Customer Reviews

Purge

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(18)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

There are a lot of YA books out there set in inpatient psychiatric treatment, especially for eating disorders -- enough so that it's almost a sub-genre of its own at this point. And as books in this category go, this one has a lot going for it -- there are some compelling characters, the book goes well beyond the obvious cliches, and the hospital staff and treatment process are portrayed more realistically than in most books.

All that said, there were two things about this book that I really disliked:

1) A large chunk of the "plot" is just Janie (the main character) not telling the reader things that she knows. Especially when a book is written in 1st person, I find this a really old trick -- there is so much room here for a real plot that there's really no excuse for this.

2) Probably because of the above, the ending seems artificially quick and easy.

I know this book is fiction, but as someone who has studied and read up on eating disorders for many years, I feel this book is a little superficial and doesn't really get to the core of why a lot of girls have these disorders. I guess this book is geared more towards young girls, and not really a place to find help and answers. I don't think I'd recommend this book. There are a lot of fictional stories on anorexia and bulimia on the market I would recommend over this one.

Janie believed it was under control. What began as just a little something to relieve that "full" feeling after a big meal at a Chinese restaurant became the focus of her life. Janie can admit now that she is bulimic. What she can't understand and admit is why she has let this disorder consume her.

Perhaps her family is to blame. Her father dotes on her "perfect" older sister. That older sister only pays attention to her own "perfect" wedding plans. Janie's mother not only has a career to attend to, but also that "perfect" wedding to orchestrate.

The boy of her dreams finally asks her out, but after only a few short dates expects her to sacrifice her virginity. Afterward, she doesn't feel loved, she just feels like a slut. Embarrassment keeps her from confiding in her real friends, which causes hard feelings and separation.

Now after total humiliation at her sister's wedding, Janie finds herself at Golden Slopes, a treatment facility for eating disorders. She is now one of the Barfers waiting in frustration for the Starvers to straggle in for every scheduled meal. In between therapy sessions, she shares her thoughts in a journal. More than anything she wants to go home, but first she must confront her situation and come to terms with the root cause of her constant desire to purge.

Author Sarah Darer Littman brings a fresh voice to this growing problem among teens today. Her story proves how wide-spread the problem of eating disorders has become. Among her cast of characters, readers will hear from males as well as females, the well-to-do as well as the disadvantaged, and even someone well beyond her teen years who has fallen victim to the disease.

Littman highlights the seriousness and the life-threatening effects of eating disorders, but at the same time, through humor and the results of positive treatment, provides hope and encouragement. PURGE is one you won't want to miss.

Reviewed by: Sally Kruger, aka "Readingjunky"

This subject is so close to my heart! When I was a teen, Eating Disorders were not discussed (I doubt they were really ever recognized) and yet, this disease is so prevalent in people of EVERY age. This is one of the reasons I am so grateful for books such as Purge, written by Sarah Darer Littman.There are a few things that make Purge different from the other ED books.

First off, this is written as a novel, with the voice of Janie basically taking us through her stay at an ED clinic. The second thing that I thought was quite different is that Littman puts Anorexia, Bulimia and binge eating into the same novel - it is extremely fascinating to see how all three groups (although the binge eaters are less represented) interact, but also how they each view so differently the almost same situation (i.e. mealtime).

I loved, loved this book. It is obvious that Littman has gotten some firsthand knowledge of this disease - this book is extremely difficult to read and I found that I could not read more than 5 or so pages at a time.The voice of Janie who is in complete denial as she enters the clinic - is clear, scared and a joy to read about. It is fascinating to see her slowly come to understand that 'maybe she does belong here'.

This book treats ED with the sensitivity and seriousness it deserves. Never talks down to the reader and yet, manages to educate and inform.I thought this book was heartwarming, tough, honest and beautiful.I recommend this book for ALL adults and for the YA adult out there

Statistics published at a State of South Carolina Health Department website about eating disorders state that the chance that your 15 year old daughter will die of anorexia nervosa is twelve (12) times higher than that of all other causes of death recorded for 15-24 year old women combined. Eating disorders are one of the biggest health issues for teens and preteens today and one that neither we nor they hear anywhere near enough about. Not so long ago eating disorders were presumed to be almost entirely confined to young women. Today we know that about 10% as many young men suffer from eating disorders as do young women. Eating disorders are not just a female problem. And frighteningly, children are developing eating disorders at younger and younger ages. One British documentary found children as young as 6 suffering from anorexia. (Available to watch online.)

In Purge Sarah Littman does a bang-up job of accurately presenting the medical and psychological issues to teens in a non-judgmental & engaging way that bears no resemblance to the "lecture" teens so easily tune out. If I have one criticism, it is the title of the book. I suspect that many a teen that should read this book will take one look at the title and run for the hills.

If you are a parent, you must read this book. Pass it along to your children's teachers, because this is a book that belongs on every summer reading list from every middle and high school in the country. And leave it laying around. Sooner or later your daughter just might pick it up. . . . .

Note: The book does address sexual issues. Many parents will likely find it unsuitable for youngsters much under 11 or so, but do not let some misguided desire to "protect" your 11 year old keep this book on the shelf. There is nothing here that any 11 year old doesn't know all about.

