A review by emma_c11
Every Body Shines: Sixteen Stories about Living Fabulously Fat by Jennifer Yen, Catherine Adel West, Rebecca Sky, Monique Gray Smith, Alex Gino, Amanda Lovelace, Cassandra Newbould, Nafiza Azad, Linda Camacho, Hillary Monahan, Chris Baron, Claire Kann, Kelly deVos, Francina Simone, Sheena Boekweg

emotional reflective fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? N/A
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

I really, really hate to write this review. I had so many high hopes for this anthology, and I've been excited for it since it was announced on twitter. But unfortunately, it was not what I expected at all. I think my number one problem is just how much fatphobia is in here. I don't want to dismiss the authors' experiences, especially since I've dealt with fatphobia my whole life. But nearly every single story was about people feeling shamed for who they are, and then at the last moment, magically finding some brief happiness. I was excited for this anthology because I thought it would be different from the normal stories we see when fat people are rarely featured, but I was really disappointed. Additionally, the stories themselves felt weirdly preachy about fatphobia being wrong, etc. I was expecting more stories in where the focus of the story isn't the main character's weight. I get that it's a hard line to walk, between fully focusing on a character's weight and ignoring it, but every single story seemed to solely revolve around body shame until the very end. I wish I could have enjoyed this anthology more, but it just made me disappointed. 
Expand filter menu Content Warnings