Thank you Netgalley for the ARC and to the publisher for auto-approving me. This book is exactly in my wheelhouse. The author is white and non-binary. They use their own upbringing, as a former Evangelical Christian, and cite diverse sources to analyze prejudice in an intersectional way. Anderson argues that the US majority white, Christian culture's fear of the Other and the false mind-body dichotomy contribute to the marginalization of fat people, disabled people, and people of color. Personally, I usually focus on prejudice as hatred, not fear, but I do sometimes call prejudice fear too. This can be useful. As the author points out, fear of becoming fat and/or disabled or fear that one is LGBTQIA contribute to fatphobia, ableism, and anti-LGBTQIA hate. This often has deadly consequences, including disparities in medical treatment. No book can cover everything it mentions in depth, but the arguments are important, insightful, and made me think.

“Body Phobia” is an interesting look at how western (and largely Protestant Christian) culture has influenced how people perceive their bodies and more generally how society views human bodies, and how a fear of bodies who are different due to race/skin color, size, disability, sexual preference, and/or gender identity has impacted how society views and treats people who are “different.”

The most important lesson, which the author acknowledges took them a long time to understand, and which is still an ongoing process for them, is that your body is you, it is going to change, and that only you know what it is like to live as you. Therefore, you are the authority on you, and you should be making the decisions that are best for yourself, as you are the one living with the consequences.

It is an interesting read. I enjoyed it, however it was a very slow read at times. It discusses a lot about religion and how they influence the world in many ways.

I was already aware of most of the issues presented in this book, but I liked the way the author expanded upon the issues, giving clear examples of each, and tying them all together as pieces of the whole of the fear society places on bodies. I think reading this book has helped me realize why I view my own body the way I do, and I think that I can now work on changing my views for the better.

This book helped me open my eyes and mind to some things I had no clue about. It focuses on why we fear our own bodies, and why society makes us fear our bodies based on phobias that are really just people being prejudice.

I enjoyed reading real life experiences. It helped you understand the points the author was trying to get across. It made me feel sad, but I also felt relatable.

There were also parts of this book I didn’t agree with at all and did not enjoy reading it. I consider myself a very open minded person, but there were just some points I couldn’t get behind. That brought the rating down for me. This is my honest review.