Such a Pretty Fat: One Narcissist's Quest to Discover If Her Life Makes Her Ass Look Big, or Why Pie Is Not the Answer (Paperback)

~ (Author) "Today on the bus a guy called me a fat bitch..." (more)
Key Phrases: top design, Weight Watchers, New York, Jenny Craig (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

“Screamingly funny —I lost ten pounds just from laughing! Jen Lancaster says everything you wish you could but wouldn’t dare. Exhilarating!”
--Beth Harbison, author of Shoe Addicts Anonymous and Secrets of a Shoe Addict

“Lancaster has tackled body image, health, and weight loss with the honesty, humor, and a sharp sense of self-awareness that has become her hallmark. For anyone who has ever choked down a teensy portion of flavorless pre-packaged food in joyless despair….Jen has been there, and is here to show the silly side and the empowering. You will cheer for her successes, commiserate with her setbacks, and split your sides laughing at both. Whether you cozy up to this book with a bowl of air-popped corn and a diet coke, or a box of Oreos and a vanilla shake, one thing is certain. It is a delicious and guilt-free delight from start to finish.”
--Stacey Ballis, author of Room for Improvement and The Spinster Sisters

“Jen Lancaster is like David Sedaris with pearls and a super-cute handbag.”
—Jennifer Coburn, author of The Queen Gene

“Carrie Bradshaw meets Barbara Ehrenreich.”
—Kirkus Reviews

“She’s bitchy and sometimes plain old mean, but she’s absolutely hilarious.”
—Chicago Sun-Times

Product Description

A NOTE FROM JEN LANCASTER:

"To whom the fat rolls…I'm tired of books where a self-loathing heroine is teased to the point where she starves herself skinny in hopes of a fabulous new life. And I hate the message that women can't possibly be happy until we all fit into our skinny jeans. I don't find these stories uplifting; they make me want to hug these women and take them out for fizzy champagne drinks and cheesecake and explain to them that until they figure out their insides, their outsides don't matter. Unfortunately, being overweight isn't simply a societal issue that can be fixed with a dose healthy of positive self-esteem. It’s a health matter, and here on the eve of my fortieth year, I've learned I have to make changes so I don't, you know, die. Because what good if finally being able to afford a pedicure if I lose a foot to adult onset diabetes?"

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Product Details

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: NAL Trade; 1st Thus. edition (May 6, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0451223896
• ISBN-13: 978-0451223890
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.2 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (138 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #5,839 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #6 in	Books > Entertainment > Humor > Self-Help & Psychology
  #9 in	Books > Health, Mind & Body > Psychology & Counseling > By Topic > Gender
  #80 in	Books > Biographies & Memoirs > Specific Groups > Women

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

65 of 71 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Screw Jenny Craig...spend your hard-earned money on Jen Lancaster books!, May 19, 2008

By	Melissa Niksic (Chicago, IL United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Amazon Verified Purchase

Jen Lancaster just may be the funniest writer ever! I've read all three of her books, and each of them made me laugh so hard that I nearly wet myself. (I guess you really didn't need to know that, did you? Too late.)

In Jen's most recent memoir, "Such a Pretty Fat: One Narcissist's Quest To Discover if Her Life Makes Her Ass Look Big, Or Why Pie is Not The Answer" (love those ridiculously long titles!), Jen tackles her biggest challenge yet: her weight. Screw unemployment and psychotic Chicago neighbors: Nothing is scarier for a woman then stepping on the bathroom scale. In Jen's case, she wasn't happy with the numbers she saw on that scale, so she decided to do something about it. Well, actually, she sold a book proposal about trying to lose weight, so she kind of HAD to do something about it. But that's not the point. Jen never used to be the type of woman who would go to the gym every day (or at all). However, she decided to face her fears and give her physical well-being the same kind of attention she devoted to other important aspects of her life: her husband, her pets, her drinking, her shoe fetish, etc.

"Such a Pretty Fat" is a very honest look at what it took for Jen to get herself in shape. Nobody said it was going to be easy. She stumbled plenty of times along the way and gave nearly every diet plan a try, from Atkins to crash dieting to Jenny Craig to Weight Watchers. In the end, Jen finally realized that most diets are B.S. The key to losing weight and being healthy is to make responsible choices and (duh!) exercise. And that's exactly what Jen did.

I think "Such a Pretty Fat" is Jen's best book to date. (My only complaint is that certain chapters gave me monstrous cravings for things like ribs, Twinkies, and Olive Garden bread sticks...damn you, Jen!) Not only is the book chock full of Jen's snarky humor (and the footnotes...I LOVE the footnotes!), but it's also an inspiring true story about a plus-size woman's determination to lose weight. I really admire Jen for her honesty, her dedication, and her results. In addition to losing a lot of weight, she became a fitter person and felt much better about herself, which is really what being healthy is all about.

34 of 38 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Highly entertaining, May 12, 2008

By	K. Huff (New York, NY) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Such a Pretty Fat is Jen Lancaster's third memoir. In it, Lancaster takes on weight loss--through eating right and exercising. At first, it seems like your typical weight loss memoir, except for the fact that its Jen Lancaster writing it, with her trademark good humor and see-the-forest-through-the-trees approach to her subject matter. Jen's not an expert, but she definitely knows how to entertain, which is why I keep coming back to her work time and time again.

What I love about Lancaster's work is that she knows when to laugh at herself, and at others' foolishness, without going over the top. For example, there's brilliant scene in Such a Pretty Fat where she goes to Jenny Craig and then Weight Watchers, where the meeting participants discuss of the evils of food in the work place. Birthday cake is always, always mentioned, and Jen harps on that theme mercilessly.

In all, I thought the authors' message was a positive one for people struggling with their weight (though I'm not one of them). The message that some weight loss programs endorse is that food is evil; but Lancaster challenges that theory outright, saying that food is not, in fact, the enemy; food is in fact good for you if you eat right. Jen's weight loss resulted as a result of wanting to feel and look good, not because of outside pressures, which I also thought was an important message.

17 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Third time really does Charm!, May 8, 2008

By	Gretchen Laskas "Author" (Virginia) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Both of Jen Lancaster's previous memoirs have been enjoyable and compulsive reading, but this one has a charm all its own. Perhaps its the ever appealing (if sometimes appalling) subject of growing up (and not out) that made this book endearing, or perhaps its the wit and winsome way the tale is told. Perhaps it is simply all the references to cheese! Lancaster's tale offers readers a glimpse of womanhood and its possiblities at 40, and unapologetically tells them to embrace it.