The Fat Girl's Guide to Life [Paperback]

Wendy Shanker (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 10, 2005

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. Written in Wendy's wonderfully funny and candid voice, The Fat Girl's Guide to Life provides thought-provoking insights, statistics, and body-image resources intended to restore a realistic standard of beauty and self-acceptance to the 68 percent of American women who wear a size 12 or larger. The Fat Girl's Guide to Life invites you to step off the scale and weigh the issues for yourself.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This send-up of the thin-is-in mentality is funny enough to make even diehard dieters consider replacing their baby carrots with Krispy Kremes. Shanker, one of Us Weekly's Fashion Police commentators and a self-proclaimed fat girl, estimates she's spent 16 years trying to lose weight: "I've met with seven weight loss specialists, worked with three nutritionists and three personal trainers, tried a dozen weight loss programs, taken thousands of pills, joined six gyms, read thirty-one books and spent enough money on weight loss to buy myself an Ivy League degree." Out of this context, Shanker takes on the media, corporate America and even the medical establishment, arguing with their belief that it's impossible to be both fit and fat. "Let's take the focus off 'fat' and put it on health," she lectures. "Let's take the focus off 'skinny' and put it on good common sense. Let's take the focus off body image and put it on education, women's rights, human rights, the economy, baseball cards, anything." Although Shanker's opinions on full-figured fashion and feminist philosophy are entertaining, she's at her best writing about her stint at Duke Diet and Fitness Center, one of the country's oldest and most successful weight management centers. As her optimism about the hardcore Duke University Medical School program flags, her diary of adventures becomes increasingly irreverent, refreshing and human. Anyone who has ever tried to lose a pound will gain confidence and a sense of humor from Shanker's story.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

Praise for Wendy Shanker:

"A woman to watch: fierce, funny, media-savvy."-Ms.

"Gut-busting."-Entertainment Weekly

"Wicked."-Newsweek

"A bubbly diva."-Harper's Bazaar

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Bloomsbury USA (February 10, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1582345538
• ISBN-13: 978-1582345536
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (58 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #993,495 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

65 of 67 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Fat is good-- uh, I mean bad-- no, good, April 25, 2004

By 

Erica (Sharpsburg, Maryland United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Fat Girl's Guide to Life (Hardcover)

I was very excited to see this book out, and some great points were made, but Ms. Shanker is clearly deeply conflicted. She swings wildly from saying that dieting is good, to saying that she still diets; from saying that she's always going to be fat, to saying that she reserves the right to change her mind and try yet again to lose weight; from saying that fat women are beautiful to saying that they are "garbage" compared to supermodels. This woman wears control top panty hose every day. She says that fat women shouldn't expect to get hunky guys, but should instead go for unstylish, short, and/or bald men. Most of what she had to say was good, but the bad stuff she had to say was really, seriously messed up. The attitude was "I'm fat, that sucks, I'll have to bear it." It should have been "I'm fat, and that's hard, but I now embrace and love it."
As a big girl battling bulmia, the duplicity of this book actually "triggered" my disordered thinking more than any fashion magazine, which says a lot considering that fashion magazines certainly do so.
Wendy is on the right track, but she wrote this book too early in her recovery from her deep self hatred. If she'd given herself another year or two, she could have come out with a much less confused, ambiguous book, and her wit, intelligence and beauty would have produced a fantastic piece of literature. This isn't it. I hope she'll give it another shot when she can say in all honesty that she fully ascribes to the concept that Fat women are as beautiful as supermodels in a different way, Fat women are sexy, Fat women deserve good AND hunky lovers, Fat women can be fit, Fat women aren't slovenly, and they don't have to confine the bounty of their bodies with foundation undergarments.
Try again Wendy. I'm rooting for you.

52 of 55 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Clever, witty... but very disappointing, September 12, 2005

By 

S. Daniels - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Fat Girl's Guide to Life (Hardcover)

For a while now, I have been searching for a book that takes on body image and the anti-fat culture in a cool, clever and inspirational way. I thought I had finally found such a thing in Wendy Shanker's Fat Girl's Guide to life - it's funny, sassy, intelligent - the works. However, there are several reasons why I was very disappointed with it and will never recommend it to anyone. First of all, I have a big problem with her statement in the book that all fat people are compulsive overeaters. There is not a single piece of evidence in support of this notion (despite considerable digging by anti-fat scientists), but it is presented here as an obvious truth. It is simply a prejudiced assumption and I was sad to read it in a book that is meant to empower fat girls. Secondly, it seems to me that Shanker has not at all resolved her personal issues with food and weight. It is thought- provoking and enlightening to follow and identify with her continuing struggles, but she doesn't leave the reader with much hope that these issues really can be worked out (they can, by the way). Furthermore, she seems to confuse food issues with weight issues a lot and vice versa. Eating a healthy diet does not mean that one is necessarily on the way to weight loss. Nor does ridding oneself of bad habits, like eating too much sugar, have to be fueled by a desire to lose weight. Improving health does not automatically imply weight loss. There needs to be a clear distinction between the two and I would have liked to see an understanding of this in the book. Finally, Shanker asserts on more than one occasion - in bold print, no less - that NO ONE wants to be fat. Now, while this may or may not be true (I very much doubt that it has ever been researched...), it is hardly the kind of statement you want to encounter in a book meant to inspire self-esteem and self-love in fat women. The continuing struggle for fat acceptance is an effort to change the way society (read: all of us) see fat people. In order to do that, fat people must take the same steps that every stigmatized group has ever taken before them: Get out there, smile and say with enormous pride: "We're fat (or gay or black or women or whatever), we're here, get used to it!!! Fat people have to convince themselves and everyone around them that they're not abnormal, they're not defected or morally weak - they're perfectly fine the way they are. That means they have to project the image of being satisfied with themselves - in the bodies they are in. Yes, it has to be that revolutionary - because if they act like they'd really rather not be fat, how can they expect others to see fatness as anything but a liability? If we continue to regard fatness as a defect and abnormality, society will always look down on fat people - if not out of disgust, then out of pity.

