Reviews

Paperweight by Meg Haston

kikiechoi's review against another edition

challenging emotional inspiring reflective sad tense 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

4.25

uroobaa's review against another edition

1.0

way too triggering. tried to push through and finish the book but gave up after not being able to tolerate the graphic depictions and « new ideas » it gave the reader. understandable they want to depict her habits, but it became too much and described the satisfaction she felt extremely grotesquely.

edit: this is great for realistic depictions of EDs for those who have never suffered from one/want to learn more, however really not so great for those in recovery/recovered.

be3bo0's review against another edition

4.0

as far as i can tell perfekt Ausser dieses eine event am ende idk der rest war soso gut
bin so fan dass das nicht so krass auf relationships focused sondern richtig stevie development jorney

hzmt's review

dark emotional sad medium-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

4.25

This is an excellent piece of ED literature. Normally in this genre we see the MC as someone developing an ED (Massive, Letting Ana Go), or already spiraling towards rock bottom (Wintergirls, #thighgap) but in Paperweight, Stevie has already hit rock bottom and is in forced recovery.

Stevie herself is relatable and paints a real picture of the ED experience between how she got to that point, her motives, her methods, her breakdowns, her weaknesses, etc. 

One thing I really enjoyed is the portrayal of anorexia versus bulimia. It's well known in the eating disorder community that bulimics are looked down on by anorexics for multiple reasons, that I will not list, so that inclusion really felt nice to see and acknowledged as well as show that Haston knew her stuff when writing this. 

One thing that I disliked was the lack of diversity at the rehab center. Think an oasis of skinny white girls when ED is also very real in men, non-gendered ppl, and in BIPOC. And I feel like the lack of inclusion deepens the stereotypes of eating disorder being a disease for rich, white girls.

kusobiitch's review

dark emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

khairun_atika's review against another edition

3.0

You know from the start that this story would have quite a searing impact on the reader. It is raw and painful, upfront and uninhibited like the protagonist, Stevie. Stevie is damaged, troubled, conflicted and the root of all this is her grief and guilt for what happened to her brother Josh. What ensues is a story of self-discovery, of forgiving one's self despite their sins and mistakes. It was quite heartwarming to read about the bond between Stevie and her therapist and she embarks on a new journey to self-recovery, realising that punishing herself is not the answer to her problem. Truly, it is about accepting, learning and moving on from your mistakes.

xdarkthunderx's review against another edition

4.0

This was a really quick read that I liked quite a bit but I couldn’t personally connect to it because I haven’t experienced having an eating disorder so it made the emotional connection harder for me, as I can’t validate as to if the symptoms and behaviors in the book are an accurate reflection of an ED. However I think if you’ve suffered from one and can relate to these characters on a personal note, the story will be much more impactful.

cs_the_librarian's review against another edition

emotional hopeful medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

crabber's review against another edition

4.0

4/5
So much emotion I love how these illnesses were properly explored and just overall super good ugh

quolwy's review against another edition

3.0

3.75*