Sad Perfect is the story of Pea, a girl with ARFID, a little known eating disorder that not only makes her averse to the taste/texture/idea of most foods, but gives her great anxiety about eating new things for the first time. Stephanie Elliot does a fantastic job of describing the "monster" that lives within Pea. She made me feel Pea's fear, and worry, and anger, and sadness in an uncomfortably visceral manner, which made me root for our protagonist all the more (though, I suspect this book could be triggering for ED sufferers and those recovering from EDs). For me, the brightest part of Sad Perfect was Ben, the boy who sweeps Pea off her feet in the most adorable and romantic ways. He's the best sort of boyfriend: sweet and supportive and understanding, yet he challenges Pea, and always has her best interests in mind. I love how he helped her see that while seeking and accepting help would certainly be hard, it could also be worth it.

I work with children with emotional disabilities and this novel tugged hard at my heart. I know as an onlooker the struggles that these families endure and I do my best to understand how the children feel. Pea, was an amazing, strong character, who with the support of her family and friends was able to move forward to wellness. The author's note at the end brought me to tears as I was believing all along that the author had struggled with eating disorders and depression herself, I was surprised when she spoke of her daughter. Writing from the heart truly lent to a believable and inspirational story. Thank you for the opportunity to read this book!

This was such a raw and powerful book about sixteen year old, Pea (a nickname) struggling and dealing with the monster within herself.

“I have a monster living inside me that constantly tells me what to do, what to think, how to behave, who to love, how to act, how to react, what and when I should eat...He makes me depressed, he makes me anxious, He controls my moods and my emotion, my anger and my sadness. I’ve had it, or him, my whole life.”

Pea has an unusual eating disorder that basically is an aversion to food. It controls her life and affects her relationship with her parents and friends. When Pea meets Ben, things seem to get better. The monster seems satified and quiet so Pea decides to go off of her medication. A downward spiral occurs. Pea starts to hurt herself and is sent to a psychiatric hospital. Reading about her experiences there and hitting rock bottom was gut wrenching and heart breaking. Through this experience, Pea, realizeds that she does need help.

“Only you can do this...You want to be free of the monster...free so you can have a better life, a good life, and be able to do the things normal girls can do, and be free from the constraining feelings you have all the time.”

This book was honest and gritty and showed the many struggles that teens have to deal with on a daily basis.

Eating disorders are nothing new as a theme in YA; however, in Sad Perfect, the reader is introduced to a new one. Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder causes just as much havoc in a person’s life as anorexia/bulimia, but like those disorders, it isn’t due to a body image issue. People with AFRID tend to dislike textures, certain colors of foods, types of foods, or just a lack of interest in food altogether. In small children, in can seem like you have a picky eater. Those afflicted usually have a normal body weight but might need supplements to their diet. While that might seem benign compared to other eating disorder but in reality, it can cause depression, anxiety at social events that involve food, and interfere with relationships and family.

Pea is a junior in high school suffering from AFRID. By all accounts, Pea seems normal but lurking behind that facade is depression and anxiety. After a bad breakup with her boyfriend last year that caused her not to eat for five days, she started on depression meds. She knows she needs them to keep her “normal” and she tries to eat and keep the pretense that she is fine. During the summer, she meets a boy named Ben and suddenly she is happy, relaxed, and feeling like a normal girl for a change. She still goes to therapy but has stopped taking her meds, as do most people who think they are getting better. Her relationship with Ben is going great, and even though she has been honest with him about her eating disorder, she still isn’t getting better. The reader knows exactly where this is going, but Pea and her family take longer to get there.

Told in second person narrative, which was refreshing but sometimes made Pea’s story feel dreamlike. I felt like I was floating on top of her life, looking down at the story instead of feeling like I was inside the story. This wasn’t a deal breaker in my enjoyment but made an impact. Pea’s struggles with her disorder and depression that accompanies it takes some pretty drastic turns and then suddenly rights itself. I wasn’t a fan of the HEA and likewise realizations/breakthroughs that seemed a bit rushed. Regardless, this is a quick read with a real topic that teens will eat up. Pun intended.