Wintergirls

Thoughtful, sensitive and brutally honest - 'Wintergirls' is a work of art. The gritty reality of Lia's journey through the darkness of her illness, juxtaposed with the fairy-tale like beauty of Anderson's prose make a haunting combination. This book gave me chills, in the good way. Despite the lyrical style of the writing, Lia's narrative was realistic, relatable, and deepy sad - especially the depiction of her and Cassie's friendship. In many ways, I think this book actually outshines 'Speak' which is the novel Anderson is most famous for. Would 100% recommend to anyone looking for a beautifully written YA.

A well-written novel about the teenage struggles of Lia, a wintergirl, who competes with her best friend Cassie to be the thinnest girl in the school. Lia's weapon is anorexia, Cassie's is bulimia. On the opening, Cassie and Lia are recently estranged and Cassie has died after trying to contact Lia for help. What follows is the descent of Lia into a half-world, struggling with her friend's death and her own battle to starve herself to her 'perfect' weight, a number always sliding lower on the scale. This is a well-written YA novel also suitable for adults about the teenage struggle to belong in a world that doesn't want you, when the only control you have comes from what you put in your mouth. A great book that can start the discussion with someone about how to handle loss, suffering, mental health and eating disorders.

Lia is a girl on the verge of leaving her adolescence, and also her life. She wakes up, she goes to school, she goes home, she goes to sleep. Just like the rest of us. But one thing she misses out is the eating part of her day, and after Cassie, her recently estranged best friend is found dead in a motel room, she finds her self once again engulfed by a life of nothing but making sure the scales read closer to zero. it's a powerful look into the life of a relapser, and just how overbearing those little voices in your head can be. At first I was a little dubious - sometimes the teen fiction style can be a bit weak in depth, but I loved the way this was written. It certainly evokes some emotion and seems very true to the core. I loved the stylistic switching from what Lia was thinking to her superficial actions; the sense of character is really great. There's also a layout aid about two thirds of the way in which is really, surprisingly, powerful. This book has clearly been well researched and thought of, as the harrowing realities of an eating disorder are subtly weaved into the characters without being blatant and fairytale. it's hard not to feel the pain that Lia is experiencing, and because of the natural intrigue in us all, once you start this book you'll really want to read on. There's somewhat of a cult genre with mental illness in books, and if like me you naturally gravitate towards them, Wintergirls is definitely one to add to the bookshelf.

It was a good book, finished it within two days. The message was really inspiring.

I want to start off by saying this is probably so far the best book on Anorexia I've ever read (albeit I haven't read many yet) it is a very touching, powerful and thought provoking story of a young girl suffering in the clutches of a terrible illness. This is a must read book for all teens and young adult men and women as Anorexia is a very serious illness and more should be done to make people aware of it. The book progresses rather slowly but in a good way, it unfolds and is very realistic in those senses, it deals with all kinds of traumatic things but not in such a graphic way and comes to a good ending. It is one of those books that might stick with you for a long time after reading. It is written in the sense of being horribly graphic, upsetting and even frightening, however, the way it is written softens it enough to not disturb people, especially younger ones. I'm 20 reading this and I didn't think it was too young, it is suitable for teens and adults, although some parents may want to give it a check through before letting younger ones read it. I really enjoyed this book and hope that is does just that, brings hope to people suffering from or that know someone suffering from the illness. It has amazing insight and really opens your eyes to the tragic world of Anorexia.

Since I read 'Wasted' by Marya Hornbacher (not reviewed here as I didn't buy it from Amazon) I've gone through a spate of reading books about anorexia and this is probably the best fictional effort yet. It is beautiful, poetical and haunting and though it is aimed at a young adult/teenager market it is a well written book which can be enjoyed by adult readers as well. Probably not at all suitable for recovering anorexics though as it does glamorize the disease, to say nothing of giving them ideas of how to fool parents/doctors etc. She really is a talented author and I only wish 'Speak' was available on kindle as well.

