Print and e-book, 288 pages
Published May 21st 2019 by Atria Books
In this provocative, wildly entertaining, and compelling novel, seven women enrolled in an extreme weight loss documentary discover self-love and sisterhood as they enact a daring revenge against the exploitative filmmakers.
Alice and Daphne, both successful and accomplished working mothers, harbor the same secret: obsession with their weight overshadows concerns about their children, husbands, work—and everything else of importance in their lives. Scales terrify them.
Daphne, plump in a family of model-thin women, learned only slimness earns admiration at her mother’s knee. Alice, break-up skinny when she met her husband, risks losing her marriage if she keeps gaining weight.
The two women meet at Waisted. Located in a remote Vermont mansion, the program promises fast, dramatic weight loss, and Alice, Daphne, and five other women are desperate enough to leave behind their families for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. The catch? They must agree to always be on camera; afterward, the world will see Waisted: The Documentary.
The women soon discover that the filmmakers have trapped them in a cruel experiment. With each pound lost, they edge deeper into obsession and instability...until they decide to take matters into their own hands.
(I love to note the first lines of the books I'm reading. First lines can really grab a reader's attention and I love seeing where the author takes the reader after their first line.)
First line—"Everyone hated a fat woman, but none more than she hated herself."
I have to admit that, at first, I really didn't care for this book. Maybe it's because I've struggled with my weight most of my life. Maybe it was because I empathized with these women and didn't like the way they saw themselves and how other people treated them. And then to witness the humiliation and abuse that they went through at the weight loss program—it was just too much.
But I powered on because I love Randy's stories and I have read them all. I knew she wouldn't let me down. As the women work through the program and come out the other side—one way or another—it was uplifting to see what strong women who feel good about themselves can accomplish. This should be a life lesson for all of us, don't you think?
While I'll have to be honest and say that this is not my favorite book by this author, it is definitely one that all of us should read, if for no other reason than to learn to be more accepting and understanding of those who are different from us. And that you are good enough, just the way you are.
I received an ARC of Waisted from the NetGalley and this is my honest opinion of the book.
About the author
Randy Susan Meyers' internationally bestselling novels are informed by years working with families impacted by family violence— and a long journey from idolizing bad boys to loving a good man.
After years working in social service and criminal justice, Meyers published her first novel, The Murderer’s Daughters—a story of the aftermath of domestic violence—a Target Pick for the country. Her novels have twice been chosen by the Massachusetts Center for the Book, as “Must Read Fiction,” who wrote, “The clear and distinctive voice of Randy Susan Meyers will have you enraptured and wanting more.”
Meyers and her husband live in Jamaica Plain, Boston, where she teaches writing at Grub Street Writer’s Center. ~ Goodreads
After years working in social service and criminal justice, Meyers published her first novel, The Murderer’s Daughters—a story of the aftermath of domestic violence—a Target Pick for the country. Her novels have twice been chosen by the Massachusetts Center for the Book, as “Must Read Fiction,” who wrote, “The clear and distinctive voice of Randy Susan Meyers will have you enraptured and wanting more.”
Meyers and her husband live in Jamaica Plain, Boston, where she teaches writing at Grub Street Writer’s Center. ~ Goodreads
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