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jessietn's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
This has not aged particularly well. However, it does provide readers with an insightful snapshot of the toxic diet culture of the 90s and early 2000s. While Bridget's obsession with her weight might be triggering for many women who grew up during this time, in my opinion the novel did not condone her behaviour. Instead, there were several points where it was made clear that her weight goals were unhealthy and unrealistic -- when she finally reaches her goal weight, her friend Tom tells her gently that he thought she looked better before and that she isn't her usual self. I think this was handled with less tact in the film.
There were some truly funny lines, and I liked that there was less of Daniel Cleaver than in the film (and that it was made more obvious from the outset that he was an "emotional fuckwit" who was bad for Bridget), but there was probably more cringeworthiness than humour overall... and the ending was just bewilderingly stupid (as was the entire Julio plotline). I would probably only recommend it only for fans of the film or of Bridget as a flawed and relatable character.
There were some truly funny lines, and I liked that there was less of Daniel Cleaver than in the film (and that it was made more obvious from the outset that he was an "emotional fuckwit" who was bad for Bridget), but there was probably more cringeworthiness than humour overall... and the ending was just bewilderingly stupid (as was the entire Julio plotline). I would probably only recommend it only for fans of the film or of Bridget as a flawed and relatable character.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Eating disorder and Toxic relationship
izzytheniffler's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
0.75
85% of the characters were awful it was so hard to finish reading.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fatphobia, Toxic relationship, and Alcohol
Minor: Racism
ophycore's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Body shaming, Cursing, Eating disorder, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Infidelity, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, Gaslighting, and Alcohol
Moderate: Sexual harassment and Dysphoria
Minor: Rape, Pregnancy, and Classism
lag1995's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Meh. Movie is better.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Eating disorder, Fatphobia, Misogyny, Sexism, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Homophobia, Xenophobia, Pregnancy, and Alcohol
sophiemundy13's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
4.5
Loved the films, enjoyed the book. Dated in places, like current affairs, but funny with hindsight. Not a big fan of the fatphobia/her obsession with her weight and calorie intake, but def a reflection of the time it was written
Content Warnings
Moderate: Fatphobia, Infidelity, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Sexual harassment, and Dysphoria
Minor: Alcoholism, Suicide, and Alcohol
drbex's review against another edition
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
I really really did not like this book. I feel like it was trying to hard to be relatable but all it did was make me frustrated with the main character and those around her. It seems very much a book of its time (mid 90s). I understand that women have insecurities, I have my own as well. And I get that it was a diary format so of course it's going to be a bit more unfiltered. And the generational trauma and shame put on her by her mother make sense. But real life and novels need to be different. I need to be able to understand the protagonist's journey. I want to see them grow. Or not. But if they don't, there needs to be a better reason for it. I had no indication that Marc Darcy was actually interested in her. At least in Pride and Prejudice, we have the 3rd person perspective so we can understand things that Lizzy can't. But here all we get is Bridget's incessant whining. Maybe it was the audio book format and being able to hear the intended inflections, but I just found her terribly frustrating without any sort of real change or development through the course of the novel. Also, the fat shaming. I get that it was pushed on her by society, but the woman is almost always within the same 4-6lb weight range. And idk her height, but 120-something is, in most cases, far from overweight. Yes, I get it. It says more about societal standards. But from a 2022 perspective where we are better aware of body positivity, or better yet, body neutrality it's just plain icky.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, and Toxic relationship
theodore_logan's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
mark darcy 🫶🫶🫶
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Eating disorder, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, and Dysphoria
Moderate: Fatphobia and Misogyny
strangeeigenfunction's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.25
I think the primary reason I read this was hearing it, or maybe the movie, mentioned in a discussion of '00s fatphobia. I haven't seen the movie.
