The Fat Girl's Guide to Life

by Wendy Shanker
The Fat Girl's Guide to Life  
published 2005 by Bloomsbury USA
binding Paperback
isbn 1582345538   (isbn13: 9781582345536)
pages 288
description 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...more
date added
03-17-07



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Elizabeth
Elizabeth rated it: 5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars
07/09/08

Read in June, 2008
One of my new favorites!

If Wendy Shanker in real life is anything like Wendy Shanker author, I really want to hang out with her. Anyone who writes, “I have no patience for people who won’t eat this and won’t eat that…Three cheers for discipline but, like, stay home and eat.” is someone I want to know. YES! Stay home, indeed. Being a scone/muffin/pastry-a-day gal myself, an immediate sense of camaraderie flooded my senses upon reading these lines and it has stayed. Shanker, author o...more
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Linnea
08/21/07

bookshelves: myworldsquared
Read in August, 2007
recommends it for: people who look like me or have ever...um...seen someone who looks like me?
What I learned from this book: Ghandi isn't the only preaching the words "Be the change you want to see in the world."

I thought this book was very funny, easy to read, and in my case, very easy to relate to. I enjoyed the stats that would spring up; as well as the way she stressed drawing your own conclusions after presenting new information.

All in all, I liked it a lot but think it's time for a second edition (for example, her example "hot chick" is Britney Spears....more
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coolbeans
coolbeans rated it: 3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars
04/15/08

Read in April, 2008
recommends it for: fat girls, skinny chicks, moms of daughters
I liked this and think she presented some interesting points about size issues. There were times when her voice irritated me and left me believing that she only thinks it's okay to be fat if you work out regularly. Like, I'm fat but I hit my target heart rate like I'm supposed to but YOU are fat and you just sit around all day with Ben and Jerry so you're a BAD kind of fat.

She wasn't saying it outright, but I saw it in the in-betweens. Still, mostly a good read and made me really think about...more
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Eileen
Eileen rated it: 4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars
11/11/07

bookshelves: book-club-selections
Read in August, 2007
recommends it for: anyone with body image isses
"The Fat Girl's Guide to Life" was a very funny true story/memoir about Wendy Shanker. It made me feel good about my size, and not to ever let others get me down. So long as you take care of yourself, and you feel good, you can be happy in your own skin. That is what I feel I learned the most from this book, and I laughed a lot along the way.
She is a very witty and good writer!
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Sabrina
Sabrina rated it: 4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars
03/30/07

Has a copy to sell/swap — Read in July, 2006
recommends it for: girls who are sick of dieting!
This is a hilarious book written by a thick Jewish woman who tells it like it is for us bigger girls out there...she is unfailingly honest, intelligent, and witty, which is a great combination when you're tackling such a sensitive issue. She preaches about living the kind of life you want to live RIGHT NOW instead of waiting for a better, skinnier tomorrow. Amem, sista friend.
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Rachelle
Read in April, 2008
recommended to Rachelle by: Nan Little
This is a very enjoyable and thought provoking book, especially if you suffer from body image issues (even if you're not a FAT girl). Learn to love the body you live in, but keep it healthy. Fit and Fat are not mutually exclusive. This is the second time I've read this book, and both times it reiterates that I have to love the one and only body I will ever have.
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Kate
Kate rated it: 4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars
11/23/07

Read in August, 2007
a.maz.ing. seriously. i mean, well, not so much the parts where she's like "i'm so fat and gross i need to go to a hospital and pay tens of thousands of dollars to lose weight," but much of the rest. it's banging to have a girl be all showing how society's relationship to fat is f'ed and a lot more complicated than concerns about your "health" or "happiness."
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Amanda
Amanda rated it: 4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars
06/26/08

This book was given to me by one of my best friends. I just like this book because it helps you to feel a little more comfortable in your skin while having a good sense of humor. I have read it more than once and do so whenever I'm having "body image issues".
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Beth
08/10/07

Read in July, 2007
recommends it for: Girls
A fabulously funny, yet brutally honest book from a Fat Girl to fat girls everywhere. Littered with factoids and statistics, personal stories and anecdotes, I simply couldn't put it down. She's easy to relate to and it was refreshingly non-fiction.
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Lisa
12/09/07

bookshelves: full-figured-reading
recommends it for: Anyone who has struggled with their weight
Wendy Shanker is not only an amazing author but also a good friend, so I may be a bit biased. However I read this before I met her and was so inspired by it - it totally makes you think about body image issues in a new way, and laugh while you do it
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Wendy
03/09/08

Read in March, 2008
Ms. Shanker is an intelligent, witty writer. This was a great book about loving yourself despite your weight (no matter if you are thin, average, or overweight). Terrific read. (Just an FYI: she occasionally uses crude language.)
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Becca
Becca rated it: 4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars
10/01/07

Really interesting book about living the life as a "fluffy" girl. Some parts were kind of slow, but overall it was written in a witty style. I especially love the ending. It makes the whole book worth the read.
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Marietta
Marietta rated it: 3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars
02/05/08

Read in February, 2008
As much as I agree with a lot of what she says, Wendy Shanker tends to first debunk all health and obesity statistics, and then use those same statistics to support her arguments... still, she's mostly right.
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Christina
Christina rated it: 2 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars
07/05/08

Read in September, 2006
Basically a "Yeah I'm fat. Get over it." type of book. Brash and really accusatory of nonfat people. Not empowering, and not intelligent. Funny in some parts, but mostly boring bullcrap.
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Stacey lorin
Stacey lorin rated it: 5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars
04/07/08

Read in January, 2007
recommends it for: women of any size (and men too!).
Ive read this book about 10 times and am at the moment reading it again. Its funny and smart and it makes me feel good to read it.
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Jules
Jules rated it: 4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars
06/08/08

Great observations, dead on the way women think about their bodies...great analysis as to why we are so screwed up about it.
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Devon
07/22/07

bookshelves: memoirish, nonfiction
Read in June, 2005
I was really disappointed by this book. There were parts to which I could relate but I think I was spoiled by Marilyn Wann.
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Icha
07/19/07

bookshelves: iveread
Read in September, 2005
recommends it for: every man
She sure gives a new attitude and new perspective to the word 'fat'.
Fat is indeed a feminist issue.
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Choco-cat
Every woman should read this, whether she's fat or thin.
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Shannon
bookshelves: non-fiction
Read in January, 2007
recommends it for: fat chicks.
Honest. Not really a guide, more of a personal story.
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book data (includes all editions)

avg rating (all editions): 3.91 (95 ratings)
avg rating (this edition): 3.81 (63 ratings)
number of reviews: 21






other editions

The Fat Girl's Guide to Life (Hardcover)
Fat Girl's Guide to Life (Paperback)