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4.41 AVERAGE
4.41 AVERAGE
emotional
hopeful
reflective
Tw: Eating disorders.
I find it very difficult to review memoir-style books, so bear with me.
I recognize so much of myself in Green's young woman. I've been lucky not to have a problem with food restriction, but anxiety and overwork in the struggle for perfectionism have plagued me since I was a teenager. I too was a bright and happy child, tall for my age, hitting developmental milestones very early and wishing very much to remain a child forever.
But when puberty hit, it hit hard. I didn't grow any taller. But I did grow wider.
As a child I was very athletic, but my new body stopped me being able to do ballet anymore. Then it got rid of track and field. All I had left was martial arts where my weight held me up in a fight, grounded me.
I began exercising like crazy, going to classes 4 or 5 times a week, for a couple of hours each on top of jogging and dieting. When I still gained weight I saw my doctor. I distinctly remember, age 15, showing him a food diary and an exercise plan, at my whits end, on the verge of tears - asking what I could do to look like my peers. And, he was a kind man, he gave me a sad smile and said, "some people just run a bit bigger. You're in perfect health".
I know that's a little too much information, stranger on the internet, but I wanted to share it because so many of these thought patterns were reflected in Lighter than my Shadow: the urge for control, the self-loathing, the well-meaning family that pushed the wrong way. I could have been her if I'd gotten unlucky. I concentrated a lot of my frustration with weight and fitness into academia and saw results in my grades. What if school hadn't worked out? What would have happened to me then?
Memoirs are so difficult to review because we inevitably pick up the ones we feel a connection with. I thought the overall structure of this book was very good and that Katie's voice felt honest and identifiable. It's only a 3-star because I found the art a little dull after a while and would have liked some more creative panelling.
I hope if anyone reading this is going through something like Katie that they know that the pain and confusion they're feeling is real and that they are able to get some help.
Sorry, this is a pretty bad review but this book hit some chords. Proceed with caution.
I find it very difficult to review memoir-style books, so bear with me.
I recognize so much of myself in Green's young woman. I've been lucky not to have a problem with food restriction, but anxiety and overwork in the struggle for perfectionism have plagued me since I was a teenager. I too was a bright and happy child, tall for my age, hitting developmental milestones very early and wishing very much to remain a child forever.
But when puberty hit, it hit hard. I didn't grow any taller. But I did grow wider.
As a child I was very athletic, but my new body stopped me being able to do ballet anymore. Then it got rid of track and field. All I had left was martial arts where my weight held me up in a fight, grounded me.
I began exercising like crazy, going to classes 4 or 5 times a week, for a couple of hours each on top of jogging and dieting. When I still gained weight I saw my doctor. I distinctly remember, age 15, showing him a food diary and an exercise plan, at my whits end, on the verge of tears - asking what I could do to look like my peers. And, he was a kind man, he gave me a sad smile and said, "some people just run a bit bigger. You're in perfect health".
I know that's a little too much information, stranger on the internet, but I wanted to share it because so many of these thought patterns were reflected in Lighter than my Shadow: the urge for control, the self-loathing, the well-meaning family that pushed the wrong way. I could have been her if I'd gotten unlucky. I concentrated a lot of my frustration with weight and fitness into academia and saw results in my grades. What if school hadn't worked out? What would have happened to me then?
Memoirs are so difficult to review because we inevitably pick up the ones we feel a connection with. I thought the overall structure of this book was very good and that Katie's voice felt honest and identifiable. It's only a 3-star because I found the art a little dull after a while and would have liked some more creative panelling.
I hope if anyone reading this is going through something like Katie that they know that the pain and confusion they're feeling is real and that they are able to get some help.
Sorry, this is a pretty bad review but this book hit some chords. Proceed with caution.
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Content Warnings
Graphic: Eating disorder
Really amazing story. Pretty upsetting but really incredible and relatable.
I typically don’t read graphic novels but I am so grateful I picked this one up. This book is so powerful—Green reaches a level of introspection that many miss in their memoirs. She clearly depicts her struggles with mental illness and showcases how one mental illness can manifest into another. A lot of people struggle with perfectionism, but she does a nice job of describing when that drive crosses over to a diagnosable mental health issue. I could truly empathize with her as this story is uniquely her own. She does, however, address something that I believe a lot of people can relate to: for some people with chronic mental health issues there is a hope that one day you’ll wake up and everything will be fine. Negative thoughts and emotions can always linger, but you can learn to adapt and focus (mostly) on the good. This is a book I wish I would have read a long time ago.
An immersive graphic novel.
But ultimately, Lighter than My Shadow is an over-simplistic narrative of eating disorder origin, relapse and recovery- particularly the latter which is only given a few pages out of its sizable 500. The story, whilst enjoyably relatable at times, lacked the exploration of the truly monstrous thoughts that procure in the mind of one struggling with an eating disorder. The ones that would have left our protagonist certainly less likable (is that why they were left out?) but all the more real and honourably transparent.
In other words, there was an air of perfection to this story- it does not forgo the bounds of the stereotypical eating disorder narrative and with such a simplified and concise recovery- I don't believe this novel would be truly helpful to one struggling with an eating disorder, beyond the realm of it being somewhat relatable throughout the familiar stages of the disease.
But ultimately, Lighter than My Shadow is an over-simplistic narrative of eating disorder origin, relapse and recovery- particularly the latter which is only given a few pages out of its sizable 500. The story, whilst enjoyably relatable at times, lacked the exploration of the truly monstrous thoughts that procure in the mind of one struggling with an eating disorder. The ones that would have left our protagonist certainly less likable (is that why they were left out?) but all the more real and honourably transparent.
In other words, there was an air of perfection to this story- it does not forgo the bounds of the stereotypical eating disorder narrative and with such a simplified and concise recovery- I don't believe this novel would be truly helpful to one struggling with an eating disorder, beyond the realm of it being somewhat relatable throughout the familiar stages of the disease.
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
Content Warnings
Graphic: Eating disorder, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship
I read this book in about 3h and I really really enjoyed it. It was very real and I really wanted to give Katie a hug more times than not, I actually felt like I was inside Katie's head and she really brought the experience to life for me, and I think that having in as a graphic novel was the best way to go as I was more engrossed with the story. It was heartbreaking but I was rooting for her the whole time. I feel really moved by this story, I'm very happy I read it.