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3.63 AVERAGE
3.63 AVERAGE
fast-paced
I've seen girls reading this for years, and have always chuckled at the title. It was on the list for the bullying unit we taught this year, and one of my colleagues said it was her favorite of the group, so I figured I'd better read it.
First, the bad: Virginia lives in a world of privilege. Penthouse in NYC and second home in Connecticut. Private school, shopping sprees, and black tie dinners. Wealthy, white, and east coast. Why do I care? Because I teach in a school that is poor, half Latino, and rural west coast. Obviously, good books don't need to reflect the reader's reality (hello, fantasy, sci fi and murder mysteries!), but the setting will make the book more challenging for my struggling readers who won't have a lot of background knowledge about her world, and who possibly won't have a lot of sympathy for her first world problems.
Also, as many others mentioned, Virginia is pathetic and full of self loathing at the beginning of the book, and a proudly independent, confident young woman by the end. It's all a little too perfect.
Those qualities keep it to 4 stars, but there is much more to admire and enjoy. Virginia's transformation only appears too ideal upon reflection; as you read the book, it feels earned. Her humor and voice are strong. As a teacher, I love the quickly sketched personalities of her teachers. Her self hatred and self harm are painfully believable.
Plus, the title rocks.
First, the bad: Virginia lives in a world of privilege. Penthouse in NYC and second home in Connecticut. Private school, shopping sprees, and black tie dinners. Wealthy, white, and east coast. Why do I care? Because I teach in a school that is poor, half Latino, and rural west coast. Obviously, good books don't need to reflect the reader's reality (hello, fantasy, sci fi and murder mysteries!), but the setting will make the book more challenging for my struggling readers who won't have a lot of background knowledge about her world, and who possibly won't have a lot of sympathy for her first world problems.
Also, as many others mentioned, Virginia is pathetic and full of self loathing at the beginning of the book, and a proudly independent, confident young woman by the end. It's all a little too perfect.
Those qualities keep it to 4 stars, but there is much more to admire and enjoy. Virginia's transformation only appears too ideal upon reflection; as you read the book, it feels earned. Her humor and voice are strong. As a teacher, I love the quickly sketched personalities of her teachers. Her self hatred and self harm are painfully believable.
Plus, the title rocks.
Apetecia-me algo leve e rápido de ler e este livro funcionou perfeitamente.
Identifiquei-me bastante com a personagem principal, passar a adolescência a ser pressionada por ser mais gorda que o que a sociedade permite não é fácil. Apesar de ser um género de literatura mais jovem, é uma história que serve para miúdos e graúdos reflectirem acerca das suas acções e palavras e na maneira como afectam os outros à sua volta.
Identifiquei-me bastante com a personagem principal, passar a adolescência a ser pressionada por ser mais gorda que o que a sociedade permite não é fácil. Apesar de ser um género de literatura mais jovem, é uma história que serve para miúdos e graúdos reflectirem acerca das suas acções e palavras e na maneira como afectam os outros à sua volta.
at first, this book had too much teen speak and rich, white girl problems. but it developed into a page-turner that addressed real issues of eating disorders, date rape, represtion, masturbation and other great topics.
I give this book a 2.5 out of 5.
You can also find my review @ https://bit.ly/2PryQ72
This book came out in 2003 and the way people view plus-size women has changed since then. But that still did not make this book an easy read. The main takeaway from the book is “Nobody is perfect”, which is a good message. However, there are a lot of things that go unaddressed in the book.
The author does not address all the disturbing things that are mentioned at the beginning of the book. Convinced she was switched at birth, Virginia feels like a misfit in her own family. She is very close to her older sister and idolizes her brother, but has difficulty relating to anyone in her family. She comes up with “The fat girl codes of conduct” life guide, which is horrible, to say the least. Her belief in how a fat girl should behave in a romantic relationship was so depressing to hear. Basically, you should just fool around with boys, in secret because it would be embarrassing for THE GUY if the word got out. She mentions that it is like she is “giving the milk for free”. Like, really?
Take her parents now. They are horrible people. A dad who ‘likes his women thin’ and openly comments about Virginia’s weight and a mom who is a child psychologist but is so dense when it comes to understanding her own daughter's issues. She was also overweight as a child and she dumps all those insecurities on Virginia. Her mom is so concerned about staying thin and with what she is eating, I’d say she has an eating disorder as well.
The book also touched the topic of rape (not to Virginia) but did it terribly, as the rapist got as little punishment as a slap on the wrist. It was merely in the plot to make Virginia realize that who she thought of as perfect is essentially not.
The self-hate and self-harm are never truly addressed as a bad thing. The only mention of it is when Dr.Love recommends Virginia try kickboxing instead of hurting herself. This just creates the idea that self-harm is something one can just stop doing, which is not true in many cases. In addition to not discussing self-harm, the author also fails to discuss the eating disorders prevalent throughout the book. Virginia goes on a crash diet, not letting herself eat anything, her mom is always only ‘chewing on a piece of lettuce’, and Virginia notices the popular girl in school is bulimic but she does nothing about it.
Virginia goes from self-harming to self-love in a matter of days and I don’t think that is possible. I was a plus-size child and am a plus-size woman and I can tell you through my experience that it is not that easy. I have a decade more on Virginia and it can still be hard to love myself every moment of every day. So the fact that a simple eyebrow ring and colored hair can give her the perspective she needs in life seems a little far-fetched to me.
The book does have some good points. It was captivating and well written. Virginia’s narrations make the story more relatable. People who have been chubby and were criticized for it can relate to Virginia on many levels. Overall, this book is playing with risky material in a fairly unsafe manner, and it is not something to be read without discussion.
