Rating: 
Summary: Not at all what I expected
Review: I bought Jemima J on a whim, having never heard of it or the author. It was a fabulous book that held my interest as it teased your curiosity. I could totally relate to Jemima and she is such a lovable character. I did, however, find that the issue of weight loss was taken a bit lightly. It made it sound too easy. But the story itself was great, the ending took so many twists and turns that I couldn't put the book down. I laughed, I cried, and I cried some more....I loved the book and I'm buying Jane Green's other 2 books as soon as I finish writing this!!
Rating: 
Summary: Misconceptions
Review: In the very beginning of the book when they describe Jemima as being a hundred pounds overweight, I was thinking. Wow! she must be well over two hundred pounds and on her way to a size 22. then I read on and find out that she is only a size forteen and the writer describes this as being almost discustingly fat! She talks on and on about theighs slopping over chairs and the seems of jeans stretching. I weight 180, almost forty pounds less than Jemima was supposed to have weighed in the beginning of the book and I am a size forteen! Green really needs to sort out her ideas of what is and isn't fat. A size forteen is not massive theighs that slop over the edge of chairs!
Rating:
Summary: Good message hidden beneath a prevalent bad one
Review: This was a pretty good book. Like other reviewers, I felt the beginning of the book was a whole lot better than the end. This was a book with mixed messages of the dreaded weight issue with women. I actually cried as I sympathized with Jemima's weight issues in the first few pages of the book, but I struggled to understand why Jane Green would only allow Jemima to find love when she was the gorgeous goddess, "JJ". The actual message that "only being comfortable in your own skin will lead to happiness" was lost behind the obvious fact that Jemima only got noticed by the love of her life when she was skinny. In fact that message can easily be overlooked as Jane Green only spends ONE page at the end wrapping up this book. Although an enjoyable ending, it did feel like Ms. Green was just racing to finish this book instead of exploring the real message. It would have been a better book if Jane Green had spent more time exploring the Jemima's confidence issues instead of focusing so much time on being "skinny" and "gorgeous" vs. being "fat." Overall, I did enjoy this book as a woman who struggles with weight. It's probably not a book for people overly sensitive about their weight (however, those who struggle with insecurities will be able to relate to Jemima in the first half of the book) nor is it for those looking for a complicated plot. It's a quick and easy read that's fairly enjoyable.
Rating:
Summary: Great Beginning, Falls apart in the end.
Review: Jemina J. by Jane Green is a book thats starts out great. Everyone who isn't a size 2 can relate to Jemina and hard is it in a perfect size world. But, towards the end Jemina become what she hates the most. If you are intested in reading it, check it out and don't waste your money like did.
Rating: 
Summary: Entertaining, modern day fairytale!
Review: You'll most likely relate to Jemima's feelings and "I can make my own destiny" course of action. That is what ultimately leads her to her utterly self-satisfying conclusion.
Yes, it has a lot of plot-holes, but will definitely keep your interest. You can't wait to find out what happens next.
It is an amusing tale of a British gal who happens to use food for comfort. Even though the completely unrealistic premise of this book is full of all the fat girl/skinny girl clichés, the author delicately explores the sadness and loneliness that incurs when a persons self esteem is not up to par for whatever reason. You don't have to have a weight problem to relate to Jemima. I've read this at a time when I'm struggling to overcome a few of my own hurdles. I found it to be inspiring in its own funny way. Not good literature, but good fun. Intelligent readers will find nothing dangerous here and just enjoy a couple of giggles and hopefully admire it as the essential element of dreams - of which good fiction is made!
Rating:
Summary: 25 year old reader
Review: I really enjoyed this book! Even though I am not overweight by 100 pounds, being slightly overweight I could really relate to the overweight Jemima. If you are anything less that perfectly skinny- you know how it feels to be judged by your looks--especially women! When I first began to read it I knew exactly how Jemima was feeling and I loved the fact that I could relate so closley. When she began being motivated to change herself, I found myself wanting to do the same! The only thing I did not agree with was the way she lost all the weight. I did not think that the way she lost weight was realistic. Although she was working out- she did not eat properly. She was suppose to be eating more "healthy" meals, but instead she started only eating only enough to give her energy to work out. Of course if you barely eat anything you will lose weight rapidly, but that is NOT the healthy way to go about it. This sends a mixed message to the reader that in order to lose weight rapidly you should barely eat and work out to an extreme. Overall, the love story was your typical "cinderella" story with a few life lessons to be learned along the way. I enjoyed the reading and would recommend it to women who are struggling with thier weight. I don't think others can relate as well.
