5 stars out of 5 stars. A well done anthology. Thank you publisher and netgalley for the early copy.

This anthology, a powerful reclamation of the word fat, read like a breath of fresh air. I loved the multiple mediums that were used by the contributors, and it was a thoroughly enjoyable collection.

Never came back here to say thanks for this and for the print copy, which is definitely always my preferred platform :-) Angie's brilliant; you all are LUCKY to have her! Do a second edition or a "sequel" with more! Hire her to edit a fiction anthology with the same theme! Literally anything! Angie is a queen!

One of my fave ever anthologies. Beautiful stories that––in their authentic and innocent portrayals––force us to confront our own biases. The stories are moving and gorgeous. Highly rec <3

Thank you to Netgalley for sending me an arc of this book - this review is rather late but I loved this. I thought it was empowering and beautiful. It was a super short read but I enjoyed every second of it

3.5/5

A raw, beautiful anthology - though as with anthologies in general, I enjoyed some sections more than others.

I think this is an essential addition to any high school library, or any book collection teenagers have access to. Between the poetry, anecdotes, advice, and humour, there will be something here for anyone to connect to. This is really a book that could change lives, and I hope it gets into the hands that need it.

//Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review//

As a fat person, I still struggle with calling myself one. The word has so much painful memories behind it, from doctors, "friends", strangers, and even my family. My grandma would constantly tell me how I need to exercise and eat healthier, because I don't want to be fat. "Fat is not beautiful."

This is the book that made me feel better about myself. The numerous entries in this anthology share positive and negative experiences, but mainly how to grow into loving one's body. The list of fat-positive bloggers and fashion companies at the end had me crying because I absolutely hate shopping for clothes in public, because it felt like there weren't clothes for me.

I think this is a must-read for people, because it shows how the body positive movement isn't "promoting obesity", but promoting self-confidence and self-love.

The perfect introduction for teen readers to fat politics and movements such as fat acceptance, health at every size and body positivity.  Adult readers, particularly those who are well versed in the politics of fat, may find some of it reductive or simplistic, but for young people it's an essential collection of essays.

I absolutely loved this book!

Often when I read collections of essays or stories by a variety of authors, I like a few of the pieces but not all of them. I loved every essay and piece of work in this collection. I could relate to most of them, and I learned new things from the ones I couldn’t relate to.

This collection is so important. It isn’t just for fat readers. Everyone can benefit from reading this book, because it gives a glimpse into the lives of fat people. Being fat is treated as even worse than other traits. When sexist and racist jokes aren’t allowed in mainstream media today, fat jokes still remain. This may be because people think you can change your weight easier than you can change your skin colour or gender. However, this is not always the case.

I’m so glad that I had the opportunity to read this book. It really means a lot to me! I would have loved to have read it when I was a fat teenager. I hope this book gets the recognition it deserves!

Thank you Abrams Kids for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Anthologies are really hard to rate and this was even harder than normal because I wanted to love it so much. Unfortunately, the disparity in the quality of stories was pretty bad. The stories that were good were really good and the stories that were bad were really bad. I think it tried to include *everyone* without realizing that not everyone who was included has an approachable voice.

I really enjoyed a great many things about this book. Characters were fleshed out and the plot was well spaced. Some of the secondary storylines could've used a bit more page space but all in all an enjoyable read!

Anthology/collection of illustrations, pieces, and poems by fat creators. A love letter to all the fat teenagers out there. Pretty diverse touches a variety of topics like gender identity, sexuality, fashion, love, media representation… Very personal pieces, beautiful design of the book. A must for anthology lovers (like me!). Highly recommended.

I wasn't able to read through the whole book before archive date, but what I did read was awesome! I'm glad we're seeing more books geared towards fat acceptance :)

While a couple of the essays weren't my favorite, so many were absolute winners (and written by womxn I admire). I've already been recommending this to library patrons and friends. There's something in here for everyone.