Is it inappropriate to say I enjoyed a book on eating disorders? I hope not, because, despite the seriousness of the topic, and hopefully without sounding like someone who gawks at others' tragedies, I really loved reading this book. I'm impressed that this is Littman's first novel for young adults, and only her second novel overall. Her writing is smooth, articulate, assured. I found the voice of Janie Hyman (the protagonist, and first-person narrator) very believeable. Some writing teachers and literary critics will tell you that in order to write well from a first-person standpoint, you need to put the narrator into a believeable, "organic" situation where they are supposed to be telling their tale. I don't think that always needs to be a hard and fast rule, but the fact that Janie has been asked to keep a journal while she is in this in-hospital treatment program makes it more believeable as she reports her experiences. Too many writers try to tell a story from the first-person narrator, and don't grasp the double-edged sword inherent in this approach: you can use this to show what the narrator doesn't know just as much as what she does know. If first-person is written in a way that the reader can "read between the lines" and see things the narrator can't see (or can't see yet), this is an incredibly effective way to create suspense and to show growth in the narrator. Fortunately, Littman does this with skill. This is an excellent technique to use with a character whose main problem is that she CAN'T see how what she's doing and the way she's thinking is dangerous. Through the journal entries of Janie, we see the story unfold, and how her thinking begins to change. For people with problems such as an eating disorder, recognizing how serious it is, and how inaccurate some of your perceptions are, is a huge movement towards getting well. This author does a great job portraying these changes. I'd recommend this book to many teen readers, girls and boys, and for adult and teen discussion groups.

I received this book yesterday and have already completed it. It is a fast, absorbing, easy read. It was thoroughly enjoyable (despite the heavy subject matter). I would recommend it especially to women with teenage daughters.

The story is told from the perspective of a teenage girl who has recently been admitted to a clinic to treat her bulimia. The story unfolds through her narration and her journal entries that she must keep for the program. As the book unfolds it becomes obvious that the people in the clinic have more problems that just their eating disorders, and that these problems are at the root of all else that is bothering them.

Although I have never known anyone personally who has been enrolled in an eating disorders clinic I felt the story and the description of the clinic rang true. The characters are interesting and the story is well told. It's definitely worth a read, and it moves quickly.

Purge is the story of Janie Ryman, a 16 year old girl who suffers from bulimia. The story is told in first person and flashes back to incidents that happened before she entered Golden Slopes. During her treatment Janie meets a cast of interesting characters, including a wrestler who is anorexic but doesn't think he has a problem, Helen, the Queen of Lean, various doctors and secondary characters that helped give this novel depth.

The novel does not try to sugarcoat anything. It paints a realistic and painful story of young people who have eating disorders. The one thing I enjoyed was that the book had male and female characters who suffered from anorexia or bulimia. I thought this was a nice touch because as we all know it is not a female problem.

There has been some mention of the sex scene with the main character and her boyfriend. I found it to be rather tame(but then again my tolerance level could be very high) and I don't think that high school girls would think twice about it. The aftermath of the sexual encounter I thought was prefect, so true, and very sad. I know many young women and older women who can relate to the situation.

At the end of the book there are websites, treatment centers, and also books that can help teens if they have an eating disorder.

I agree with some of the other reviewers that some things were touched on too many times. The ending seemed a little too cliché for me as well. Yet with that said I think this is a powerful novel that teens will really enjoy, and unfortunately can relate to.

This one has been sitting on my shelf for a long time. I'm not sure why I was so apprehensive about reading it. I think I was scared after reading Wintergirls by Laure Halse Anderson. I have to be in a mood for books that drain me emotionally like that. Wintergirls was difficult to read, and I don't think I was ready to tackle something like that again so soon.

But Purge was a lot different than Wintergirls. Besides the fact that it's about Bulimia and not Anorexia, it also very easy to read. Not saying that it was "enjoyable" to read about girls struggling with their body weight, but I enjoyed Janie as a character and I reading her story.

I loved that this was about more than just Janie's struggle, this novel really shows that eating disorders are a universal epidemic. That it's not only girls, there are boys too, that it's not only teens, there are adults as well.

It's heartbreaking to know that the author used her personal experience to write this novel. But I'm glad she shared her experience and hopefully has been an inspiration. Despite the topic of this novel, it had an uplifting message.

Purge by Sarah Darer Littman is one of those ubiquitous young adult novels meant to teach young readers a valuable lesson. While not crossing too far into pedantic preaching or self-righteous judgment, the novel is not so remarkable as to merit much praise.

Littman would benefit from an editor who can recognize that young adults are intelligent enough to remember what they read in a previous chapter. The redundancy bordered on insulting. And I don't mean the vague allusions to the melodramatic moments that led to the protagonist's admission to the hospital for bulimia. Rather, the repetitious explanations of barfers vs. starvers and the epiphanies the narrator has but then has again.

Thankfully, Janie Hyman, the narrator who shares her urge to purge, is a likeable character and much of the psychological dynamic behind bulimia is well explored through the voice of a sympathetic character.

However, for the all "this is a cautionary tale about how bad bad bad bulimia is" I found it to be dangerously triggering and I have never been bulimic. If I found myself curious instead of disgusted then I can only imagine how a young girl with body image issues and an eating disorder would struggle with the content.

And the conclusion is one of those tie-it-up-in-a-neat-little-bow endings that I suppose are meant to make the story end on a happy note but ultimately result in its ending on a disingenuous one.

Also annoying and less remarkable albeit I am remarking on it now . . . why didn't anyone point out to Littman that the term for practicing before a performance is called a "rehearsal"? Repeatedly Janie talks about her "play practice" when anyone who has done any theater work would know a "practice" is called a rehearsal.

With all that said, I suppose someone wanting insight into bulimia and the emotional ramifications of facing this addiction would benefit from reading this novel, if only because of the excellent resources listed at the end of the book.