Rating: 
Summary: How did this get published????
Review: This is most likely the worst peice of [garbage] I have ever read. Poorly written, switching voices (1st person, third person, etc) throughout the entire book. I had a great deal of hope for Jemima: the emotional issues and struggles of a woman with a weight problem were well described, but the situations which followed were not only ludicrous, but incredibly irresponsible and highly offensive. The message from this book is this: you are [worthless] until you are thin. Lose weight and do it fast and you can have whatever you want: the man of your dreams, your dream job, and lots of friends. This may be a harsh reality in our society, but I expected more from this book. On the back cover it reads: "...learning along the way a host of lessons about attraction, addiction, the meaning of love, and ultimately, who she really is." Well, tell me please, who is that? Who Jemima is is someone who gave into the societal pressure, lost a great deal of weight in an extremely unhealthy manner, and finally got the man of her dreams NOT through who she IS, but by being an extremely thin woman. Jane Green's novel is a shallow as the supporting cast of characters she has surrounding Jemimima.
Rating:
Summary: Entertaining read, but lacking in some parts.
Review: When I started this book, I was completely into it. It had a great premise, enjoyable characters, and the author did a great job at building up the story. I got to know the character, Jemima, and her feelings surrounding her weight, lifestyle, and her adoration for Ben. I thought this would be a quality read! Unfortunately, as I proceeded reading the book, I came to realize that Ben was not as "deep" as Jemima described him to be and found him as superficial as Brad. Granted, he did show some redeeming qualities as we peered into his thoughts, but his lack of follow-through with keeping in touch with his "dearest, closest friend at work" (Jemima) failed to give me a great impression of his character. Ben seemed to hook up with Jemima only after realizing that the beauty he kept seeing and lusting after in LA ended up really being his "dearest, closest friend at work" Jemima, which only strenthens his superficiality!!!!! Had Ben at least had some conflicting feelings for Jemima at another point in the story (before the ending), would I have slightly believed that there was chemistry between them. Because the author failed to show Ben having any feelings for Jemima at all -- other than friendship -- I found it unbelievable when they reunited in LA and suddenly they were in love. While I did enjoy reading the book, I think the biggest frustration for me, as a reader, was the lack of description and the rushed ending of the book. ...I felt completely cheated at the end and didn't seem to have the closure that could have really ended the book on a positive note for me. Had the ending been a bit slower in closing up the loose ends, I might have forgiven the lack of description of the book. A good summer read, but if you are looking for a book packed with description, this is not the one. The weak ending also takes away from the power this book could have had.
Rating: 
Summary: Borrow! Don't Buy!
Review: I read (devour!) a lot of books from all genres (classic, contemporary, fun beach books, almost anything but romances!) so I consider myself very open to anything. It took me about 3.5 hours to read this book (here and there in 1 day) and it left me un-satisfied! First of all, the whole plot is sooo fluffy; the characters are one-dimensional, and Jemima herself (Who's supposed to be some sort of role model) is undeveloped. Secondly, the story is so contrived (I mean, she suddenly loses all this weight in a short time in order to meet a guy she met on the Net, but she never thought of losing weight before when she has been battling her weight for all her life?)
All she wants is to be thin, and pretty, blah, blah, blah and so she goes on a diet and exercises, gets her man, only to find out that things are not what they seem. But she never resolves her own issues about her sense of "self" --that is, while she does gain outer beauty, she also becomes a social stereotype, pandering to the Angle-saxon views of "beauty" and doesn't develped her own sense of worth. While it's a funny book, it's not worth buying since it's a "beach book" --the kind you should just borrow from the library. Not clever at all. Bridget Jones is a waay better read within this same type of genre.
Rating:
Summary: This book is ridiculous
Review: I just wanted to echo everything that the first reviewer said about this book. Thank goodness I didn't buy it- I got it from the library at a beach resort b/c I ran out of good beach reads! This book is contridictory in almost every chapter. While it is a quick, fun read I found myself wondering if Jane Green remembered her story line from chapter to chapter. The object of Jemima's affection, Ben Williams, never even seems to give her the time of day-even when they are friends. When he sees her later, its obvious he is only drawn to her by her looks. In the end, Green makes a half hearted attempt in the epilogue to say that Jemima realizes that being emaciated is not all its cracked up to be, however, I wonder how long Williams will stay with her?
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