As a child of the 90s, every women’s and teen magazine cover showed me the body that I should strive to obtain. It taught me about ‘problem areas’ and ‘flattering clothes’ and hundreds of ways to hide and shrink myself. I didn’t question it until years later.
When I started reading about body positivity, it felt like some of the steam was getting released from the pot. Little by little, I read more about activists who were writing about fatphobia and its impact. It validated all of my frustrations and helped me listen to my body more— rather than the diet-du-jour the media marketed to me that dictated which foods I could eat that day.
A few months ago I posted 10 titles I love by fat writers that are perhaps a gentler way into these topics. Below is a list of titles that go deeper into the politics and impact of living in a larger body. Whether you’re fat/plus-size/curvy and love it, or hate it, or have lived in various sized bodies, or struggled with body image/eating, or are an awesome ally, here are 10 nonfiction books worth your time— in no particular order:
Shrill: Notes from a Loud Woman by Lindy West. My introduction to fat authors was with this book. The collection of essays explores her childhood as a fat kid, tasteless comedians using rape as a joke (as writer Elissa Bassist says, make it clear you’re making fun of rape culture, not survivors, which many fail to do), and battling all kinds of internet trolls for existing as a fat person. This book was the basis for the Hulu series of the same name starring Aidy Bryant.
You Have the Right to Remain Fat by Virgie Tovar. In her book, UC Berkeley alumna Tovar talks about a happy childhood as a fat kid, but it changed when boys at school started teasing her and inadvertently teaching her their ideas about bodies. By reclaiming her joy, and ditching diets, she was able to regain happiness. Her most recent article in Forbes examines fatphobia in the Barbie movie. (If you’re interested, I posted a short update on last month’s essay after I saw the movie.)
Fat Talk: Parenting in the Age of Diet Culture by Virginia Sole Smith. My mom excitedly told me that she heard someone on NPR talking about bogus BMI and recorded a snippet for me— which is so cool because it helps me to feel like she’s listening to all my diet culture talk 😇; even cooler that it was Burnt Toast’s Sole Smith. This latest book is geared more towards parents, but could be useful to those who are looking to re-parent some of their old wounds. As Angela Garbes writes, the book “guides grown-ups toward unlearning everything we’ve been taught about weight and worth and teaches us to show young people that they are always enough just as they are.”
Weightless: Making Space for My Resilient Body and Soul by Evette Dionne. Journalist and critic (and National Book Award nominee!) Dionne explores “race, friendship, sex, motherhood, agoraphobia, health, pop culture, and self-image” in her debut memoir. As a fat Black woman who experienced heart failure in her 20s, she takes readers along her journey of self-acceptance despite several set-backs.
The Body is Not an Apology by Sonya Renee Taylor. I first came across the spoken word poet and author when listening to an interview with social researcher Brene Brown. They talked about shame, resilience, and of loving exactly who you are—each and every bit— right now. The book is a “balm to heal the wounds inflicted by systems of oppression that thrive off our inability to make peace with difference and injure the relationship we have with our own bodies.” There’s even a workbook now for those who like more guidance. Radical self love, Taylor says, is for every body.
Anti-Diet: Reclaim Your Time, Money, Well-Being, and Happiness Through Intuitive Eating by Christy Harrison. So, this book is written by a person in a smaller body; I haven’t seen a similar title written by a larger person. But diet culture impacts folks of all sizes; 68%+ of Americans have been on one. Some diet their whole lives. Others develop eating disorders or Body Dysmorphia. And I know that ED treatment options are more readily available for thinner people. That said, this book takes us through dieting history, how it impacts several areas of life, and how to move on with health at every size without counting calories. (I’d also recommend Caroline Dooner’s The F*ck It Diet.)
Lessons from the Fat-O-Sphere: Quit Dieting and Declare a Truce with Your Body by Kate Harding & Marianne Kirby. Did you know you can opt out of getting weighed at the doctor’s office? These two bloggers share “twenty-seven ways to reframe notions of dieting and weight, including accepting that diets don't work, practicing intuitive eating, finding body-positive doctors, not judging other women, and finding a hobby that has nothing to do with one's weight.”
Landwhale by Jes Baker. With its provocative title, I wasn’t sure if I was ready for a book like this. As a kid, I loved orcas but after I was called Shamu, I had to shut that down. So … this book’s subtitle gives you a better idea: “Turning Insults Into Nicknames, Why Body Image Is Hard, and How Diets Can Kiss My Ass.”
Fat!So? Because You Don't Have to Apologize for Your Size by Marilyn Wann. Fat-positive activist Wann started this as a zine, and it took off into a book (published in the late 1990s) and even merch like “YAY” scales. The book itself is in a fun magazine-like layout with quizzes and trading cards meant to take a light-hearted approach to nuanced issues like weight stigma, body image, and self esteem.
What We Don’t Talk About When We Talk About Fat by Aubrey Gordon. Most people know Gordon’s Maintenance Phase podcast which debunks a lot of diet trends like Medical Medium, Goop, and even the food pyramid. Since her first book, she’s gone on to write another— You Just Need To Lose Weight and 19 Other Myths About Fat People. If you’re still getting weighed at the doctor’s office, her work is a great place to learn about the silly history of BMI. And in case you missed it, my interview with Gordon is here.
For more suggestions on what to read check out the (non-exhaustive excellent) multi-genre reading list from Body Positive Fitness.
Prompt: What book sounds the most intimidating and why? Which one sounds more accessible?
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Christina Berke is a Los Angeles based writer working on WELL, BODY, a memoir about eating disorders, body image, and childhood trauma. An excerpt of this was Longlisted with Disquiet Literary International. A former Managing Editor for Black Mountain Institute’s award-winning literary magazine, Witness, she currently reads for Split Lip Magazine. Find out more at www.christinaberke.com.