67 of 79 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Truthfully Funny, Important, Good for All, Thin or Fat, June 24, 2004

By 

S. Morales (Levittown, NY United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Fat Girl's Guide to Life (Hardcover)

I Sergio, the obsessed metal head am not only in love with heavy metal music, but also REAL beautiful women, and by that I mean Large beautiful women. I myself am not an overweight person, and if you think I'm biased, it's probably just due to the fact that I find large women to be gorgeous.
Wendy Shanker's first book is basically her opinions on fat women and how they're wrongfully percieved in America (and parts of the world) and the story of her full figured body's coming to be. It goes to point out and destroy the stupid stereoptypes usually depicted about big women in media and society; such as laziness, depression, poor health, and only good for a laugh. It also goes to point out lots of FALSE conclusions, such that thinness equates to health, and that 61% of all Americans are overwieght; where the term "overwieght" is so loose in fact that super big celebrities such as George Clooney, yes, George Clooney are considered "overweight." Also that the survey was taken by only an amount of 1,446 people in 1999 and that's where we get the 61% from, forgetting that the U.S. contains a population of over 200 million.
Wendy goes on to talk about other issues, such as clothing availability and accommadations for big people. Most importantly, that to be fat means poor health, gimme a break! If anything, being fat means being healthy, as long as the person doesnt wieght 300-400 lbs! She also tells of her time in a Duke wieght center where she spent literally thousands of dollars, underwent rigerous excersize conditions and starvation, only to come out with a net wieght loss of only 2 lbs. Also how big companies like Wieght Watchers and Atkins are in it for the business, as a whole w/ the rest of corporate America, are profiting off the self esteem of the American public. Wendy shows women how to be strong, and gives great ideas on how to stay healthy even while being fat; not to mention giving men a whole new perspective on big beautiful women. Basically, your target goal in excersize should be to KEEP healthy, yes KEEP; and your target should NOT be to get thin as so many women sadly believe, and as so many stupid ignorant (white) men sadly exploit.
The book is also very funny. Wendy is a feminist, but a fair feminist, not the "we should spell women w/ a Y instead of E" type. She pokes fun at herself and at times though she may seem to poke fun or speak badly of fat people, it's at face value she's doing it, but if you know how to read between lines (as she also gives a brief lesson on) you'll notice it's all tongue-in-cheek. She constantly refers to fat women as "fat chicks," further emphasizing the down to earth qualities w/in her. Any man who reads this will undoubtably fall in love with Wendy, as you truly feel like you get to know her and her stuggles, and I myself am surprised to learn that she is still single (and no, it's not b/c she's fat you moron).
To all those boneheaded ignorants out there (men in particular) who believe that beauty only comes in one size (you know who you are you wussie), obviously this book is your wake up call (if you'll actually be intelligent enough to read it, which you probably won't; so continue to drink your beer and be macho in front of your douche friends). Everywhere you look you see it (not to get off on a rant), but from reality TV where only pretty thin white people and the 1 token musclehead black guy are depicted, to shows like the Man Show (skeletons on trampolines!), to even tv commercials, never is a big REAL woman in sight. What are people so afraid of? Reality I guess. Do yourself a favor, making fun of fat women and men or simply being ignorant to their stories and stuggles is just the equivelant of being a racist in my opinion; by that I mean they are people different than you and you're percieving them unjustifyingly. This is sort of explained through something that Wendy calls "Thin Logic."
Aside from this being an incredible read (I literally could not put it down) as well as an important read, there were a couple of Wendy's opinions I didn't agree w/, such that a doctor should not directly blame a patient for their illness. Example: A person w/ cancer should be be blamed even though they're smoked all their lives. I can understand a doctor not being judgemental, but i sure am gonna be! Though being fat isn't in the same boat, as it isn't just eating habits that equate to it, other things such as genetics also play a part, as well as the fact that God created ALL shapes and sizes!
Anyways, the point is, buy this and read it. If you're fat, this book will undoubtably raise your self esteem, if you're thin, it'll raise your awareness. And Wendy if you're reading this, I just want to say Thank You, I wish the world had more people like you.