The Fat Girl Paperback – April 8, 2007

The book was interesting to a point, when something happened it just happened no farther explanation. The characters could have been more fleshed out. Very unsatisfactory ending. Can't really recommend it

I read this book in junior high. I was a fat girl myself, well maybe not that fat, I guess I was considered "pleasingly plump". When I read it I thought it was good of Jeff to be kind to Ellen the fat girl. He decides he wants to be her friend and help her feel better about herself. It really shows you, however, how sometimes a helping hand can become a stronghold!! In my experience, growing up, there were people I wanted to help and sometimes did too much for them, like young Jeff ends up doing. Jeff starts doing things for Ellen which she is perfectly capable of doing herself. It's a very interesting book with a non-saccarine ending. If you read books on co-dependency or have been thru AA/AlAnon, etc., this book should be required reading. It's fictional yet a perfect example of co-dependency. It should accompany Melody Beatty's book, "Codependent No More". Not only is Jeff showing signs of codependency, but his mom and dad are, too. This usually runs in families and is a learned behavior. Check out this book!!

This is one of the worst books I've read in years. Not only is the writing plain ordinary, but there are zero likable characters, and a plot that is essentially the coming of age of an abuser. At least I was relieved to find the book is decades old. That might explain the condescending and shallow depiction of Ella.Be aware, it's not ironically titled "Fat Girl", or used for empowerment. It's literally what the main character calls her for the first half of the book because he can't be bothered to use her name. A character that is repeatedly told, "you're the nicest guy".I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone. I'd give it zero stars if I could. I say skip it, and go watch Booksmart instead.

Came in great condition.

Okay book but didn't like the ending.

Ms. Sachs passed away late 2016. I always have enjoyed her books. This was her last book and I am glad I have it as part of my permanentlibrary. She wrote about life when it was happening.

I read this book many moons ago when I was in junior high (I needed a break from Sweet Valley High). It has stuck with me for that long. It's still as good as I remembered.

I don't know even know how to start this review. This book sure was different. It wasn't what I expected at all. And this, this is a good thing.The story is about Jeff Lyons, a high school senior who wants to transfer from chemistry class to ceramics' because he's not that great of a student (doesn't have the best grades) and being in ceramics class will be less demanding and that way he can go to college. There he meets Ellen De Luca, or "the fat girl" like he calls her. She's twice his width, clumsy and super bad at ceramics. He can't stand her and it doesn't help that she's always looking at him and that bothers him.In that class he also meets Norma Jerkins, who's blonde, beautiful and has a talent with clay. They're both good looking and it's no surprise they become a couple. But one day in class when Jeff makes a comment on Ellen's lacking skills in ceramics and she hears him and ends up crying; that's the turning point for him. He tries to be nicer to her and when she confesses a secret, he wants to help her more than ever. And so starts the transformation from fat girl to Ellen.I really liked this book and the summary caught my attention right away. I thought this was going to be a cute love story about how the guy falls in love with the underdog and live happily ever after; I was so wrong. But that doesn't mean I didn't enjoy it.Jeff is a good guy and cares about his family, specially his mom since his dad left him and his sister years ago. His sister, Wanda, who's a teenager has her own issues and they play as a second plot to the story. He and his mom sometimes don't have the best communication, but that doesn't take out the fact that they both care about each other.So, when things aren't going good at home, it seems like his escape is Ellen.Like the nice guy everyone says he is, he tries helping her come out of her shell. He helps her find a hobby, think about college, and care about her personal image. He even helps her with the make-up and clothes she should wear. That part felt kind of weird because he's a guy, you know? But it all makes sense in the end.At first, all this looks like good intentions from his part and they probably were but not for the right reasons. It doesn't take long for it to become uncomfortable. He becomes sort of obsessed with her and her only. Now that Ellen is finding her place and losing weight, he doesn't want her to be independent. He tries to mold her his way and what he thinks is right for her, but the thing is that it looks almost caring. It confuses you. You don't know what to think of him. I got mad at him. But at the same time he doesn't come off as a bad boy. Do you know what I mean?One thing I didn't know was that this book was originally published in 1984 and it's on its third printing. Again, I'm glad I picked this book up. It was really different. Even though its been years since this book has been out, you should definitely pick up a copy and experience it yourself. I haven't read a contemporary like this one before.

It's a shame in many ways that this book is not more widely published. I can remember stumbling across a battered copy of it in my school library, some time in the mid 1990s, and enjoying it then, although I read it at surface level then as a story about a fat girl who meets a boy - a popular, handsome boy - and her life changes for the better when through him she has the confidence to lose weight which results in her splitting up with him.Returning to it at the age of not quite 30 I found the book disturbing and unsettling on so many levels and I have so many questions about it - I'd love to meet the author of this book for that reason. Jeff, our narrator, is handsome - he knows it and other people know it too. So why is he dating Ellen, the "fat girl" (Ellen weighs over two hundred pounds - fourteen stone-ish for non US readers which wouldn't make her particularly horrendous by today's standards, but anyway ...) It's a book about power, and Jeff loves not Ellen (Wanda, Jeff's sister says, "Ellen (sic) has no personality ... she just sits and looks at you" but the power he holds over her. Jeff controls what Ellen wears, her makeup, her perfume, her friends, and to begin with Ellen is compliant and agreeable. At first, it's possible to see that even though Jeff comes across as a little overbearing his intentions are basically good and even though Ellen isn't keen on the clothes he chooses, the point is she's showing an interest in clothes for the first time in a long time. What is frightening is how quickly and how convincingly the author portrays Jeff moving into territory that isn't just a bit overbearing but downright abusive and bullying; refusing to speak to Ellen on her prom night after she wears a dress he did not choose; trying to force Ellen to attend the same college as him so they can live together; instructing her on who she can see and openly putting her down by putting doubts into her mind about who likes her and who doesn't. It's so easy to see how ten years down the line, had the book not ended by Ellen breaking up with Jeff, we could easily have had a cowed and bullied Ellen playing the role of the abused and oppressed wife as Jeff controls her finances and life in the same way he controls her wardrobe and social life.The book's real skill comes from the fact that we don't lose sympathy for Jeff. He is a victim too, every bit as much as Ellen, and we come to understand from his background why he feels the need to control Ellen - it comes from a fear, a deep rooted insecurity from living with a neurotic mother who is probably bordering on being emotionally abusive herself - yet Jeff loves her. It's impossible to dislike Jeff: he remains polite, amiable and kind to the women in his life - mother, sister and girlfriends, and he treats both Ellen and his previous girlfriend Norma with a gentle respect even as his behaviour becomes more and more dominant and bossy. And we can't quite forget that Jeff is the one who gave Ellen the confidence to stand up for herself in the first place - even though this backfires spectacularly on Jeff!It's a real gem of a book - it's not about a "fat girl" but a very interesting and fascinating look at abusive relationships, where they start and how they start and I can't reccommend it strongly enough.

Shockingly dated! Absolutely bizarre and should be put out of its misery. Highlight of book is a pottery wheel, and the unintentionally hilarious make lead.

O garoto, Jeff é narrador do livro, tenta ser o criador ou a “cura” da fat girl. Ele é um psicopata em crescimento.