This book was accessible and written to bring attention that there are so many variables to eat a well rounded diet. One of the major takeaways is the language around "healthy" and how it has been weaponized. I really want to be better about inadvertently food shaming. I think this would be a great book club read particularly for people who want to address their relationship with food and "healthy lifestyles".

I've been following Shana Minei Spence on IG for a while now so I was thrilled to be granted early access to this book, and I was not disappointed. Things I love about this book: everything. This is both an exploration of our society's obsession with body (including skin color, size and other privileges) and diet culture but an incredibly compassionate book that can help the reader eat in order to live the most fulfilling life for them. The stress on different looks causing different judgements, on food being neutral and not good or bad, and on how things like finances and education can impact what foods are accessible to you is refreshing and the sort of advice more people need in a society controlled by diet culture.

This book offers meaningful perspectives on relationships with food. I appreciated how the author discussed the pervasiveness of diet culture, especially with regard to the problematic efforts of making some other cultures’ meals “healthier.” I also valued the author’s tone throughout the book; I found her writing compassionate, not condescending, toward the reader while also firmly and directly addressing the broader societal issues surrounding food. I am certain this book will benefit many readers.

Thank you NetGalley and Simon Element for the advanced copy. All opinions are my own.

What a refreshingly different and interesting perspective. I really enjoyed the writing style and the information presented. It’s different from any other book 9n nutrition I’ve ever read in the best way possible.

I wish I'd had this book 15-20 years ago when I was very ill with anorexia. The author breaks down the fallacies of diet culture better than I've heard before, and does so in a nonjudgmental and intersectional way. She acknowledges the different factors that come into play when someone is deciding what to eat and offers practical advice for finding nourishment on different budgets, schedules, etc. I was also pleasantly surprised by how enjoyable this book is; Shana makes reading about nutrition fun.

This book was pretty good, I would definitely recommend

~This was given by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

I was immediately drawn to the title of this transformative book, and then when I saw the subtitle-- Make Peace with Food, Banish Body Shame, and Reclaim Joy-- I was sold! As a female who is finally letting go of diet culture/madness, this book and the permission that it gives came to me at the perfect time.

The book is divided into two sections: The Diet Culture Trap, and How to Make Nourishment Work for You. I openly admit that I skipped the first part because I've done the experimenting as well as the research and have decided not to focus on that anymore. However, if you are just beginning to understand that diets don't really work, you will find the first section helpful.

The section about making nourishment work for me, is direct, profound, and honest. There have been so many things that I've been struggling with as I begin to learn what it means to nourish myself and, to trust myself, The author brilliantly addresses all of them (and a few that I wasn't even aware of LOL). I feel such a sense of lightness and permission (and self-forgiveness) now and will be reading the book again and again to reinforce all of it!

The writing style is conversational and authentic, as though the author was sitting down with me and having a friendly chat, which makes the book easy to read and digest.

Thanks to Netgalley, the author and publisher, for an advance reading copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.