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Such a Pretty Fat: One Narcissist's Quest To Discover if Her Life Makes Her Ass LookBig, Or Why Pie is Not The Answer By Jen Lancaster ( NAL Trade )
Release Date: 2008-05-06
Average Customer Rating:
List Price: $14.00
Price: $11.20
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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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 What's up with the foot notes
I'll be honest upfront that I haven't finished reading this book yet. I'm giving it three stars not because I'm not enjoying or connecting with the book but because of how it is written. What's up with the footnotes. I've read disertations with fewer footnotes. It's really disappointing because otherwise I'd be totally into the book.
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 Laugh out loud funny! ( books4barbara )
Jen Lancaster's latest book is laugh out loud funny. I picked it up on a whim, and laughed (truly) our loud just reading the teaser at the back.
Lancaster starts by describing the horrific foods she endured through her childhood ('healthy and flavorless' she says) until she ate away from home and discovered butter and cream and FLAVOR!!
The years pass and the pounds add up, until the doctor points out further weight gain and the results this wreaks on one's body. As Lancaster says, "...what good is finally being able to afford a pedicure if I lose a foot to adult-onset diabetes
Lancaster shows the way she conquered weight gain to become fit again and we get to laugh with her along the way. From Atkins to Jenny Craig to Weight Watchers, we see what works and what dedication it can take.
Lancaster's wit and style of writing kept me laughing from start to finish. This is the first non-reference book that has footnotes (!) which allowed greater enlightment...it was like a friend whispering into my ear at a party, giving me the backstory on various guests.
Lancaster starts the book with a story about someone telling her what a fat bitch she is, and it doesn't phase her. She accepts that she is who she is. She ends with a similar story, but her comeback to the insult this time is, "No, I am a fit bitch."
I would recommend this to any friend who wanted a laugh. "Such a Pretty Fat" reminds me it's all worth laughing about to keep perspective.
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 Very funny ( bmeada13 )
This book was very funny, and very real...you really feel like you can somewhat relate to her. Great read!
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For Everyone Who's Ever Been on a Diet.... ( sojournbooks )
...or loved someone who has. This book will resonate with everyone who has been a serial dieter, tried everything on the shelf, blamed yourself, your metabolism, your boyfriend, your husband,your doctor, Oprah, and your dog. Jen writes in sometimes harsh, sometimes vulgar, but ultimately hilarious prose about her struggle to shed the pounds. (I agree with other reviewers that at moments her barbs toward others go too far and alienate the reader rather than drawing them in...she should be careful of that in future books.)
In a refreshing twist, it doesn't appear that she ultimately reached her weight loss goal, but she did end with a healthier lifestyle and sense of her own body.
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On a shelf I almost didn't see ....
When I decided to buy Jen Lancaster's book, I had never heard of her or her writing before. After having a bad day after a lifetime of struggling with a bad body image, low self-esteem and an eating disorder, I went to Barnes & Noble to find a book to take my mind off of my life (a favorite escape of mine). I saw this on display and decided to give it a try.
What I didn't know is that I had in my hands a hilarious yet deeply insightful and even beautiful book that would change my thought process forever. I remember thinking at some point while reading, "Why does she make this diet thing such a big issue? Her life is perfect." And then I went through a mini-enlightenment: my bad body image had everything but destroyed my relationships with my family, friends and loving boyfriend. Jen, unlike me, was a strong and intelligent woman that had the sense to realize that "until you figure out your insides, nothing on the outside matters."
Even though she has the perfect life and an adorable husband, she approaches her autobiography in a down-to-earth, yet never self-deprecating fashion. Her book is refreshing in today's culture of the pursuit of pointless perfection. In this far from serious book, I learned very serious life lessons of what's important and what isn't worth my time even thinking about.
I hope Jen is still fat, drunk and happy. She is an inspiration to all.
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