As with all anthologies and short story collections, there were both hits and misses. I love the raw honesty here and really admire the women for sharing their experiences. I also enjoyed the mix of formats from poems and essays to stories and portraits.

This is a really important read that explores that crazy and impossible standards that women are held to, how we are always judged based on your appearances, how our worth and value is often associated with our weight and the number on the scale, and how every little choice we make about our own bodies and lives tend to come under scrutiny.

Some of the submissions that really stuck with me are:

✨ #36 by Frances Danger: "I never said I wasn't beautiful. I said I was fat. You're the one who thinks the two are mutually exclusive, otherwise you wouldn't have equated the lack of one with the other."

✨ #53 by Pamela Johnston: "Two kids before you've even finished your dissertation. You're either really brave or completely crazy."

✨ #63 by Densie Webb: "If I could go back and undo the cancer, undo the surgeries and everything that comes with having cancer, I'd gladly give back my bigger B cups for my previously healthy bitty boobs any day of the week.

✨ #64 by Seedy Wilkins: "My added weight not only became a shield, t gave me a false sense of security. I felt invisible when I was heavier, and in being invisible, I felt safer. If they can't see you, they can't hurt you. There was also a part of me that believed if someone tried to hurt me, I could stop them because I was bigger, heavier. If nothing else, I could sit on them. My weight made me miserable, but it also protected me."

The only one that really irked me was #8.

A great read for women of all ages. The fact that the contributors range in age, sexuality and ethnicity but yet have common struggles and experiences really speaks volumes!

My heart goes out to the 65 women (and more) who were featured in this book. Thank you for being so open and vulnerable.
This may not be a very uplifting read, but an important one. It is an honest and very intimate view on the relationship women have with their bodies and how women are treated based on their looks and how women treat each other.

The articles and poems in this book have been written by a diverse group of women, of all ages and with different backgrounds. They share their stories about bullying, body image issues, self-esteem issues, fat-shaming, eating disorders and mental health issues.
Randy Susan Meyers even adds her own commentary to the book by describing her own fight with body weight and how this anthology came to live after writing her novel Waisted.
On a final note: Some of these pieces are not easy to read. So please be aware of the content.

Powerful, raw, unmediated and I believe that each of the women that participated in the writing of this book experienced something powerful not only as a cause for the writing but while also creating their art.

Of course, the book touches on sensitive topics but it is absolutely amazing and more people should be reading it.

It took me a bit of time to be able to process how I really felt about this book. It certainly wasn’t what I expected it to be. These short stories, poems and essays written by women are some of the most raw material I have read in a while. Each woman shares the unfiltered truth of how she feels about her body image, how the world’s standards can be an awful judge and there are stories of shame, guilt, mental illness and everything in between. Most of the book was hard to read in the sense that it was heartbreaking to realize what women go through whether it be in their own heads or some idea of perfection thrown at them by society. Kudos to all the women who were willing to share and be so transparent to help break some of the stereotypes and stigmas. Job well done.

Unfortunately I was disappointed by this book. The vast majority of truths focus on weight and to be honest I was hoping for a lot more diversity. Women are scrutinised for an array of things outside of weight and to tell the truth I was getting tired of it being the focal point. It also says this book is meant to include artwork but I only saw 2 pieces of art?

Really interesting premise but sadly the execution wasn't for me.

It took me quite a while to process my thoughts about this book, and I’m not sure if it is because of the topical subject matter or the volume. It brought back many memories where people have passed seemingly innocuous comments about my own appearance and/or body.

The articles, poems, and artwork talk about society’s double standards when it comes to the appearance of women. Women have shared their stories about fat-shaming, bullying, body image issues, self-esteem issues, eating disorders, and mental health issues that arise from the unhealthy obsession with weight and/or body shape.

The pieces have been written by a diverse group of women, of all ages and with all sorts of backgrounds. While this makes the book representative of everyone’s voices, the quality of writing takes a hit at times. Without sounding dismissive of the pain behind women’s lived experiences, I want to say that the volume could have been slimmer because some articles/poems did not add anything fresh to the narrative.
Meyers adds her riveting commentary to the book, describing her own battles with body weight and how this anthology arose from the experience of writing her novel, Waisted.

Final thoughts: There’s a lot to process in these essays. They’re not all easy to read. Some are serious and tragic, whereas the others imbue humor into painful topics. You, as a reader, must have the courage to read these honest and brave accounts of women who have been targeted for their appearance and body shape.

*Thanks Netgally and the author for the arc, all thoughts are completely my own *
I wasn't sure how to rate this book, not because it is bad, it's actually really harrowing the way some people's relationships with their bodies are.

This book brought me back to being a teenager, uncomfortable in their own body and thinking they were fat when they weren't.

Its hard to read about different women's stories about them being scrutinized over their bodies.

I would definitely recommend this book if you're into diet culture