This new edition of Rachel Wiley's Fat Girl Finishing School from Button Poetry could not have found me at a better time. It is feminist, fat positive and full of social commentary that feels just as valid today as it did in 2014 when the book was first released, if not even more so. The cutesy cover with its delicate pastel shades belies the powerful messages that almost leap from the pages. This is a book that I would encourage every young , and not so young woman to read. Among the issues touched upon are race, sexuality, body-positivity , growth and acceptance. There are moments of humour among the seriousness, including a mini rant about a KFC that ran out of chicken, but there are so many other poems that are memorable for their power and simplicity. Among my personal favourites were a Love Letter To My Body #3 " My excuse is that my body needs no excuse to be loved, no excuse to be seen, no excuse to be touched, enjoyed, celebrated." , 10 Honest Thoughts on Being Loved by a Skinny Boy , Naked Atonement " Let no man bury his shame inside us. Let no woman whisper her fear into our thighs. You are not a bank for the discontent of others. You belong to a bold heart. " , as well as the razor sharp Wife Material and the heartbreaking and powerful Blood Tongue which sadly is more true than ever before. " There is danger in being black in the wrong place , at the wrong time , Wrong Place : America. Wrong Time : all the time "
Overall this is a really strong collection and one that I am glad to have read.
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher, all opinions are my own.

Cute. Not entirely memorable but cute and I can see this as a sort of ode to the girls who feel a little different or misunderstood,

These poems were all very emotionally impactful with interesting similes and metaphors hammering themes of love (gay, straight, and self), body acceptance, race, feminism, and societal expectations. I enjoyed them, but it always felt like something was missing. Maybe it's that the author is an accomplished slam poet (see https://buttonpoetry.com/tag/rachel-wiley/ ) and the poems on the page miss her cadence? Maybe they are overwhelming to read all at once and they lose some impact that way? Either way, I thought these were quite good, but left me hungry for something else.

I really enjoy Rachel Wiley's spoken word poetry so I was excited to see that she had a a collection of poetry published. There were quite a few poems that spoke to me by either being humorous, honest, or both. Not every poem resonated but I would definitely purchase this title for my Library Collection because I know that Rachel Wiley is not alone in her experiences.

Fat Girl Finishing School, a book of poems by Rachel Wiley, uses tender and confessional language to create a space for self-love. Wiley's poetry plainly acknowledges how terrifying it can be to love yourself and tells you that you're worthy of it anyway. Her poems aren't as consistent in quality as I would like, but I can't recommend Fat Girl Finishing School enough.

One of the things I loved about Fat Girl Finishing School was just how many things I felt when I was reading it. As I read "Naked Atonement," in which Wiley lovingly addresses her own body, I wanted to give myself a hug. "Hoarder," which paints a haunting portrait of a neglected widow, allowed me to sympathize with a stranger's grief. Reading "Brass Knuckles," where Wiley pays tribute to female strength, made me feel like I could do anything. Fat Girl Finishing School takes you on a freewheeling emotional journey and asserts that every part of our humanity - however messy - is worthy of being seen. At its best, Fat Girl Finishing School left me feeling dazzled by its evocative, richly detailed verses. In "Americana," where Wiley grapples with her biracial identity, she writes: "My spine is a railroad tie on the tracks that segregate/the races in my mother's pink-cheeked southern Ohio town." In "For Nicholas Who Is So Concerned," Wiley sarcastically praises a fatphobic man for his originality: "Like I never felt laughter slinky-walk my spine,/or deep kissed pavement at the sound of an insult backfired/from a passing car,/or felt every single knuckle in a punch line." Through her use of language, Wiley depicts human vulnerability with arresting clarity.  By casting a light on emotions that many of us feel embarrassed about, she made me feel safer acknowledging the softer parts of myself.

In spite of everything I loved about Fat Girl Finishing School, certain flaws did take away from my enjoyment of it. Some of Wiley's poems, like "Gorgon" and "Wife Material," were direct responses to events that took place around the time this work was published. These poems seemed more focused on expressing political points than capturing nuanced emotional realities, and the language was a little stilted. Wiley's work was weakest for me when she focused on humor and social observation, such as in "The Unbearable Likeness of Being on OkCupid" and "Sunday Morning Casino Service" respectively. Many of her comedic poems felt a little corny, and the observational poems weren't vivid or specific enough to hold my interest. This isn't a critique so much as a caveat, but I also wanted to note that certain poems aren't very accessible for those who are unused to reading poetry. Poems like "How to Become a Heretic" and "What Bette Davis Made Me Do" are packed with figurative language, and it was challenging to figure out how all of Wiley's metaphors worked together as a whole.

That said, despite these issues, what I'll remember most from Fat Girl Finishing School is Wiley's tenderness, towards her body and herself. I've already memorized multiple quotes from Fat Girl Finishing School to tell myself on difficult days. From "Naked Atonement," my favorite poem in this collection: "I need no one's green light to love you but my own,/and from here on out, it is all emerald/brilliance and go." From "Daylight," which Wiley dedicated to a bullied fan: "We are the daylight/and no one can go on if the day starts hiding." I can't endorse every part of Fat Girl Finishing School, but poems like these make the collection absolutely worth reading. If you're interested in beautiful, richly detailed, subversive poetry that crawls into bed with you and tells you that you deserve love, then Fat Girl Finishing School is for you.

