Review of Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson

Format: Paperback
Genres: Eating Disorders, Mental Health,
Pages: 278
Publisher: Marion Lloyd
Release Date: 19/03/2009
Find The Author: Website ¦ Twitter
Book Depository ¦ Amazon UK/US ¦ Goodreads

Cassie's body was found in a motel room.
She called Lia 33 times before she died.
Lia never picked up.

Now the voice in Lia's head tells her to stay strong. Keep control. Lose more. Weigh less.

Thin. Thinner. Thinnest.

Maybe she can make herself disappear altogether.


I was expecting Wintergirls to be like Speak (rated 4/5) in many ways, but it's actually better written and had much more of an impact on me. It's a powerful story about Lia, a girl caught in the grip of an eating disorder, while grieving for her best friend, who died alone in a motel room after trying to call Lia 33 times.

 This book definitely messed with my head a lot while reading it and I really feel that it got into the head of someone with an eating disorder. Tthroughout I felt uncomfortable eating anything, to be honest. I shared Lia's panic whenever she thought she was going to be forced to eat and I was so, so relieved when I reache the final page.

 There's a little bit of potential paranormal in this book, in the form of Cassie's ghost. I found this aspect the most interesting, as I was never quite sure if Cassie was really a figment of Lia's imagination. This really added a darker undertone to the story, with Cassie frequently telling Lia that she'd be joining her soon.

 The ending to this book did surprise me, and it was really good too. I felt happy that the story had told it's tale and as I said previously, I was definitely relieved to close the final pages! That said, this was such an amazingly well written and memorable book, I would happily pick this up again and read it.

Comments

  1. Anonymous4:57 pm BST

    I have been meaning to read something by Lauren Halse Anderson and this seems like a great book to stars with. I do like this cover more than the cover with the girls face. The writing must have been very strong if you felt uncomfortable eating. I hope to pick this up soon. Have a nice day!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Missie12:32 am BST

    I love this cover and it sounds so good! Thanks for bringing this one to my attention
    Missie @ A Flurry of Ponderings

    ReplyDelete

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