This is a much-needed book in the body-obsessed world that we live in. It's been years since Ellie was not self-conscious about her weight, and her classmates and mom make sure she is always aware of her size. Mean girls and cruel boys at school laugh at and bully her, and it isn't much better at home, where her mom criticizes her in an effort to "encourage" her to diet, and her brother and sister constantly makes comments around her which make her feel like she's less than she should be. Ellie lives by the Fat Girl Rules she has created which never allow her to forget her size. Ellie is blessed to have a dad who sees beyond her weight and shows her love, and a new next door neighbor who really wants to be her friend. When Ellie's dad takes her to talk to a therapist, it allows her to see her self worth, and it also helps her discover ways that she can talk to her mom and others about her feelings. This is a heart-rending and heart-warming story, and the cruelty Ellie faces is extremely eye-opening. Readers will find themselves cheering her on as she confronts those who have treated her so horribly. Ellie is a hero for our times.

I have read many verse novels for middle grade and YA but Starfish is my absolute favourite. It is such a powerful story from a unique perspective. Ellie is a character who you feel an immediate connection to and empathise with. Ellie’s story takes you on a roller coaster of emotion, laughing one minute and then in tears the next. The bullying that Ellie faces at school is pretty horrible, but it’s the words and actions of her own mother that really make you angry and so sad for Ellie. As Ellie says in the story, the best books make you feel and Starfish is certainly full of feels.

Lisa Fipps’ writing is just so beautiful and lyrical. She captures emotions perfectly in just a few words. I found myself stopping and writing down quotes from the book so many times. I wanted to take my time with the book and savour Lisa’s words but I also needed to get to the end to find out how Ellie confronted her bullies.

Starfish is now one of my favourite books and I’ll be telling everyone about it.

Oh the feels in this book! Ellie has been labeled as a fat girl since she was five. She battles the hurt her mom dishes out trying to fix her. When Ellie's best friend moves away, she feels like she won't have any friend at all. Fortunately a new family moves in next door and Ellie finds new allies. She starts therapy and her therapist teaches her to speak for herself and stand up to those who hurt her. This is a must read for girls who think their body isn't perfect. You are perfect just as you are!

Starfish is such a needed and important book! Lisa Fipps lets the reader into the experience of an overweight child in a way that is inaccessible from outside that person's experience. It helps well intentioned and well meaning parents and others peek into what really happens when they say and do those things they intend to be helpful improvement, (or with expressions of embarassment.) Either way, parents of offspring who stray from the norm in some way should take note, and learn to do no harm. Every person, child or adult, should read this book, to gain this experience and understanding. The main character's life experience (sizism) is one that is not portrayed very often, and almost never from a positive growth perspective. This is an important mirror for some readers, and an essential window for others.

I received this free eGalley by attending the virtual SLJ Middle Grade Magic conference. This is an honest review. All of these thoughts are my own.

This story completely sucked me in. I have been overweight my entire life and I started reading this book as soon as I downloaded it because I was so excited for a story written from the perspective of a girl who is also overweight. I typically find the overweight characters are best friends to the main character, so this was a refreshing change.

I could relate so closely to some of the scenarios Ellie found herself in and my heart broke for her on multiple occasions throughout this story. It truly was an emotional rollercoaster in all the best ways. I absolutely love the character of Ellie and was cheering her on with every turn of the page. Also, this story was perfectly written in free verse. I couldn't imagine it being written in prose. It would have lost so much of its value.

I can't wait to share this book with my students and I pray that the right students read it and are as deeply moved as I was when I read it. This is one that will stick with me for a long time. Maybe forever.

**Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me an advanced copy of this book to review

I finished this entire book in one sitting. Once I started it, I couldn't put it down. Ellie story is a hard one to read because it talks about how shame and bullying can start in ones family. Throughout this book we learn about Ellie and her mother's issues with her weight. Ellie has always been bigger but she is by no means out of shape, she swims everyday and plays with her dog and her neighbour Catalina. Her mother cannot see past the shape of her body though.

You feel Ellie's hurt, shame, self-loathing, and pain in every word of this books. She feels she will never be good enough, skinny enough, or pretty enough for her mother. You see her journey as she stands up for herself, finds allies, and becomes a stronger, more confident person. That moment when she finally stands up to her mom is just so amazing, you want to reach inside the book and hug her so tightly because you knew she had the strength inside her all along.

This book is amazing and I definitely recommend that everyone pick up a copy. Plus it is written in verse which makes it extra amazing!

I loved this book by Lisa Fipps and have highlighted it on our school website for First Chapter Friday. I feel a lot of students can relate to Ellie and what she is going through. I feel the way the book represented how the therapist worked with Ellie really well and it can lead to lots of discussions.

What an incredible book! Ellie lives her life by the “Fat Girl Rules.” She is constantly shamed and bullied by her classmates, and even her own mom. With the help of her dad, her friends and a therapist, Ellie learns to leave behind the “rules” and to start accepting and loving herself just the way she is. Ellie is an amazing character that you are cheering for the whole time! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy.

Starfish by Lisa Fipps is a story about loving yourself no matter what anyone else thinks. Ellie is a sixth grader who has been aware of her weight since her fifth birthday. Since then, she's created "Fat Girl Rules" to live by and keep her safe, but what they're really doing is hurting her self esteem just like the bullies at school and her mom. With the help of her new therapist, Ellie begins to see life a little differently.