You can also find my review @ https://bit.ly/2PryQ72
This book came out in 2003 and the way people view plus-size women has changed since then. But that still did not make this book an easy read. The main takeaway from the book is “Nobody is perfect”, which is a good message. However, there are a lot of things that go unaddressed in the book.
The author does not address all the disturbing things that are mentioned at the beginning of the book. Convinced she was switched at birth, Virginia feels like a misfit in her own family. She is very close to her older sister and idolizes her brother, but has difficulty relating to anyone in her family. She comes up with “The fat girl codes of conduct” life guide, which is horrible, to say the least. Her belief in how a fat girl should behave in a romantic relationship was so depressing to hear. Basically, you should just fool around with boys, in secret because it would be embarrassing for THE GUY if the word got out. She mentions that it is like she is “giving the milk for free”. Like, really?
Take her parents now. They are horrible people. A dad who ‘likes his women thin’ and openly comments about Virginia’s weight and a mom who is a child psychologist but is so dense when it comes to understanding her own daughter's issues. She was also overweight as a child and she dumps all those insecurities on Virginia. Her mom is so concerned about staying thin and with what she is eating, I’d say she has an eating disorder as well.
The book also touched the topic of rape (not to Virginia) but did it terribly, as the rapist got as little punishment as a slap on the wrist. It was merely in the plot to make Virginia realize that who she thought of as perfect is essentially not.
The self-hate and self-harm are never truly addressed as a bad thing. The only mention of it is when Dr.Love recommends Virginia try kickboxing instead of hurting herself. This just creates the idea that self-harm is something one can just stop doing, which is not true in many cases. In addition to not discussing self-harm, the author also fails to discuss the eating disorders prevalent throughout the book. Virginia goes on a crash diet, not letting herself eat anything, her mom is always only ‘chewing on a piece of lettuce’, and Virginia notices the popular girl in school is bulimic but she does nothing about it.
Virginia goes from self-harming to self-love in a matter of days and I don’t think that is possible. I was a plus-size child and am a plus-size woman and I can tell you through my experience that it is not that easy. I have a decade more on Virginia and it can still be hard to love myself every moment of every day. So the fact that a simple eyebrow ring and colored hair can give her the perspective she needs in life seems a little far-fetched to me.
The book does have some good points. It was captivating and well written. Virginia’s narrations make the story more relatable. People who have been chubby and were criticized for it can relate to Virginia on many levels. Overall, this book is playing with risky material in a fairly unsafe manner, and it is not something to be read without discussion.
2.5 stars for me. The first half of the book was kind of slow IMHO. It was like things were happening to Virginia and she wasn't doing much of anything. It wasn't until the middle did things pick up a little. Overvall quick read. Finished it in 3 days
As a fellow big girl I can appreciate our main character finally learning to love herself and quit letting people treat her like crap and letting peiple see her only as the fat girl. When I was a teen my sister and I would learn or create a dance to a song and perform it in front of my mother; throughout the dance i would keep my eyes on my mother and would notice that she barely ever looked at me, only my sister. Obviously this hurt my feelings, it made me more self conscious and it lowered my self esteem. It didnt help that my step brothers would call me fat when we fought. Eventually in my early to mid twenties i got smart and realized while i do need to loose weight to be healthy, i wasn't going let anyone other than myself and God make me feel that way again because i know who i am as a person and as cheesy as it sounds, the inside does matter more than the outside.
Other than that one thing, this book sucked. ALL of the characters were annoying and most of them selfish, especially virginia; the plot had potential but fell incredibly flat and the entire book was filled with content that didn't add to the story at all. I feel that the thing that happened with the brother was pointless and was added just for dramatic effect and we never got a solid answer on what's going on with the popular girl that was in the bathroom throwing up. I assume she's bulimic but it's never addressed, probably due to the fact that our mc is incredibly self centered. I don't care who you are, if you sense something is wrong with someone you at least TRY to help.
Worst of all, this book doesn't do justice for any fat girl. It's hardly even about the topic of obesity or the adversity a fat person has to overcome. It doesn't even touch the surface of the mental and emotional damage obesity can have on a person.
It's not complete trash but in my opinion this is a waste of time.
Other than that one thing, this book sucked. ALL of the characters were annoying and most of them selfish, especially virginia; the plot had potential but fell incredibly flat and the entire book was filled with content that didn't add to the story at all. I feel that the thing that happened with the brother was pointless and was added just for dramatic effect and we never got a solid answer on what's going on with the popular girl that was in the bathroom throwing up. I assume she's bulimic but it's never addressed, probably due to the fact that our mc is incredibly self centered. I don't care who you are, if you sense something is wrong with someone you at least TRY to help.
Worst of all, this book doesn't do justice for any fat girl. It's hardly even about the topic of obesity or the adversity a fat person has to overcome. It doesn't even touch the surface of the mental and emotional damage obesity can have on a person.
It's not complete trash but in my opinion this is a waste of time.
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was a good and frustrating read.
Alot of repeating things and not saying much.
Almost tooo much inner conversations> i found myself skipping pages because I was just bored.
The bases of the story is good though.
Alot of repeating things and not saying much.
Almost tooo much inner conversations> i found myself skipping pages because I was just bored.
The bases of the story is good though.
I don’t even remember this book (changes rating). But due to further research, I recall it being about a “fat” teen who feels that everyone is against her because of her weight.
Being a “fat” woman...and I’ve been a range of slightly chunky to obese....is not a bad thing. Some people who are deemed “fat” are very healthy.
Plus, the way she “got over” her weight bashing was somewhat unrealistic.
Being a “fat” woman...and I’ve been a range of slightly chunky to obese....is not a bad thing. Some people who are deemed “fat” are very healthy.
Plus, the way she “got over” her weight bashing was somewhat unrealistic.