Reviews by Tag: body image

Teen Review
Starfish book cover

Starfish

By Lisa Fipps
Star Rating
★★★★★

Rated by
Allie
Mar 25, 2024

Written in concise but powerful verse, Starfish by Lisa Fipps delivers an important message to people of all ages about body image and self worth. The story follows Ellie’s journey to self confidence and growing up in the wake of her childhood best friend moving away. She deals with her weight in a family that is less than supportive of her, and that doesn’t discourage her from being herself. 

Teen Review
What I Like About Me book cover

What I Like About Me

By Jenna Guillaume
Star Rating
★★★★

Rated by
Nehanika C.
Nov 20, 2023

What I Like About Me by Jenna Guillaume, is about a plus-sized teenager, a girl named Maisie Martin.  She is on vacation at Cobbers Bay when she sees her gorgeous boy best friend, Sebastian, who she always had a crush on. On this vacation Maisie brings her other best friend Anna who has the perfect body. When Anna gets a little too close to Maisie’s crush she decides that she’s had enough.

Teen Review
Starfish by Lisa Fipps

Starfish

By Lisa Fipps
Star Rating
★★★★★

Rated by
Calissa
Jun 20, 2023

Starfish is about a girl named Ellie Montgomery-Hofstein who loves to swim and has a pet dog. Her life is troubled by school bullies commenting daily on her weight and her mom, who doesn’t seem to realize she’s making Ellie’s life difficult by arguing with her about what she eats and continues to make Ellie doubt herself. Even though her father is kind to her, Ellie’s mother and siblings seem to only see her as a nuisance because of her weight.

Teen Review
Holding Up the Universe by Jennifer Niven

Holding Up the Universe

By Jennifer Niven
Star Rating
★★★★★

Rated by
Hannah K.
Oct 6, 2021

“You are wanted. Big, small, tall, short, pretty, plain, friendly, shy. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise, not even yourself.”

Once famous for being “America’s Fattest Teen,” Libby Strout becomes the laughingstock of her high school. Struggling to get by, she unwantedly encounters Jack Masselin, getting them both tangled up in a mess of misunderstandings. However, when Jack uncovers to her that he has prosopagnosia, a condition in which he cannot recognize people’s faces, they are able to connect through embracing each other’s imperfections while also embracing their own.

Teen Review
Holding Up the Universe by Jennifer Niven

Holding Up the Universe

By Jennifer Niven
Star Rating
★★★

Rated by
Justyna H.
Oct 6, 2021

In the young adult novel Holding Up the Universe, Libby Strout and Jack Masselin live two separate lives with the same goals: to be wanted in society. Libby, formerly known as “America’s Fattest Teen” who was cut out from her house after a massive panic attack, and Jack, a high school boy living with Prosopagnosia, the inability to recognize faces, even the people he loves, come together through a demoralizing prank.

Teen Review
Her Body and Other Parties by Carmen Maria Machado

Her Body and Other Parties

By Carmen Maria Machado
Star Rating
★★★★

Rated by
Lisa J.
Oct 1, 2021

In this collection of eight short stories, author Carmen Maria Machado explores the lives of women through a journey into psychological realism, fantasy, horror, and more. In “The Husband Stitch”, a husband attempts to remove the green ribbon tied around his wife’s neck — her only secret. In “The Resident”, a writer has trouble reckoning with her childhood trauma while vacationing in isolation at an artists’ retreat. In “Especially Heinous”, the show Law and Order: SVU is reimagined with doppelgängers, insanity, and the ghosts of raped and murdered girls.

Teen Review
The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo

The Poet X

By Elizabeth Acevedo
Star Rating
★★★★

Rated by
Hannah K.
Sep 10, 2021

15-year-old Xiomara Batista never felt heard from the people around her. Although she hated it, her body did all the talking. With an overly religious mother and the judging stares of other people, Xiomara felt trapped, unable to break free from her problems. Due to her overwhelming emotions, she turned to writing poetry to manage her feelings.

Teen Review

The Belles

By Dhonielle Clayton

Rated by
Olivia from Leawood Pioneer Library YAAC
Jul 18, 2018

In the world of Orleans, beauty is prized above all else, and the Belles control beauty. Camellia is one of the revered Belles. But it is not enough for her to just be a Belle, she has to be the favorite, the Belle chosen by the queen to live in the palace and tend to the royal family, the one recognized as the most talented Belle in the land. But once she arrives at court, she realizes being the favorite is not all she dreamed it would be. There are dark secrets in every corner, and soon she learns that she is far more powerful and dangerous than she ever imagined.

Staff Review

The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things

By Carolyn Mackler
Star Rating
★★★

Rated by Becky C.
Mar 9, 2016

Good, but not great. Published thirteen years ago, it doesn't quite hold up today. Ginny is unbelievably pathetic throughout most of the story, and only toward the Hollywood-like ending does she-surprise-develop some confidence. Normally I love pathetic people because I can relate to their insecurity, but Ginny's character is a tad too two-dimensional, not a fully fleshed out character worthy of my concern.

Staff Review

Dumplin'

By Julie Murphy
Star Rating
★★★★★

Rated by Becky C.
Oct 20, 2015

Full disclosure: I'm a middle-aged, married mom who's a teeny, tiny bit obsessed with teen fiction. Not that I'm a creeper or anything. But my teenage angst phase is more like a personality trait. I relate to people who feel uncomfortable and awkward. People who lack confidence and discipline. People who float through life like they haven't got a clue. More often than not, that's not adults. Something about growing up in our society makes people cocky. It changes people. It makes them think they're some kind of authority figure or expert on life. Not me.

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