There are not a lot of books that portray male body image issues. Lerner's does, with a protagonist who is sympathetic and whose actions will make midThere are not a lot of books that portray male body image issues. Lerner's does, with a protagonist who is sympathetic and whose actions will make middle grades readers think.
In addition to being called "fat" loudly in the hall when younger, Will, the MC, overhears several conversations about himself, any of which would be hurtful, each of which is a reminder to readers that words absolutely CAN hurt. It's a great reminder that the old saw about sticks and stones is outdated garbage that needs to be retired. 35 years later, I still have memories of mean things folks said to me in middle school. Those are scars that will last a lifetime.
The art that accompanies this verse novel feels very middle-grades-artist, which is perfect. The black swuigglrs and swirls that take up more and more space perfectly capture the dark, swirling feelings of Will as the story progresses.
I was surprised by the way friendship is described toward the end of the book - it felt incredibly intimate, in a way I feel is rarely pointed out in books, and especially not from male MCs. But it also rang very true - sometimes you just click with someone and know you want them to be part of your life. That's often how romantic love is described, but it's also true of platonic friendships, despite rarely (never?) being described that way.
Overall, there are a lot of lessons for Middle grades readers to take from this illustrated verse novel. Add it to your collection!...more
Olive Zibble has just graduated high school. She has a vague plan to attend art school, but is living in her mother's apartment in New York City rent Olive Zibble has just graduated high school. She has a vague plan to attend art school, but is living in her mother's apartment in New York City rent free and wishing she could take a year to explore, as many of her friends are doing.
But Olive's mom helps her get an internship with the photo editor of a major fashion magazine. As Olive learns about what goes into making commercial art, she also starts to realize how heavily manipulated images of women are. She even learns that there are "virtual models", computer generated "people" made of various elements of real models cut apart and jigsawed together to create models that are indistinguishable from real people - except they are better looking.
The more Olive learns, the more she questions her own self-image and her interactions with advertising and social media.
3.5 This seems to be a lightly dramatized memoir. It has some good tips for spotting altered images, and gets into some good ideas about body positivity.
CW body issues: Olive thinks she is ugly through much of the story; earing disorder : Olive meets a girl who is bulemic and isn't sure how to interact with her (and the bulimia is never dealt with beyond the acknowledgment that this woman is admittedly bulemic which she considers part of her modeling career)
Charcters: Trans: Olive's best friend is a trans girl - while she appears throughout the story, she is not a main focus ;...more
What it’s about: Lucy and her older sister Olivia have been friends for all of Lucy's life. But when she gets to middle school, Liv changes, and she aWhat it’s about: Lucy and her older sister Olivia have been friends for all of Lucy's life. But when she gets to middle school, Liv changes, and she and Lucy start spending less time together. When their parents tell them they're going to a new school, Liv is angry, but Lucy sees it as an adventure. Although Lucy is very open and outgoing, she didn't have any close friends at her old school.
But even though Lucy makes a friend, things are not going well for Liv. Lucy discovers that her sister has anorexia nervosa, an eating disorder. And despite how hard Lucy and her parents try, Liv does not seem to be getting any better.
Just when Liv starts to turn the corner and becomes a little more healthy in her eating, Lucy's family has to move. This time, Lucy is sad to lose her friend. But she sees this move as a chance to reinvent herself!
Unfortunately, her reinvention doesn't go over as well as she'd hoped. While she does make friends with Jack and Kevin, the three of them are seen as outsiders in their school. None of this is helped by the fact that the most popular girl in their grade, Hannah, uses her social status to be mean to others - especially to Lucy.
But Lucy hatches a plan to become friends with the other new girl, Skylar. Hannah has been making fun of Skylar, too, so she and Lucy have several things in common.
But Skylar thinks the way to fit in is for she and Lucy to lose weight so they can look like the prettiest girl in their class - Skylar figures this will solve all their problems. And Lucy is happy to finally have a path to friendship.
When Liv sees what's going on, she tries to explain to her younger sister how dangerous it is to focus so obsessively on her weight.
It's not until an unexpected trip to summer camp that Lucy starts to realize that changing herself to try to fit a mold created by others is a path with no happy end.
What I thought: Based on the title and cover, I thought this was going to be a VERY different story. But this was a nicely assembled story about a family dealing with disordered eating and middle school.
