Monday, October 19, 2015

Review: Things No One Will Tell Fat Girls by Jes Baker

Things No One Will Tell Fat Girls: A Handbook for Unapologetic Living by Jes Baker
Publisher: Seal Press
Genre: Non-Fiction Things No One Will Tell Fat Girls Cover
ISBN: 9781580055826
Paperback Release Date: October 27, 2015
EBook Release Date: November 17, 2015
Source: Publisher
Buy it here: Amazon | B&N

Things No One Will Tell Fat Girls is a manifesto and call to arms for people of all sizes and ages. With her trademark wit, veteran blogger and advocate Jes Baker calls people everywhere to embrace a body-positive worldview, changing perceptions about weight, and making mental health a priority.

Alongside notable guest essayists, Jes shares personal experiences paired with in-depth research in a way that is approachable, digestible, and empowering. Things No One Will Tell Fat Girls is an invitation to reject fat prejudice, fight body-shaming at the hands of the media, and join this life-changing movement with one step: change the world by loving your body.

Things No One Will Tell Fat Girls is an interesting, important book on the body love movement that speaks to everyone, not just the titular “fat girls.” Author Jes Baker fearlessly tackles the body positive movement, taking on not just sizeism, but racism, classism, ableism, and more. Things No One Will Tell Fat Girls encourages women and men of all sizes to challenge what has become completely ingrained in our society: the idea that one type of body (whatever that may be) is the ideal and that anything less is unworthy of love, respect, or dignity.

Intellectually, most of us know that the ideal body image the media sells us is not only physically unattainable for 95% of the population but is also simply corporations capitalizing on people’s wants and fears. However, the way this image has pervaded every aspect of our lives makes it difficult for many of us to fully love our bodies, to fearlessly face a world where we are constantly made to feel “less than,” and to accept the love from ourselves and others that we deserve. Not only that, this picture of the perfect man or woman has an impact on every aspect of our lives, and if you don’t fit in it affects you socially, medically, etc. Ms. Baker’s research and discussion regarding how body love can change the world is insightful. I may not have agreed with absolutely everything in this book, but that’s ok. Ms. Baker challenged my viewpoint and made me look at things in a different light. What she and her contributors succeed in doing by opening up is to make you think, and their words are sure to inspire you to question the information you’ve been fed all your life. Because everybody, absolutely everybody, deserves love, acceptance, compassion, and understanding.

There are simply too many topics in Things No One Will Tell Fat Girls to talk about and for me to try and summarize each would do the book a great injustice. Ms. Baker does her best to be inclusive in talking about the body love movement and her care in doing so makes the book all the better. This is truly the best book on body love I’ve read yet and if you go in with an open mind, you will mostly likely find something to inspire you. Ms. Baker has an intelligent, powerful, funny voice that shines and makes Things No One Will Tell Fat Girls a must read!


FTC Disclosure: I received this book for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

2 comments:

Jes The Militant Baker said...

Thank you Kimberly! Made my night <3

Kimberly said...

You're very welcome! TNWTFG was a fantastic read and such a valuable addition to the body love movement. It was pure pleasure to review it :)