I don't hate Bridget, but I don't really like her, either. In a certain light, this sort of reads as an averted tragicomedy, with Darcy ex machina wrapping up several of the looming tragic ends... or distracting from other ones. Despite enjoying relatively well-off circumstances, there's a lot wrong in Bridget's life that isn't really examined (by her or other characters) in a constructive way. One of those issues is that despite being at what is almost certainly a perfectly healthy weight, she's fixated on losing weight and erratically dieting, disordered eating masquerading as vanilla diet culture. I would also characterize her approach to alcohol as not so healthy, and at times she leans on cigarettes as a coping mechanism, but, while she does recognize these as issues, her attitude regarding quitting leans heavily on willpower in a way that seems naive in the 2020s. And the array of relationships of varying levels of toxicity surrounding her tend to entwine with the drinking and/or the dieting.
It is rather funny, but I'd consider it a bleak humor shaped by normalized dysfunctions.
(by the by, I'm a little peeved at the numbers summary at the end. While I don't care that much whether anyone went through and touted up the in-entry numbers exactly, and I paid less attention to the alcohol counts while reading (units is not that meaningful to me in the US I think), the averages implied by the totals... beg some questions:
5277=14 cigarettes average per day is possible. I'm not sure I think it's accurate (my impression is that about half the recorded days are 18-20+, with a few around 60), but it's not implausible.
3836=10.5 units alcohol average each day. Now, as I said, I paid less attention to the numbers here, but 10, while it happened, feels like it was somewhat atypically high for Bridget, and there were some days she did not drink, so this seems slightly implausible.
11,090,265= ...30,384 calories/day, or fifteen times the RDA. This is essentially impossible, especially as I don't think Bridget ever exceeded 10,000 calories in a day. I might buy something in the 2500 average range (~912,500 total) or even a round 1 million as the yearly total, although I'd guess that probably requires 3000 calories on unrecorded days. But not 30000 a day)
I don't hate Bridget, but I don't really like her, either. In a certain light, this sort of reads as an averted tragicomedy, with Darcy ex machina wrapping up several of the looming tragic ends... or distracting from other ones. Despite enjoying relatively well-off circumstances, there's a lot wrong in Bridget's life that isn't really examined (by her or other characters) in a constructive way. One of those issues is that despite being at what is almost certainly a perfectly healthy weight, she's fixated on losing weight and erratically dieting, disordered eating masquerading as vanilla diet culture. I would also characterize her approach to alcohol as not so healthy, and at times she leans on cigarettes as a coping mechanism, but, while she does recognize these as issues, her attitude regarding quitting leans heavily on willpower in a way that seems naive in the 2020s. And the array of relationships of varying levels of toxicity surrounding her tend to entwine with the drinking and/or the dieting.
It is rather funny, but I'd consider it a bleak humor shaped by normalized dysfunctions.
(by the by, I'm a little peeved at the numbers summary at the end. While I don't care that much whether anyone went through and touted up the in-entry numbers exactly, and I paid less attention to the alcohol counts while reading (units is not that meaningful to me in the US I think), the averages implied by the totals... beg some questions:
5277=14 cigarettes average per day is possible. I'm not sure I think it's accurate (my impression is that about half the recorded days are 18-20+, with a few around 60), but it's not implausible.
3836=10.5 units alcohol average each day. Now, as I said, I paid less attention to the numbers here, but 10, while it happened, feels like it was somewhat atypically high for Bridget, and there were some days she did not drink, so this seems slightly implausible.
11,090,265= ...30,384 calories/day, or fifteen times the RDA. This is essentially impossible, especially as I don't think Bridget ever exceeded 10,000 calories in a day. I might buy something in the 2500 average range (~912,500 total) or even a round 1 million as the yearly total, although I'd guess that probably requires 3000 calories on unrecorded days. But not 30000 a day)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Eating disorder, Fatphobia, Toxic relationship, and Alcohol
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Sexual content, Toxic friendship, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Pregnancy and Classism
jesspages's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
This book definitely didn't age well
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body shaming, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Misogyny, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Dysphoria
shelbybelby's review against another edition
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Cursing, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Rape