Why I chose those shelves: Content Warnings Eating disorder, body issues, issue, mental health, illness: Liv has a serious disorder, and Lucy starts to take on disordered eating as well, and while Liv explains it may be something she has to deal with foe the rest of her life it is managed in both of them by the end of the story; family issues: Although Lucy's family is trying to get Liv help, they do a poor job of talking about what's going on, and it leads to a lot of anxiety and tension throughout the story;
Characters
Genres coming of age: Although Lucy is pretty young, the story follows her over the course of a few years, and she has to deal with some serious topics that force her to be a bit more mature than she might otherwise be; memoir: This story is based in part on the author's own life and experiences; realistic fiction: This about as real as it gets - yet despite dealing with some important issues, the story rarely feels bleak or hopeless
Style
Topics friendship, sociology: One of the major reasons Lucy ends up with some disordered eating is because of the friendship she forms; loneliness: Lucy spends much of the book feeling alone, in large part because she and her older sister used to be very close, but Liv grows apart when her eating disorder grows worse; own voices: This is partially based on the author's own experiences; school: A lot of what happens goes on in and around school;
Why I rated it like I did: Disordered eating is an important topic, and this book provides a very gentle immersion into the topic. It also provides just enough detail to help readers see how serious disordered eating can be, how difficult it can be to control (which is a lie some disordered eaters use to excuse their behavior - that they are in complete control and can stop whenever they want), and how it can be a life-long issue. I would definitely put copies of this in grade school and middle school libraries. ...more
What it's about: The boys are together - but that's only the start of the story. As they spend more time together, they start to learn more about eachWhat it's about: The boys are together - but that's only the start of the story. As they spend more time together, they start to learn more about each other. In particular, Nick learns that Charlie sometimes self-harms or restricts his food to feel control when he's stressed. This worries Nick, but Charlie explains he has it under control, and he is afraid Nick will feel like he has to "fix" Charlie.
A good time is had by all as they embark on a school trip to Paris. Charlie and Nick go back and forth about whether they want to reveal their relationship, and to whom - Charlie is feeling guilty that everyone but Tao knows, but Charlie has learned Tao might have accidentally outed Charlie last year while talking loudly about this secret; and Charlie doesn't want Nick to end up accidentally outed, too.
Meanwhile, everyone tries to convince Tao that he should tell Elle how he feels.
And Nick and Charlie find some time to be alone!
Paris is truly the city of love!
What I thought: What I appreciate about this series is that it deals with some difficult topics in very sensitive ways. The fact that coming out is shown to be an ongoing process, and that it's more about feeling comfortable in your own skin than about how others feel, is a great message. I also appreciate that there's a running thread about Charlie's mental health - just little bits here and there over the last couple books that are finally surfaced in this book. And the relationships among the friends in this series are wonderful. Not only are Nick and Charlie doing a great job of learning how to talk to each other and not withhold information from each other, but Charlie's friends are very thoughtful and offer good advice to both Nick and Charlie. And they, in turn, offer good advice back. Not everyone in the story is wonderful and supportive, but Charlie's friend group is really wonderful.
There also a great scene where Harry, who was previously making nasty homophobic comments, apologizes in a big public way, and Charlie explains that "sorry" doesn't make up for all the terrible things Harry said; nor is it Charlie's responsibility to bow to the public pressure and accept the apology. While it seems a bit cruel, it's also a fair point - and, again, I appreciate the messaging readers will get.
Another bit I liked: The group goes on a school trip to Paris, and Nick and Charlie get some unsupervised alone time. While they make out a bunch, they also have a talk about not feeling ready to have sex - which is GREAT modelling for readers.
Why my chosen shelves:
CWs: body issues, eating disorder, mental health: We learn that Charlie has disordered eating;
Characters: LGBT: Nick and Charlie are bi and gay, respectively, and several of Charlie's friends are LGBT
Genres: coming of age, realistic fiction, romance: All the books in this series are charting the ongoing development of these older teen characters trying to figure out who they are and who they want to be as they approach the end of their high school years, as well as focusing on the ever-deveoping romance between Nick and Charlie;
Topics: Friendship, found family: Charlie has an excellent group of friends who are a found family to him; sex: Charlie and Nick discuss whether they're ready to have sex (spoiler: they decide they are not - what a great model of consent and consideration!)
Why I rated it like I did: This series is like a really good TV show - the characters keep getting deeper and the story naturally progresses. The conflicts feel real and organic. And there's such an undercurrent of love and acceptance tying the central characters together that I find extremely appealing. ...more
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