I found this book very well written, however I was disturbed to read about what the illness makes you think about your self and how you see your self, it is horrid. the story is written about a girl who's best friend died because she was starving herself in order to be size 0x2. well the main protagonist is also heading down that road, starting off the main story. The story talks about the physiological effect wanting to be thin has on you. pros: -very cleverly written. -it does have a sort of nice ending. cons : -very dark read. hope this helps!

great book!

In my mind, an eating disorder is the ultimate manifestation of both poor body image, and a distorted self-perception. I graduated with a BS in Psychology last December, and in one of my undergrad classes, we devoted a large percentage of time to discussing eating disorders and where they stem from. Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson is one of the best books I've read this year, and I would say that it is the best book I've ever read that handles eating disorders. Lia is a young girl who has been suffering from anorexia for several years. She's been hospitalized twice, and the family tries to help keep watch over Lia, and make sure she is eating. They weigh her regularly and prepare meals and 'watch' her eat. But Lia is clever, and she is unable to give up her disorder. She cleverly lines the pockets of the robe she is weighed in with quarters and smears food on a plate before dumping it down the garbage disposal to give the appearance of having eaten. For a long time, Lia feels like she is in control and that losing all this weight makes her powerful. However, after the death of her former best friend, Cassie. Lia's world begins falling apart and she loses control over her life. Toward the end of the novel, she begins to make observations and gains new understanding that gives the reader hope she will overcome her illness. I think one of the most telling sentences in this book is when Lia really starts to realize what this disease is to her, and where her motivation to starve herself comes from. She keeps obsessive track of her weight, and gives herself goals- I'm 105 lbs? I need to be 100. And on from there. She steps on the scale one day and the number reads 89. Her thoughts, "I could say I'm excited, but that would be a lie. The number doesn't matter. If I got down to 070.00, I'd want 065.00. If I weighed 010.00, I wouldn't be happy until I got down to 005.00. The only number that would ever be enough is 0. Zero pounds, zero life, size zero, double-zero, zero point. Zero in tennis is love. I finally get it. (emphasis added, pg. 220) I think that there is too much focus placed on the body-image problems facing people who suffer from an eating disorder, and not enough attention given to their warped views of themselves. In one of my undergrad classes, we discussed this at length, and talked about new research being developed that suggests the root causes for many people suffering from eating disorders stem from far more than the desire to be skinny or even the desire to control at least one aspect of their lives. Although both of those play a role in the formation of the disorder, the new research suggests that these eating disorders actually stem more from the desire to disappear. Subconsciously they view themselves as unworthy of love, and that because of their flaws or imperfections, they are not worthy to take up space. So, they are literally trying to starve themselves out of existence. They don't necessarily want to die, but neither do they wish to live. It's scary research, but it's research that makes a frightening amount of sense. That LHA was able to grasp that idea and articulate it so well with just a small paragraph, and a simple sentence speaks volumes to me about her skill as a writer, and her ability to develop believable and realistic characters. Lia just breaks my heart. One of the most powerful aspects of the novel is also potentially distracting. LHA uses the strike through text to signify the difference between what Lia was thinking and what Lia actually said. Or, it could be what Lia thought vs. what she knew she was supposed to think. Either way, the strike through offers additional insight into the mind of Lia, and enables us as readers to better understand what she's really thinking. I recommend this book to everyone, even though I know it won't be for everyone. LHA doesn't pull her punches with this one, and I really felt that I was living the life of an anorexic teen along with Lia. And let me tell you, it was not comfortable. It was scary, painful and terrifying. I can only imagine how much worse it would be for someone actually suffering through this. Do yourself a favor and pick up a copy of this book as soon as possible. But I warn you, don't pick it up expecting a light read that will fill a few hours. This novel is gripping, intense and horrifying. It is one of the best books I've read all year and I just can't bring myself to give it anything but my highest rating. It is basically amazing in every way. Way to go Laurie, for creating a book that gives us such a vivid portrait of a young anorexic girl who suddenly understands what it is to live.

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I received the book yesterday evening, started reading and... finished it at 3 in the morning. I was just unable to stop reading! It's a very chilling book but caught my attention from the beginning till the end.

Is a good book.