Reviews with content warning for Fatphobia - Bueno en la cama

I've been on a Jennifer Weiner kick recently, including her memoir and the amount of things I realized were just self-inserts in this book were almost uncomfortable. It felt very early 2000s fanfic (to be fair it was written in 2001, but it's not fanfic, so...). Anyway, the premise of the book is decent, although I have no clue why Cannie spent any time with Bruce - he was a pain and overall useless to her. However, once things took a turn for Cannie there was no stopping her and it was just silly - like girl gets everything she wants (and more) and still can't stop whining about it.

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sabrinakennedy's review against another edition

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This book was written in 1998 and fat shames as such. The book is about a curvy size 16 who is so large that she had to learn to love herself despite what people think of her. As a size 16/18, it made me feel worse about myself, not better. Also there is some casual homophobia and dismissal of a late in life lesbian. I think this is just because of when it was written. Other Jennifer Weiner books do not have these problems.

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mnatale100's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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maithewriter's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

I have a rather complicated relationship with this book -- I liked it, I liked the intention of empowering big girls, but I'm kind of not crazy over how things panned out, plot-wise.

Our heroine, Cannie Shapiro, can be a bit polarizing. Overall, I think she's a relatable character -- sarcastically funny, smart, but with very low self-esteem that she's trying to cover up with her borderline bitchiness (she's not "nice" by any standards, which I think makes a lot of people NOT like her). But others might find her too whiney, especially when you consider how she's too fixated over her size 16 body in a 5'10" frame. She's a big girl, yes, but not the kind of fat who's doomed to end up with no one as she makes it out to be.

The other characters are pretty meh. I would have loved more insights into her mother and Tanya's relationship (and why Cannie's so against it, like she's just some lesbophobe or something -- another thing that didn't sit well with me). But then, this novel focuses on Cannie anyway, so maybe that's how the author intended it to be -- half-baked characters who only get screentime when they interact with Cannie.

Ex-BF Bruce gets a lot of screentime too, but it's like... cringey how Cannie pined for him for like three-fifths of the novel when he was described as a sloppy, pot-smoking, go-with-the-flow bum. Not to mention he was the reason why Cannie went on this self-pity spiral about her weight.

But on the other hand, that's how breaking up feels like... there comes a point when you just remember the good parts of your relationship and gloss over the bad. I guess what didn't sit well with me was how it felt like an eternity for Cannie to get over Bruce. It was hard (and pathetic) reading all those moments of endless pining over someone so mediocre. For me, things only started picking up in the last two parts of the novel -- that was when I really got into it without the uncomfortable feeling.

Another thing that I kinda didn't like about the book was how everything was resolved in a deus-ex-machina, wish fulfillment kind of way.

How convenient (and utterly unrealistic) is it to meet a celebrity who suddenly decides to be your best friend and automatically solves all your financial woes without requiring even a thank you? And how likely is it that while you're wallowing in self-pity and being pregnant with your ex's baby, some hot, mature, and super kind doctor takes a liking to you and decides to pursue you in spite of all your insecurities?

For a book that intends to empower big girls, I just really wish that Cannie got over her issues with the help of her friends and family and not some guy who seemed to validate the notion that your happy-ever-after depends on whether you find true love or not. That's not very empowering.

So with all these issues I have with the book, I guess it's a testament to Jennifer Weiner's witty writing that I still liked it enough to give it 3.25 stars. She wrote some really good stuff,

especially when she described Cannie's rage after baby Joy was born prematurely -- the endless walking, the spiral into post-partum depression, the bleakness of it all.

It's powerful and harrowing.

I think I'll try another Weiner book, though I probably won't pick up the sequel to Good in Bed.

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mollywill's review against another edition

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emotional funny 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

3.75

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itschelseaw's review against another edition

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emotional funny medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

During the first part in particular I almost put the book down. I’m very glad we’ve moved past this book as the groundbreaking example of fat women in the media. I say this a fat woman too. I’m glad Cannie found a way to love herself, especially after all the trauma she went through. I definitely had to keep reminding myself that this was published in the 90s though, because wow have things changed.
Also, the casual, persistent homophobia ALSO almost made me put the book down a few times.

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