Wendy Shanker - The Fat Girls Guide to Life

Praise forThe Fat Girl's Guide to Life

"Funny, feminist, fat, friendly, and fierce. It's food, it's fulfilling." Eve Ensler, author of The Vagina Monologues

"This send-up of the thin-is-in mentality is funny enough to make even diehard dieters consider replacing their baby carrots with Krispy Kremes... Irreverent, refreshing and human. Anyone who has ever tried to lose a pound will gain confidence and a sense of humor from Shanker's story."Publishers Weekly

"Thank heavens for Wendy Shanker: She's written a manifesto for all of us who are sick of obsessing over our bodies. Armed with hilarious wit, she covers everything... all as though you're having a 3 A.M. dorm room chat. You just want to say to her, 'Oh sister... I've been there too!' "Seventeen

"Wendy Shanker's terrific book proves that size does matter. Luckily for us she has huge talent, wit, and insight."Susan Shapiro, author of Five Men Who Broke My Heart

"Put on your seat belt and enjoy the fun-filled, wacky ride!"Emme, supermodel host of E!'s Fashion Emergency and author of TrueBeauty

"An enjoyable rant by a 'fat' woman who has chosen to be herself." Chicago Tribune

"Shanker's humor hits its mark."Bust magazine

"Brutally honest, occasionally conflicted, wryly funny and sadly poignant... worth a read for any woman, regardless of her size." Detroit Metro Times

"Anyone who has every tried to lose a pound will gain confidence and a sense of humor from Shanker's story."Mobile Register

"Hilarious and informative."New York Daily News

"No matter what size you are, you'll get a heaping dose of self-esteem from this awesome girl-power book... don't miss it."Twist

"This frank and funny look at living large in America will resonate with any woman who has obsessed over her body image (and who hasn't?)."Chicago Sun-Times

"Both funny and practical, offering advice on how to feel and look great the way you are, all with Shanker's trademark wit."Middle-town[NY] Times Herald Record

"This is a wonderful contribution to books about weight loss and body image for women of all ages."feministing.com

What Real Women Say AboutThe Fat Girl's Guide to Life

"My self-image is not perfect, but now when I look in the mirror or think something self-loathing, there is a little Wendy in my mind that tells me, 'Enough of that. You are fine the way you are.' Thank you for being the angel on my shoulder. We have such better things to do than worry about our abs! Let's change the world!"Dena

"I've wasted so much of my adult life fighting my weight and being afraid of life because of it. I hope your book reaches the coming generations. I hope my daughters, when I have them, don't go through what I've been put through. Thank you so much! You're the Fat Girls' champion."Hope

"Your book has really changed my lifein little things I say and do, and in ways I think about myself. Because of the ways in which you tell your story, rather than preaching about what people should and should not do, I was able to relate and learn."Iris

"I just finished The Fat Girl's Guide to Life and it was great! It gives women the strength to love their bodies and the truth about the forces working against us... We are smart, sassy, beautiful women and we cannot let weight hold us back."Andrea

"Thank you for writing the story of my life!"Banji

"Your book should be required reading for every teenage girl out there. It would save so much heartache and improve their self-esteem immensely.''Julie

"Yes, there are people under size 12 who are reading your bookme and my fifteen-year-old daughter, for two. This is for every girl, not just fat or Fat girls... I'm forty-one and am finally going to just enjoy myself; my body image issues are cured!"Sally

"I, like every woman out there, have hated my body almost since I started living in it. No matter how many admirers appreciated my boobs, hips, and belly, I didn't get it. I loved your funny, understanding look at our struggles."Kathleen

"Reading your perspective on 'fatness' has made me want to try harder to treat myself better and be more accepting of myself at this moment in time. Thanks for the inspiration."Stacy

"I found The Fat Girl's Guide to Life to be refreshing, enlightening, honest, and laugh-out-loud funny (really, I laughed out loud). Thanks for writing a book that no one else has had the guts to write."Svetlana

"Please continue to spread this truthful and refreshing message to people. If all women could embrace themselves a little more and not focus so much on weight, we could accomplish amazing things."Beth

"Thanks for validating the creed that I live bywhich is that you can be fat and fabulous. It's wonderful to know that I'm not the only one who believes that."Amanda

"While I was reading your book I realized that I'm not the only one who felt like this. Suddenly, I feel almost normal. I just wanted to thank you, Wendy Shanker, for giving my life a new perspective and for understanding me without even knowing me. Thank you for writing your book and thank you for being a Fat Girl."Norana

The Fat Girl's
Guide to Life

WENDY SHANKER

BLOOMSBURY

Table of Contents

Make your choice. Are you ready to be strong?

Buffy the Vampire Slayer

I went on a sixteen-year odyssey of self-loathing and self-doubt. Instead of a Cyclops, I faced off against Jenny Craig. Instead of Sirens, vast quantities of chocolate-chip banana muffins attempted to lure me from my true path. The odyssey's over now. The monsters, both the ones I discovered and the ones I created, have been vanquished. Now I know that there's nothing wrong with me mentally or physically. I'm just fat, that's all.

I didn't win by epiphany, or a life-changing conversation; nor was I shot by a magic bullet. This was a war of attrition; I simply decided I'd had enough. Enough of looking in the mirror and cursing myself out before I'd even brushed my teeth. Enough of punishing myself and my body by reading Danielle Steel in the shade while everyone else was swimming in the pool. Enough of looking up at mirrored ceilings in elevators to assure myself that I was pretty. Enough of squeezing into nylon undergarments that cut off my circulation and left red welts in my skin. Enough of giving away my hard-earned cash to undo a situation that steadily got less undoable.