The artwork is marvelous, but the story *just* misses the mark.

**Trigger warning for eating disorders.**

It would be kind to say that Mindy’s stuck in a rut. At twenty-seven, she’s deferred college to the point that she now feels too old for it. She works long hours as a barrista and barely socializes. Her best/only friend Shaé is both sweet and loyal; unfortunately, she also has a long track record of saying exactly the wrong thing when it comes to Mindy’s weight, which has been a sore point her entire life.

Mindy’s struggled with disordered eating since she was a kid, including binge eating following by purging. She has painfully low self-esteem and body dysmorphia, which holds her back in life: from making friends, dating, trying to achieve her goals, and making the most of her one wild and precious life.

Until, one late night/early morning, Mindy happens upon a weird, hippy dippy, New Agey candy bar at her local bodega, and picks it up on a whim. “Eat and Love Yourself,” it entreats her. With each bite, Mindy is transported, ghost-like, to a memory from her childhood. In each scene, her “food issues” command a large presence.

In flashbacks, she witnesses her well-meaning but oblivious parents arguing over her eating habits; a young Mindy keeping a food journal; a teenage Mindy blowing off a cute guy at school, because he couldn’t possibly like her; and much worse.

Thankfully, adult Mindy is much kinder to her young self; with the help of “Eat and Love Yourself” (man, why couldn’t you be dark chocolate instead of milk!?), Mindy takes a tentative step on the path to self-acceptance and healing.

I wanted to love EAT, AND LOVE YOURSELF – I cannot tell you how much! – but I just feel like there’s a piece missing. The story ends abruptly, at a point that literally had me protesting, “Wait, that was it!?” I can’t even say that the ending is hopeful, since it feels incomplete: *has* Mindy made peace with her body? I’m not 100% sold.

Plus there’s this really odd multiple-Mindys sequence in the very first pages that I *thought* would be explained (or at least referenced!) at end, but no such luck. I guess we’re just to take it as a (day)dream sequence? Personally, I find my original interpretation – Mindy starts some radical body acceptance movement, becoming an overnight sensation, and so everyone starts copying her unique style – much more satisfying.

That said, that artwork is gorgeous – as in comma, drop dead. Mindy is freaking adorable, with her bopping teal ponytail and geekalicious oversized owl glasses. I just wanted to give her a smushy hug and then borrow her combat boots indefinitely.

There’s a lot in the story that did hit home with me, especially all the underhanded comments from mom and dad that gradually eroded Mindy’s self-esteem.

EAT, AND LOVE YOURSELF is a welcome contribution to the literature on eating disorders, self-esteem, and the beauty industrial complex, but it could have been so much more. I mean, magical chocolate bars! What a great idea!

This book is beautiful to look at and the story is powerful and moving. One thing that I struggled with was the size of the font on my ereader - a lot of the font is really small and I found myself having to zoom in often. I don't think this would be as much of a problem in physical form,

'Eat, and love yourself' a graphic novel about body positivity and kindness. Filled with messages about self-love, friendship, love and family bands.

I really liked how the author contained lots of messages in this story. She talked about self-love in a very different way. The artist showed the downsides of eating and even hinted towards eating disorders like Bulimia. She told the story in a very kind and respectful way, but still showing off the hard truth.
The images contain different drawing techniques. The bright and joyful colors, make the story less harsh. It gives it a nice and relaxing feel. With the different techniques, the artist was able to tell different stories through the same images. It sounds very complicated, but it explains itself while reading. I thought that was very unique creative and original from her.
Even when I liked the message, creative storyline, and amazing artwork; I still wasn't fully convinced. There was not enough depth in the story and the main character was very flat. She went through a change, but a way to drastic and not in a realistic way. I felt like a longer story would have shown off more. Mostly because the author didn't convince me about the strength of her message. I missed emotion and most of all the emotions which would make me feel sorry for the main character.

Overall, I really liked this comic. The drawing style is very sweet. It's just the story that lags a bit.

A potent and beautifully illustrated story about the struggle of living with an eating disorder and the way that seemingly small experiences and comments from loved ones can build up and play a part in shaping someone's relationship with food and their body. I loved the journey and the hopeful tone of the ending.

<I> I am incredibly grateful to the publisher for providing me with an eARC of this graphic novel via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This book is currently set to be published in April 2020 </I>

4.5 stars

<U> Eat, and Love Yourself /u> is a story about Mindy, a young woman living with body dysmorphia (and as a result struggling with a number of self-esteem issues/eating disorders), who comes across a magic chocolate bar that enables her to relive experiences from her youth.

Oh my lordy, this is a book that all women need to read. Aside from the fact that the art is absolutely phenomenal and vibrant with colour, the storyline really packs an emotional punch. It is so raw and real that I could feel my heart being squeezed, crushed, and reassembled as I read. This is a story that the young adult in all of us can relate to.

I loved the art in this book. The character had a lot of deep rooted emotions tied to her eating disorder and it felt real in that regard. I think it's a solid graphic novel that many will enjoy.

I absolutely adored this book! To see a struggle of eating disorders and depression does. That this is what our world deals with. Just reading this makes your eyes open a little more of the problem. The characters were perfect and the illustration was beautiful!

This comic digs dipper into body image issues and journey to break the cycle of the eating disorder. We follow mindy who has body image issues and eating disorders. I loved the message of this book. About the self love starts with yourself.
Thank you netgalley for the E-Arc in exchange of the honest review.

Books like this are always a tough balance. How do you give the right messages while keeping the story from being preachy? How do you balance realism with triggering content? How do you tell kids and teens that they’re not alone in these struggles? “Eat, and Love Yourself” manages all of these things. A girl dealing with tears of ingrained eating-related issues finds a chocolate bar that shows her moments in her life where the road ahead got a little steeper. Along with beautiful art and easy-flowing dialogue, this book is a must read!