There aren't alot of middle grade books out their that deal with body image and weight. This was a beautifully written novel in verse. The characters are well developed and you will grow attached to some and others...well I'll let you read it to find out.

This is a great title for body positivity, but a great title any way you look at it. I immediately had my middle school- aged son read it after I had. It's beautiful and a quick, easy read.

Reading this book I could see myself reflected, as well as many of my students. In this day and time it is so easy to compare ourselves to others and have this unrealistic expectation of what we should look like. The struggles Ellie works through from the age of 5 (🤯) is a how to guide on how to speak life into your daughters and yourself to be happy in your own skin. The scale doesn’t define you and neither to other people’s view of you.

This free verse book is about a girl, Ellie, who is bullied because of her weight. The harassment she faces from her mom about her weight is heartbreaking. It is unfortunate that in the book there is not more intervention from the adults, however, that's sadly reality. So kids facing this issue most definitely can relate and hopefully gain hope the way Ellie was able to find her strength and voice.

Starfish by Lisa Fipps is a must-read for everyone dealing with body image. The novel in verse format is not intimidating to reluctant readers and works well as a read aloud. My library did a summer program on body image featuring this book and had a wonderful virtual visit with the author.

This was a challenging book to read, not because it was hard, but because Lisa Fipps did such a great job of creating the true heartbreak of a child who feels all alone because of her weight. The poetry was beautiful and the emotions conveyed were amazing. This is a book that needs to get into a lot of people's hands, parents and kids included. This was a quick read, but an intense one.

Starfish by Lisa Fipps follows Ellie's story of struggling with who she is. Ellie is bullied about her weight. To find an escape, she starts swimming. The pool is where she feels safe. This novel in verse is easy to read and hard to put down. The story shows being confident and loving who you are.

This book was amazing and extremely moving. The author describes the way she felt and how she was discriminated against due to being overweight. This resonated a lot with my personal experiences as a child and I was very moved.

Ellie has been fat-shamed all her life by those outside of her home, and sadly, some of the people inside of her home as well. While Ellie has made rules to help her cope with these people, she has also formed a support system with her father, her therapist, and her new neighbor who has quickly become her friend. Read this to see how Ellie works to change her perception of herself and find solace in who she is.

I absolutely adored this book. Reading about Ellie reflected my life to me, and I can honestly say that Lisa Fipps did an amazing job in showing our experience.

This book is exactly the book I needed when I was young, and thought that my weight made me both invisible and much too visible.

Adorable! Starfish is a great addition to school classrooms and libraries. I loved the writing, the focus, and the overall journey that Ellie takes throughout this book. I definitely recommend!

I cried. I cheered. I wanted to punch something. Ellie is such a brave character and I was absolutely in love with this novel in verse. The story captures what so many are going through and shows you that it's okay to take up space and be you!

This book about a kid going through coming of age stuff, with nasty bullying on top is sure to be a classroom read eventually. I disliked the parents in this book (mom was the WORST and dad had no backbone). I did enjoy the protagonists confidence in the face of drama and adversity. I feel like kids not ready for Julie Murphy YA would love this novel. well done!

This book is a must for all middle grade classrooms! It demonstrates the dynamics of a family relationship that kids so often live where one parent seems to understand them and the other doesn't. However, both parents do love their child; they just handle it differently and not always in the best ways. Ellie struggles to find herself throughout this book and it's such a journey! Highly highly recommend.

Written in verse, this novel is so accessible to all readers: reluctant or voracious. The characters and their struggles are real and relatable.

I don't think i can love this book any more than I do. This novel in verse shares ways that students can still love themselves and feel comfortable in their skin despite what others may tell them.

How we treat people is indicative of character. Ellie was bullied for the first time in 5th grade at the pool because of her weight.
Ellie struggles with body image problems, a horrible, pushy mother, and a childhood of fighting with food.
Ironically, the only place Ellie feels safe is in a pool where she feels weightless and free.
I love verse novels and felt that this was beautifully written. I will recommend it to many students in our middle-grade library. I feel that verse novels with a unique perspective are exactly the kinds of books to get into their hands to give young people a new perspective on others and the consequences of their words.

Didn't capture my attention and engagement. Interested in trying it again though and hopefully it will take.

Wonderful book. A mirror and a window for sure. I hope this book earns some Youth Media Awards this year!

Ellie has had to create "Fat Girl Rules" to survive her day-to-day and making herself as small as possible. Since her 5th-grade birthday party when she wore a whale-printed bathing suit, even her siblings have been part of the bullying torment of her size. Worst still, is her mom, who has hinted at her--an ELEVEN year-old--getting surgery to help with the weight. Her best friends, Viv, her new neighbor Catalina and her family, her dad, and new therapist seem to be the only ones on her side.

This is a heart-wrenching coming-of-age body-positivity novel-in-verse told from Ellie's POV. I love the journey Lisa Fipps takes readers on as Ellie learns to navigate her internal anger at the world around, learn to stand up for herself without stooping down to her bullies' level of attacking, and begin the steps towards self-acceptance. Words means things, they can hurt--especially if they come from folks who are supposed to love you unconditionally.