Perfect: A Novel

Rating:
Summary: A Keeper
Review:
This was a hard book for me to review because I had an eating disorder when I was a teenager. Only in those days there was no knowledge to be had of eating disorders let alone help and support. You were just told to go on a diet. I remember a particularly nasty one where I could only eat grapefruit, hardboiled eggs, plain toast, and salad without dressing. Yet I was determined to look good in my cinch waisted skirt with layers of petticoats like all the popular girls in school.
I'm sure this is how the protagonist Isabelle Lee in Perfect feels. You'd do anything to feel good, not only in your clothes, but inside your vulnerable self. Isabelle's eating disorder is Bulimia: eat, purge, eat, purge. How else can she cover her feelings about her father's death, her mother's denial of it, and her seeming lack of popularity in her eighth grade class? To her horror her younger sister discovers Isabelle vomiting. Her mother makes her go to an eating disorder group for girls her age. To her amazement the most popular girl in school, Ashley Barnum, is there in group as well. Ashley's disorder is that of taking laxatives. They bond together to go through the stages of recovery filled with distrust, shifting friendships, courage, and finally confidence. Along the way Isabelle helps her sister and her mother face their grief, just by being more sure of who she really is.
Eating disorders are all too common in younger and younger children in our society, ranging from rampant obesity to anorexia. Perfect describes in page turning novel form how young girls can find help and support in eating disorder groups where confidentiality, mentors, and understanding of their disorder offer deep encouragement and healing. This book can give young people insight into the nature of eating disorders through a compassionate story without at all being preachy.
Perfect is a most important, even landmark, book. Kudos to author Natasha Friend for writing such an insightful young adult novel. Perfect is highly recommended for children from 10 years and older. I wish I had it when I was young. It will also be a valuable aide in eating disorder groups and women's studies groups in high school. What a great starting point for discussions.




Rating:
Summary: Perfect!
Review:

Isabelle Lee has an eating disorder. She is struggeling for control in the wake of her fathers death. Its not that she thinks shes fat, she just can't find a way to cope. When her sister catches her throwing up in the bathroom, Isabelle can't find a way to bribe her to keep quiet, and ends up in group therapy. Stuck in a room that smells like Cheezits, Isabelle finds herself face to face with the most popular girl in school, Ashley Barnum. At first its her worst nightmare. What if Ashley tells everyone? What if she thinks I'm crazy? Ashley is everything Isabelle has always wanted to be, and more. Beautifull, perfect hair, straight teeth, ect. Perfect. Isabelle soon finds herself sucked into Ashleys seductive world of wealth, and appearances, and most especially popularity. Soon, with the help of her over peppy therapist Trish, Isabelle begins to be able to cope with her fathers death, to pull away from Ashley, and to respect herself.
I found this book to be a refreshing change from the typical novel on eating disorders. Filled with humour and emotion, Perfect lives up to his name.

Rating:
Summary: Love a Good Teen Novel
Review: Isabelle is a sassy, sarcastic, and sometimes sad 13 year old girl who is dealing with everyday adolescent traumas and social woes, a pesky but adoring younger sister, the death of her father, and an eating disorder. I am the mother of two young children, and still unabashedly love a good teen novel. But this book was more than that. I read it cover to cover in one sitting and was moved by the message it sends to young girls. I laughed out loud, got a little teary at times, and was sometimes shocked by the depiction of the brutal reality of what girls are doing to their bodies now at a younger and younger age. This book will appeal to a wide spectrum of women, not just young girls. From women who remember what it was like to be a teenage girl, wanting to be perfect and obsessing over those who appeared so, to those who are moms of girls now and are already worrying about the impending impact of the beauty obsessed culture we live in on our perfect little babies, and most importantly, to those women who have struggled with, or know someone close to them who has struggled with, an eating disorder. My hats are off to Ms. Friend, she has produced a humorous, well-written look into the not so simple lives of the newest generation of young women.





Rating:
Summary: For women - young and old!
Review: Natasha Friend has hit the nail on the head with her first novel, Perfect. Any woman who has ever struggled with an eating disorder or known someone who has, will find this story of a middle school girl's struggle incredibly powerful and easy to relate to. I started the book expecting to enjoy reading a book for kids and came away feeling like I had just finished one of my favorite novels. It took me back to middle school, and high school, and to conversations I continue to have with women of all ages.

I highly recommend this book for women of all ages. In addition, Perfect is the perfect tool for those trying to reach out to young women who are facing the aches and pains of growing up in an image-conscience world. I look forward to reading more from Ms. Friend!

Rating:
Summary: This book is amazing!
Review: This book will entertain you so much with it's light and easy style. Humor mixed with strong emotion. I could actually say i came to know and love her well built characters. I was struck by her original points of view on such an emotional and challenging topic. There are a lot of books out there on eating disorders but very few of them can tackle this important topic while weaving a story that all girls of all ages can relate to and really learn something from. Anyone who has themself struggled with an eating disorder will relate to the pain, or if they know someone who is battling an eating disorder will find this book to be just the right book to open up the lines of communication and start the healing process. I urge all mothers to buy this for their daughters. This topic is so relevant in our world today. As a mother of two beautiful daughters i feel this book has a very important place in their library. Don't wait until you think there is a problem. Let this book be a teaching tool to hopefully avoid an eating disorder problem in your world. Thank you Natasha Friend and please keep writing for our girls!

Rating:
Summary: And They Thought She Was Perfect
Review: This is an excellent book for young girls... and an important read for their mothers. Natasha Friend has created a novel that is sassy and smart while touching upon such essential issues as body image and self esteem. The text could potentially open the door for discussion for many moms with girls struggling not only with eating disorders, but also with the every day aches and pains that often accompany adolescence.

This would make a perfect holiday gift!