The Fat Girl's Guide to Life

By Wendy Shanker

Vibrant, vivacious and gorgeous, Wendy Shanker is a fat girl who has simply had enough - enough of family, friends, co-workers, women's magazines, even strangers on the street all trying (and failing) to make her thin. With her mandate to change the world - and the humour and energy to do it - Wendy shows how media madness, corporate greed and even the most well-intentioned loved ones can chip away at a woman's confidence. She invites people of all sizes, shapes and dissatisfactions to trade self-loathing for self-tolerance, celebrity worship for reality reverence, and a carb-free life for a guilt-free Krispy Kreme. Wendy explores dieting debacles, full-figured fashions and feminist philosophy while guiding you through exercise clubs, doctors' offices, shopping malls and the bedroom. In the process, she will convince you that you can be fit and fat, even as the weight loss industry conspires to make you think otherwise. The Fat Girl's Guide to Life invites you to step off the scales and weigh the issues for yourself.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
• Release date: Aug 17, 2009
• ISBN: 9781408806623

Wendy Shanker

Wendy Shanker is one of Us Weekly's Fashion Police and was the resident humour columnist for Grace Woman magazine. She has appeared on Lifetime, VH1, MSNBC and the Ricki Lake Show, and has hosted a style and shopping show on the Oxygen network. A contributor to The Bust Guide to the New Girl Order and Body Outlaws: Young Women Write About Body Image and Identity, Wendy has also written for Glamour, Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, Seventeen and MTV. This is her first book.

Reviews for The Fat Girl's Guide to Life

[florafloraflora · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I picked this up from a friend's shelf while I was housesitting. I wasn't expecting much, but I was still disappointed. This is one of those books that the author gets a contract to write on the basis of having lived through some interesting condition or situation (although being fat isn't all that uncommon or fascinating), and then is supposed to do some research on that condition or situation to pad out the reminiscences. Wendy Shanker did a bit of research, mostly consisting of a stay in the Rice Diet Program at Duke University, but most of the book is a rambling mess of dull memoir and TMI, with original insights few and far between.

[danneeness · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A good reflection of someone's thought processes as they struggle with their weight, but a little wishy-washy. She doesn't like the current view of fat in our culture, but doesn't seem quite convinced to rebel against it, either.I found Fat! So? to be a better read, and far more inspiring.

[la_bibliofila · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Funny, and uplifting!!

[daniinnc · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

This book was a reminder that there are men and women out there who are doing everything they can to be healthy, but they will never be skinny.

[lydiasbooks · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

One of the most amazing books ever. If you have ever had a moment when you thought you were fat, READ IT. Read it now. It rocks!Quotes that I found most useful: * Dr. Glenn Alan Gaesser suggests that "you are probably at your ideal weight when you are not trying to do anything to control your weight, but are eating a relatively low-fat, fiber-rich diet abundant in fruits, vegetables and whole grains, and being physically active" * Paul Campos says the following four very interesting things in his essay The Weighting Game: What The Diet Industry Won't Tell You "A moderately active fat person is likely to be far healthier than someone who is svelte but sedentary. What's worse, Americans' attempts to make themselves thin through dieting and supplements are themselves a major cause of the ill health associated with being overweight - meaning that America's war on fat is actually helping cause the very disease it's supposed to cure" * "There is in fact no medical basis for the government's BMI recommendations or the public health policies based on them... The BMI range correlating with the lowest mortality rate is extremely broad, from about 18 to 32, meaning that a woman of average height can weigh anywhere within an 80-pound range without seeing any statistically meaningful change in her risk of premature death" * "Larger scale mortality studies indicate that women who are 50 or even 75 pounds 'overweight' will on average still have longer life expectancies than those who are 10 to 15 pounds 'underweight', aka fashionably thin" * "In the end, nothing could be easier than to win the war on fat: All we need to do is stop fighting it" * Most fat people are afraid to go to the gym because they think the skinny people will be mean to them, or at least think means thoughts about them. Well, okay, that's legit. But you know what? It's a gym, not a playground. You're a grown-up, not a kindergartner. You are a strong enough person to get over it and do what you have to do for yourself. Screw everyone else. * If someone rubs me the wrong way, I don't immediately blame myself; I begin to wonder what's up with her. If someone always makes me feel insecure about my body, I ask myself what he or she is projecting. If someone makes me feel like I'm not doing well at work, I ask myself what's happening in his career that he might be dumping onto me. I'm not perfect, I just know I do it to other people, so touche. * If you decide to pursue thinness, that's fine and dandy, but don't do it the same way you've always done it before. Don't let your diet consume you... Step on the scale just once a day or week or month, not twelve times a day... Try to cut back on your body image obsession in general... There are more worthwhile things that deserve your all-consuming attention. And remember, YOU DO NOT HAVE TO SPEND MONEY TO LOSE WEIGHT. Walking is free. You can make a piece of chicken or buy a frozen dinner. If you want to diet, do it for free. * Question the system. That's what this whole book is about, really. You don't have to answer the question, just ask. Does this weight-loss thing make sense? Are we supposed to be so skinny? Isn't it weird to spend so much money on stuff that doesn't work? * As far as I know, Gwyneth Paltrow has not compared herself to me today, so I've decided that I will not compare myself to her. * You can choose to be fat or you can choose to be thin or you can choose to be in the body you are in today. It's not about what you choose, it's about the fact that you have a choice. So make one. Choose to be yourself. And may the results never be typical.