I really wanted to love this -- it's a subject I know well.

I'm so glad to see that there's an anthology like this out there, but I did feel like the essays were incredibly uneven in quality and focus. I'm picky, and I've read so many incredible essays on the subject, Maybe my expecatations were too high? That's part of it. 

All that said, Samantha Irby is queen of all her things, and I thought her essay was a stunner.

I really liked this book. I think it would be perfect for teen readers and is a great place for fat-friendly resources and for finding new people to follow. The book is beautifully diverse and I loved the fact that even disabled voices were included. There were a couple of essays that were a bit long-winded or repetitive and just fell flat for me but on the whole, I was inspired and moved. I highly recommend checking this book out, especially if you are just starting out your body positivity/fat acceptance/self-love journey. It makes you realise that you are not alone and there are so many more important things about you than your size.   

I received a copy of the ebook via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

When I first saw this book on Netgalley, I felt that I had to get it because it’s such an important book, and I also wanted to know about the body positivity and fat acceptance movement. And I’m so glad that I got the opportunity to read this one.

I feel that this book is important for me at this age, even though it’s focused more in catering towards youngsters. In the world I grew up in, I don’t know if this would have helped a teenage me, but I definitely need it now. This collection of essays, poems and art by fat activists and artists is necessary because first and foremost, it’s about making you realize that every body size is natural and every person deserves to be respected and treated with dignity, irrespective of their size. It’s about understanding that our worth doesn’t depend on us conforming to the society’s beauty standards. It’s about not letting the prejudiced words of others affect us and loving ourselves the way we are and living our best life. It’s about finding a community of people like us who understand each other and can help in facing the struggles we encounter everyday. And finally it’s about fighting for the right to exist and take up space in this world, without worrying about people who feel uncomfortable just because of our existence.

To conclude, I wanna say that this is brilliant collection of writings by a diverse group of people and I think everyone should read it. I loved how representative it was of race, sexuality, ethnicity and this is important because being fat is just one part of our identity and intersectionality is even more important. If you have ever struggled with accepting your body for whatever reasons and would love to find some resources, then this book has lot of information in that regard. If you want to know more about the body positivity movement or be a part of it, then this book is good beginner primer. Or even if you just want to read the experiences of other fat people who are a bit ahead of you in their journey of accepting themselves, do checkout this book. I promise you will find something in these pages that will resonate with you.

A fantastic collection of stories, essays, art, and other pieces that not only reclaim the narrative around but also celebrate being fat. A necessary addition to all collections!

1.) The list of contributors: The range of voices included in this collection celebrating loving your body and telling your own story is incredible. From authors like Julie Murphy to illustrators like Jiji Knight, there is something for everyone. I loved reading essays from favorite authors, but I also adored discovering new voices and artists.

2.) The premise: As someone who is fat, it's sometimes hard to find solid representation in books, fiction and non-fiction. This collection celebrates a community of people whose bodies happen to be fat. They are men, women, trans, non-binary, white, black, brown, mixed race, young, old, disabled, neurotypical, and neurodivergent, and more. They are writers, artists, podcasters, and more. I wish I had this book for myself when I was a teenager, and I'm so, so glad that teens will now have this book.

3.) My personal favorite essays, Jana Schmieding's "Chubby City Indian," and Hillary Monahan's "Fatness & Horror: The Match Made in Not Heaven": Jana Schmieding's writing is lyrical and lush, my favorite style for creative nonfiction. She discusses her intersectional identify as a fat, Lakota Native woman and what that looked like growing up and as an adult. Hillary Monahan's essay smartly analyzes fat characters and horror, where fat characters typically 1) don't exist on screen, or 2) are the first to die because...fat, apparently. She highlights a few recent successes like Ghostbusters with Melissa McCarthy but rightly points out that these are still few and far between, not to mention the lack of intersectionality among those fat characters. If I could frame both of those essays, I gladly would.