Second Star to the Right [Paperback]

Deborah Hautzig (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 10 and up | Grade Level: 5 and up

The landmark novel about anorexia nervosa--now with an autobiographical afterword by the author

Leslie Hiller is a bright, attractive, talented teenager who leads a privileged life in New York City. She is also a perfectionist. When Leslie starts to diet, she finds herself becoming obsessed, getting thinner and thinner, until she is forced to realize that her quest for perfection is killing her.

First published in 1981, this groundbreaking novel has been lauded by countless librarians, educators, and teenaged readers. This new edition features an afterword by the author in which she discusses her own struggle with the disease, the difficult road toward recovery, and the lasting effects on her life.

"The best book yet on anorexia nervosa. And the only one in which what's compelling is not the heroine's physical condition, it's the heroine herself." --School Library Journal, starred review

"This is a powerful book--one in which there are no villains--about a family whose members are beset by a problem they are struggling to understand." --Baltimore Sun

* A Puffin Novel
* 176 pages
* Ages 10-14

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Leslie Hiller's world is growing smaller. It used to be large enough to include her worrisome but loving mother, her doting father, her close friend Cavette, and all the other people and places that made up her upper-class, A+ life. But now it has shrunk to the size of a dinner plate full of food--which she scrapes out her bedroom window to avoid eating. Leslie, a perfectionist who loves to be in control, finds she can't control the fear that she will somehow fail to be the perfect daughter, perfect student, and perfect friend. So she decides to master the one thing over which she is certain she has complete domain: food. Even when it becomes apparent to everyone that her severe dieting has become a life-threatening habit, Leslie still can't stop: "I want to be happy. And being happy means being thin."

Author Deborah Hautzig, who recounts her own painful battle with anorexia in a very personal and heartfelt afterword, gives Leslie a frighteningly realistic voice that will ring true to teens everywhere. First published in 1981, Second Star to the Right has risen again to give a new generation of young adults valuable insight into the addictive world of anorexia, and hope for getting out from under the cruel thumb of the disease. (Ages 12 to 15) --Jennifer Hubert

From Publishers Weekly

For Leslie, wanting to shed a few pounds leads to self-destructive behavior, in one of the most harrowing stories yet on anorexia nervosa. Ages 12-up.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 10 and up
  
• Paperback: 158 pages
• Publisher: Puffin (September 13, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0141305800
• ISBN-13: 978-0141305806
• Product Dimensions: 7.1 x 4.4 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (56 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #83,050 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #31 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Children's Books > Science, Nature & How It Works > Health > General
  • #45 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Children's Books > Science, Nature & How It Works > Health > Fiction
  • #77 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Children's Books > Science, Nature & How It Works > Health > Personal Hygiene

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting, but destructive, May 19, 2006

By 

Jacqueline Peterson - See all my reviews

This review is from: Second Star to the Right (Paperback)

I first read Second Star to the Right when I was 13 and suffering from a severely distorted body image. I had just begun to have trouble with eating and was about to plunge into full-blown anorexia. While the book provides a very real account of anorexia, I used it for inspiration (not the intended purpose) and copied some of Leslie's "tricks" to make myself sicker. Rather than providing a hopeful, recovery-centered novel, I thought that the book glamorized anorexia and made me feel special because I was sick...I think that Ms. Hautzig could have made eating disorders less appealing (perhaps by discussing the negative consequences), yet I understand that at the time the book was written the author was fighting her own battles. Thus, I reccommend this book with caution-it might be better to read if you have resolved to recover or if you are a bit older...at the age of 19 anorexia not seem so appealing anymore.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must, January 20, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Second Star to the Right (Paperback)

Oh wow! This book has become my favorite and most read book. Most books about anorexia tell it from a friend's point of view, or third person. But in Second Star to the Right, the story of Leslie is told by her. You get everything she is going through told as she sees it and lives it. Also, the entire story is not about her anorexia battle. Its about her life and her world leading up to it all. She is a "real teenager" dealing with all problems in her life. She tells all her feelings and I could totally relate. This is a great, mature book to read any time. Whether boy or girl, anorexic or not. I definitly reccomend it! Its my fav. book. Also, good for teenagers from about 13-16.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A deeply touching journey through anorexia nervosa, June 25, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: Second Star to the Right (Hardcover)

Though only 14, Leslie Hiller is dying. Only she is behind her demise. This harrowing tale of Leslie's journey through anorexia nervosa is so thourough and touching that it must be called one of those rare treasures that are read over and over and cherished forever. This book takes the reader through Leslie's mind and her experiences and the ending will bring tears as Leslie finds a will to live after so many months of pain. A deeply moving story that should be read by anyone whose family has been touched by this disease