I loved this novel. in verse! It does a great job of capturing a young girl's self esteem and self doubt and showing Ellie's journey to love herself. As a teacher and a mom, I think this book is so important for young girls out there who think they don't fit today's beauty standards! It also really normalizes therapy, and I love that as well. Mental health, especially as a tween and teenager, is so important. I love that this novel highlights the support Ellie is receiving.

This is a much-needed addition to the small but growing collection of middle-grade fiction about fat people.

Ellie has been bullied about her weight since she was five. School is unbearable, and home is often not much better. Her own sister gave her the nickname Splash. Her dad takes her to a therapist, and gradually Ellie learns to open up and use her voice. She learns to stand up for herself and let go of the burden of years of hurtful words. And she learns to starfish. This is written as a novel in verse, each word important and powerful. I think this is the first middle grade book that has ever made me cry. @authorlisafipps writes that while this story is a fictional story, a version of every mean thing said to Ellie in the story was said to her as a child. When I read that, my heart fell. I’m so glad that she found her voice, because giving one to Ellie will help countless readers.

I've always been the fat kid. All my life. Luckily I had an amazing support system around me but I can 100% still remember the horrible things kids said to me in the hallways and on the playground.

I love the way Ellie finds the courage and strength to find herself and stand up for herself. I love the friendships she is able to form with warm and loving people. I love the way she begins to understand that responding to hate with more hatred is the easy way out and doesn't feel good. I just love her!

The book is already ordered for the library. I can't wait to book talk it!

This is such a beautiful book of friendship, acceptance, and learning to stand up for yourself. Fipps has created a raw and emotional free verse novel that will resonate with so many young readers. I can't wait to add this title to our collection and get it in the hands of young readers.

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for the opportunity to read and review this title. All opinions and mistakes are my own.

Such a moving, heartfelt book about body image, and fat shaming. I felt for El and how much she was hurting with all the mean talk to her. Sometimes it is just really hard to lose weight. Sometimes you just don't have the right genes. The prose is beautiful and I cried and laughed with our characters throughout.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book!

Theme and character driven novel in verse featuring the culture of bullying fat shaming, body image, and ultimately the right to be in your own skin. Ellie refuses to play the victim, although it would be easy considering the bullying she endures from her mother, her brother, and at middle school. She finds strength and peace in the swimming pool where she can allow herself to float and take up space. She has friends who appreciate and accept her exactly as she is, and a father who rebukes his his wife's harassment of their daughter, and finds a therapist who Ellie slowly comes to trust and respect. This is an emotional title, which will bring you to tears. Thank you to Nancy Paulsen Books and Netgalley for this ARC.

Ellie Montgomery-Hofstein has a heart of gold. Unfortunately, it isn’t because of her mother’s nature or nurture. Although, it could be because of her father.

Lisa Fipps’s verse novel is a splash hit.
The gut-wrenching bullying Ellie endures about her weight will break your heart—especially when the bullying comes from family members. Thankfully, your heart will be repaired as the upstanders in Ellie’s life help her define who she is and how to use her voice.

Thank you, NetGalley, for an e-Arc of Starfish by Lisa Fipp.
Starfish is a book that everyone needs to read! A book written in verse that deals with so much. Ellie is overweight and is constantly bullied about her size. Bullied at school, at home, in public, and at doctors' offices. Ellie has lived her life by her fat girl rules, and now it is time to stand up for herself, to learn to like who she is. This book is beautifully and honestly written. It is heartbreaking and empowering. It is a book that everyone needs to read!

This book was amazing. Truly beautiful, so on point even to the Author's Note. The poetry works so well in this and the characters are perfect.

This book was heartbreaking. I cried and I cheered. Being bullied for any reason is not okay, and if you're being bullied, please reach out to someone you can trust.

Ellie was a young girl, bullied for being overweight. At the age of 5 she wore a whale swimsuit to her birthday party, did a great cannonball, and was picked on and called a whale ever since. She felt that the only people that loved her were her dad and her best friend Viv, until she made a new friend in the next door neighbor. The lessons that she learned, and things that she had to go through are invaluable. Self-worth is important. Never let anyone tell you otherwise.

Thank you to the publisher and the author for the eARC and for the physical ARC that you sent to #BookPosse! It has been very popular within our group!

Eleven-year-old Ellie lives by the Fat Girl Rules she’s learned through her life experiences. The Fat Girl Rules help her avoid the relentless bullying she’s experienced since she was five years old and made a big splash at her birthday party in her whale bathing suit. She finds peace in her backyard swimming pool, where she can float weightless for hours and escape everyone, including her pushy mom, who is constantly criticizing her about her weight. Ellie forms a friendship with a new neighbor whose family shows Ellie the kindness and acceptance she’s missing from her own family and her classmates. With the support of her new friend, a helpful therapist, and her loving dad, Ellie finds the strength to stand up to those who are bullying her.

This story of self-affirmation written in engaging verse form will resonate with middle grade readers. The examination of bullying on many levels is authentic. Readers will be engaged by Ellie and relate to her honesty and experiences. They will cheer for Ellie as she goes through her journey of self-acceptance.