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c_mittas's review against another edition
5.0
Great
I'm a recovering anorexic. I loved this. took because it was so real and I could so easily connect with kitty. every thing that takes place in this book is something that I myself have gone through and still endure . everyday that voice is there...but you just have.to try to.ignore it .. . great book
I'm a recovering anorexic. I loved this. took because it was so real and I could so easily connect with kitty. every thing that takes place in this book is something that I myself have gone through and still endure . everyday that voice is there...but you just have.to try to.ignore it .. . great book
jessdemarest's review against another edition
5.0
I really appreciate the way Brown blends her personal narrative with a thoughtful roundup of scientific studies to illustrate the effects of eating disorders on the body, both physically and mentally. While no ED story is ever going to be a single truth, this could be very helpful for friends and family to better understand what it’s like. As always, if you do struggle with an eating disorder yourself, exercise caution when reading, and don’t put yourself or your wellbeing at risk.
blbdennis's review against another edition
5.0
This book written by the mother of a teenager with an eating disorder, is one I have recommended to families touched by this disease. It is a harrowing, heartwrenching journey of trying to help someone who doesn't want to be helped. This book is for the caregivers the ones fighting that ED voice that has taken over their child's life and to be frank is trying to kill their child. If you know someone supporting a loved one with an eating disorder this book is well researched but written as a novel to reach out to those struggling to keep their loved ones alive.
stinamirabilis's review against another edition
1.0
I'm going to begin with the one aspect of this book that was actually good: Harriet Brown's journalistic background. It was clear that she consulted a huge variety of sources, and particularly the information on the neurochemical and biochemical processes in an eating disordered individual made for very interesting and informative reading, something that I think most other eating disorder memoirs lack.
Unfortunately, that's pretty much the only good point.
Before even beginning this I felt a bit squeamish at the idea of a woman writing a memoir about her experiences of her daughter's eating disorder. I can't really think of a better way to make something so completely about oneself, when really the focus should be on the daughter. She spends so much time reassuring the reader that she's not like "those other mothers" of children with eating disorders, insists that she isn't overbearing and controlling and helicoptery as is so often the case in families with eating disordered children - and then goes on to demonstrate exactly how ridiculously overbearing she is. Her daughter Kitty, is fourteen years old - not an adult, sure, but certainly not a small child either, and yet that is exactly the way Harriet treats her. She is depicted as a baby. If this book had been written by my mother about me, I'd be mortified.
Harriet also insists over and over that Family-Based Treatment is the best option for eating disorders, and I strongly disagree, particularly for those helicopter mums, which Harriet so clearly is, in spite of her insistence to the contrary.
Just, basically, I am mortified by this entire book. So much secondhand embarrassment.
Unfortunately, that's pretty much the only good point.
Before even beginning this I felt a bit squeamish at the idea of a woman writing a memoir about her experiences of her daughter's eating disorder. I can't really think of a better way to make something so completely about oneself, when really the focus should be on the daughter. She spends so much time reassuring the reader that she's not like "those other mothers" of children with eating disorders, insists that she isn't overbearing and controlling and helicoptery as is so often the case in families with eating disordered children - and then goes on to demonstrate exactly how ridiculously overbearing she is. Her daughter Kitty, is fourteen years old - not an adult, sure, but certainly not a small child either, and yet that is exactly the way Harriet treats her. She is depicted as a baby. If this book had been written by my mother about me, I'd be mortified.
Harriet also insists over and over that Family-Based Treatment is the best option for eating disorders, and I strongly disagree, particularly for those helicopter mums, which Harriet so clearly is, in spite of her insistence to the contrary.
Just, basically, I am mortified by this entire book. So much secondhand embarrassment.
hbrown's review against another edition
4.0
This book was really beneficial for me to read. I could really relate to the family in the book, in fact it was scary how much I could see myself and my family in that situation. To my joy, this book was not very triggering to me. It was actually the opposite, it was quite inspiring and motivating. The book was well written and I devoured it in a day. Would recommend to those suffering from or the families of those suffering from anorexia.
zhzhang's review against another edition
5.0
My feeling towards this book is beyond words. When mental illness and physical sickness combine, the demon attack your beloved one brutally, and you cannot bear the heaviness because when you fight the demon, you are fighting the beloved one at the same time.
katieparz's review against another edition
5.0
Honestly, this is the best book about recovery from eating disorders (and mental health issues in general) I've ever read. I think a lot of things written in it can apply to other issues in life too. It was really inspiring. Definitely a book someone who suffers from an eating disorder should read, as well as family of someone with an eating disorder. A book anyone who suffers from some kind of mental health problem should read too, especially if they're looking for some motivation.
ajburg's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
fast-paced
1.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Eating disorder
bigboop's review against another edition
2.5
As a social worker and someone with an ED I have problems with this book. The why's are never explored, the mother equates weight with recovery, and the whole book is about her.
lazygal's review against another edition
3.0
Ms. Brown has written a mix of memoir and analysis of how to treat anorexia, based on the year(s) her family battled daughter Kitty's "demon". I've worked with students that have had eating disorders, and I've seen the toll it takes on families - it's definitely a disaster for everyone.
Kitty's descent at first appears normal: what girl doesn't watch her weight? Particularly a girl who is involved with some form of athletic activity (in this case, gymnastics)? Our society constantly bombards us with images of thin = in, and even the extreme cases (like, Calista Flockhart or Kate Moss) are somehow acceptable rather than shunned. So dieting, or 'restricting' appears normal to parents. At some point, however, you notice that this normal has become grossly abnormal, and by then your child is helpless in the grip of the disease.
How the Brown's cope with this - from treatment and therapy to battling the insurance companies - makes for interesting reading. It's clear that this is an on-going battle, that even three years (or five years) later Kitty is still in danger of allowing her demon to take over. The decision to go with FBT rather than the usual in-patient therapy is interesting, so their results aren't typical but it's an option families should consider. This is definitely going in our parenting collection.
ARC provided by publisher.
Kitty's descent at first appears normal: what girl doesn't watch her weight? Particularly a girl who is involved with some form of athletic activity (in this case, gymnastics)? Our society constantly bombards us with images of thin = in, and even the extreme cases (like, Calista Flockhart or Kate Moss) are somehow acceptable rather than shunned. So dieting, or 'restricting' appears normal to parents. At some point, however, you notice that this normal has become grossly abnormal, and by then your child is helpless in the grip of the disease.
How the Brown's cope with this - from treatment and therapy to battling the insurance companies - makes for interesting reading. It's clear that this is an on-going battle, that even three years (or five years) later Kitty is still in danger of allowing her demon to take over. The decision to go with FBT rather than the usual in-patient therapy is interesting, so their results aren't typical but it's an option families should consider. This is definitely going in our parenting collection.
ARC provided by publisher.