such absolute disregard for the experience of countless people, myself and my loved ones included, I have to question if this author has left her own fantasy world long enough to figure out that these plot devices are actually human beings.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Fatphobia, Lesbophobia, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Biphobia, and Body shaming
Moderate: Incest, Xenophobia, and Religious bigotry
lesbihane's review against another edition
challenging
dark
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Obnoxously satirical but in a fun way. Good character growth that I didn't anticipate. I also have to give credit for realistic (and hot) sex scenes between two women.
Even though the whole point is that Rachel is deeply unwell with an eating disorder, I didn't get the feeling that the fatphobia was ever really redeemed properly, which is why I rated the book as a 4,5 instead of 5 stars. Rachel lusted over Miriam and her fat body but I dont think that was enough. Otherwise I enjoyed their complex and difficult relationship, I knew immediately where the story was going when they met and I enjoyed every second of it unfolding.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Incest, Fatphobia, and Eating disorder
hyliansee's review against another edition
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Eating disorder, Sexual content, Homophobia, Self harm, Toxic relationship, and Fatphobia
Moderate: Mental illness, Misogyny, Child abuse, Body shaming, Lesbophobia, Alcohol, and Incest
don't know how to content warn about zionismarys_library's review against another edition
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I don’t entirely know what to honk of this book, but I know I’d definitely want to read it again. It was strange, the way the narrator spoke and thought, how some things like sex related to her eating disorder and how graphically described the two things were together. It was pretty weird the main characters thoughts, but the relationships in the book were beautiful. I found myself relating to Rachel when she talked about her mother and her eating habits, not as severely but it felt comforting. I also loved loved loved the diversity, and although it was main points of the book, it wasn’t done in a hurtful, stereotypical way. I liked it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Lesbophobia, Toxic relationship, Fatphobia, and Eating disorder
Moderate: Antisemitism, Outing, Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, Homophobia, Cursing, Emotional abuse, and Body shaming
Minor: Religious bigotry, Incest, Suicidal thoughts, and Islamophobia