Scan barcode
A review by m_h_dahl
Girls Under Pressure by Jacqueline Wilson
5.0
2. READ 2022 (Audiobook)
Except that this book gives the impression that you can «decide» to recover from an eating disorder, and then you suddenly get better, I think this is a good attempt to describe the development of eating disorders in teenage girls in middle grade and how the disease affects the whole family.
The protagonist, Ellie, experiences and convinces herself that she is bigger than her friends, she feels uncomfortable, awkward, and those thoughts starts to bother her so much that food becomes her main focus. So far, I think Wilson writes ok about how an eating disorder can begin. The feeling of being too big. The comparison with other girls, although all bodies are different and need different things. The disease that eats up your personality and makes you a stranger who only counts calories, overtrains and does not have room in the mind to do the things that used to make you happy.
The problem with Wilson’s book, is that Wilson focuses way too much on food. It reveals that she does not really know much about what the disease does to the mind. Because it's not really about food at all. This may shows better in the antagonist, Zoë, who obviously struggles with anorexia - and even though she is hospitalized and is fatally underweight, Zoë is so ill that she is still restrictive in her food intake, she refusert to eat, and doesn’t see how sick she is - it is completely absurd, but that is exactly what an eating disorder is; it isn’t logical - It's a mental illness. To suddenly decide to recovery, and then achieve this on your own, when the disease distorts your mindset and deprives you of yourself, is not very realistic. But Wilson has made a good effort!
I find the relationship between Ellie and Zoë quite interesting, actually. Ellie's mind is slowly heading into an eating disorder, while Zoë is already very sick. Even tho, when Ellie meets Zoë, she distances herself from her. Ellie thinks she is not quite there, she still thinks a eating disorder is a choice; that you choose how the disease degenerates and what it will do to you. Ellie thinks she’s in control, when Zoë is a living proof that you absolutely can’t control it; it is the disease that controls you. Still, Ellie's illness comes with delusions that she's a little jealous of Zoë. She wants "a little bit" of what Zoë has - but not everything of course, Zoë has taken it way too far, Ellie thinks, she’s not gonna get that sick (as if an eating disorder is a diet).
But poor Ellie didn’t know that a diet and an eating disorder are certainly not the same thing. Eating disorders are not «a look», it is not a specific body, nor is it beautiful, desirable or a personality. Eating disorders are mental disorders.
The moment when Ellie visits Zoë at the hospital and sees how delusional Zoë really is, and then decides that she absolutely does not want to end up as Zoë, she sees how pointless it all is, is so heartbreaking, and it made me cry, actually … Because in this moment, Ellie gets a glimpse of how dangerous this disease is.
The story is sad, heartbreaking, but also heartfeeling about friendship, self-esteem and self-image. I laughted, I got sad. I got so engaged in the main character, Ellie, and it pained me to read every single sentence about Zoë.
The first time I read this book, I went to middle grade. I vaguely remember that the book made a little impression on me then. But by reading it now, probably gave me more than it did then - simply because I understood more of what forces murmured in the background of the plot, everything that was written between the lines.
«Girls under pressure» is informative in its own way, even though it contains some «gaps» in what an eating disorder actually does to your mind. In my opinion, this book is ok to read if you want to get a little insight, but I do not recommend it for someone in recovery … It can be quite triggering. Even so, «Girls under pressure» will forever be noe of my favorites, though.
Except that this book gives the impression that you can «decide» to recover from an eating disorder, and then you suddenly get better, I think this is a good attempt to describe the development of eating disorders in teenage girls in middle grade and how the disease affects the whole family.
The protagonist, Ellie, experiences and convinces herself that she is bigger than her friends, she feels uncomfortable, awkward, and those thoughts starts to bother her so much that food becomes her main focus. So far, I think Wilson writes ok about how an eating disorder can begin. The feeling of being too big. The comparison with other girls, although all bodies are different and need different things. The disease that eats up your personality and makes you a stranger who only counts calories, overtrains and does not have room in the mind to do the things that used to make you happy.
The problem with Wilson’s book, is that Wilson focuses way too much on food. It reveals that she does not really know much about what the disease does to the mind. Because it's not really about food at all. This may shows better in the antagonist, Zoë, who obviously struggles with anorexia - and even though she is hospitalized and is fatally underweight, Zoë is so ill that she is still restrictive in her food intake, she refusert to eat, and doesn’t see how sick she is - it is completely absurd, but that is exactly what an eating disorder is; it isn’t logical - It's a mental illness. To suddenly decide to recovery, and then achieve this on your own, when the disease distorts your mindset and deprives you of yourself, is not very realistic. But Wilson has made a good effort!
I find the relationship between Ellie and Zoë quite interesting, actually. Ellie's mind is slowly heading into an eating disorder, while Zoë is already very sick. Even tho, when Ellie meets Zoë, she distances herself from her. Ellie thinks she is not quite there, she still thinks a eating disorder is a choice; that you choose how the disease degenerates and what it will do to you. Ellie thinks she’s in control, when Zoë is a living proof that you absolutely can’t control it; it is the disease that controls you. Still, Ellie's illness comes with delusions that she's a little jealous of Zoë. She wants "a little bit" of what Zoë has - but not everything of course, Zoë has taken it way too far, Ellie thinks, she’s not gonna get that sick (as if an eating disorder is a diet).
But poor Ellie didn’t know that a diet and an eating disorder are certainly not the same thing. Eating disorders are not «a look», it is not a specific body, nor is it beautiful, desirable or a personality. Eating disorders are mental disorders.
The moment when Ellie visits Zoë at the hospital and sees how delusional Zoë really is, and then decides that she absolutely does not want to end up as Zoë, she sees how pointless it all is, is so heartbreaking, and it made me cry, actually … Because in this moment, Ellie gets a glimpse of how dangerous this disease is.
The story is sad, heartbreaking, but also heartfeeling about friendship, self-esteem and self-image. I laughted, I got sad. I got so engaged in the main character, Ellie, and it pained me to read every single sentence about Zoë.
The first time I read this book, I went to middle grade. I vaguely remember that the book made a little impression on me then. But by reading it now, probably gave me more than it did then - simply because I understood more of what forces murmured in the background of the plot, everything that was written between the lines.
«Girls under pressure» is informative in its own way, even though it contains some «gaps» in what an eating disorder actually does to your mind. In my opinion, this book is ok to read if you want to get a little insight, but I do not recommend it for someone in recovery … It can be quite triggering. Even so, «Girls under pressure» will forever be noe of my favorites, though.