Thanks to NetGalley and Button Poetry for making available an advanced copy of this book! This review was originally published on my personal website, journeys.dartmouth.edu/umamramesh/umareads

I'm going to preface this by saying that I don't read poetry. And I know that I should read poetry...I have just never figured out how (unless it has an obvious rhythm and it rhymes). And this isn't a collection written for basic readers like me. But still, I did enjoy it. I felt the emotion, the humour and the honesty in these poems and enjoyed them to the limit my experience enabled me to. It was the title of this book that grabbed me, being in a bigger body myself, and I appreciated the poems that related to that issue. But this collection covers so much more than the fat experience, and actually I think some of my favourite pieces were those which explored her biracial identity. This is a deeply personal collection and I feel touched that she has shared this with us.

A pretty light and sweet spot-on! This collection of poems reads like a positivist anthem for all young girls out there.

I really enjoyed this. There were some I didn’t enjoy as much as others but I really liked the honest vulnerability of the poems. She’s unapologetically queer and fat and chooses self love in the face of racism, misogyny, and body shaming.
I highly recommend this.

Unfortunately, I couldn't finish this book because I found the poems to be very weak and surface level. This is a collection that could have been much stronger with better editing. I appreciate the idea behind this collection and I love that the author seeks to focus on topics such as fat shaming and body diversity. Unfortunately, as a poetry collection, I do feel it lacked depth and substance.

Thank you so much NetGalley for giving the chance to read this book. It took me a while because I couldn't open it till I found the right app. Most of these poems are very relatable to me, epscially "Letters to My Body," I loved that this book talked about plus size women; this is not something we see offen.

"My excuse is my body needs no excuse to be loved,
No excuse to be seen,
No excuse to be touched, enjoyed, celebrated."

Oh this was intersectional AF and I loveeeeeeed it omfggggggg. I loveeeee Rachel's discussions on being fat, queer & mixed all at once and how she has enough privilege to be just fine in certain situations.

I love how blunt Rachel is. She said things with her whole chest. She's unapologetically queer, fat and bi-racial and it really shows in her pieces.

The writer captures the thoughts of plus sized women and girls effortlessly. The words float off the page as you are caught up in her memories. Some of the poems read like prayers while others a warm stiff drink on a cold night. Understanding is sought and acceptance for one's size.

Netgalley tricked me into requesting a poetry book, in exchange for an honest review.

Just kidding, sort of, but I might have missed this if I knew it was poetry as I am personally not drawn to it but then I really enjoyed this! If you want to try poetry this is worth reading, the poems are relatable and cover personal topics of relationships from a fat-positive pov. Really glad I read this.

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

This book completely blew me away. I have never read any Rachel Wiley stuff before, but I'm glad I did now.

I love her unique perspective and her words are truly powerful and inspiring. In this collection, the author explores fatphobia, racism and sexual assault in a raw and touching way and every poem hit me hard. Some of them are hilarious, some are hopeful, some are empowering and some are tragic, but they all left a mark.

I highly recommend this to anyone who ever felt like they weren't enough. I promise, you are.

Thanks again to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this early.

I liked this collection. there were some poems I liked more than others. I felt like some poems I loved and some I just hated. it was a back and forth relationship for me throughout the book, often finding one great poem followed by one I'd wanna skip.

5.0 out of 5 stars Unflinching and unyielding -- a great collection of narrative poems.
Reviewed in the United States on June 8, 2020
This is a book of poems for people who want to explore poetry with a strong personal narrative focus. It’s unflinching and unyielding, each poem driving into a personal experience or observation. Wiley doesn’t hold back, and her body and mind are used to explore interpersonal spaces, physical spaces, and emotional spaces with a lot of courage and heart.

You don’t need to want to meet an author to appreciate her/his work, but in this case, I’d like to meet Ms. Wiley. I found myself curious about her experiences, wanting to read more of her work, see how she’s grown and what she’s lived since completing FGFS. I loved this, it reminded me of other powerful voices, and yet was unique and really compelling. Highly recommend if you are looking to explore an experience of a fat-bodied person or a person who has a sharp eye for b.s.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-reviews/R37EQ6T75TNZ87?ref=pf_ov_at_pdctrvw_srp

A book of rawness and vulnerability, to laugh, to love and to think over.

This poetry book is an ode to many trials and tribulations of modern life. From racism to body confidence, the book wanders through nearly 100 pages of different poems and verses, some previously performed by the author.

There are a wide variety of poems on offer here, in different rhythms, styles and structure. Some are straight forward, punchy and to the point, leaving the reader with no qualms on what they are being told. Others require more unpacking, leaving the reader to weave through the words and pick out the meaning or think over what message the poem is conveying.

But one thing they all have in common is their sincerity and ability to bring out a range of emotions within the reader, from happiness and amusement, to confusion, anger and sorrow.

The variety isn't only contained to the poems but also the subjects. With racism, body shaming, the fashion industry, airlines and American culture as some up for discussion, real life comes around to once again challenge the reader to step into another's shoes and look through the looking glass at some of the realities people face in today's society. At the same time, there are poems about being body positive, hope, fighting and striving for oneself, acceptance, positive sexuality and the disappointment of not being a superhero after being bitten by a spider.

This book is recommended to anyone who is looking for a mixture of light and dark, laughs and sorrows and an overall enjoyable and insightful poetry reading experience..

Content warning: Language (occasionally use of offensive terms), racism (including references to lynching and racial history), sexual themes, animal abuse

[This review has also been published on my Good reads account: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/116195675-kaizenkhaos]

I received an advance reader copy of this book to read in exchange for an honest review via netgalley and the publishers.

This is a beautiful and heartfelt book of poems about many different things so I felt the book title was unjust for the book of poems it entails.

My absolute favourite poem in this book was the Brass Knuckles one which I read three times and will read many more.

These poems are like a story unfolding within your heart and mind, some funny, some sad, some full of hurt and some with kiss ass vibes!

I really enjoyed this book and the only criticism I can give is that the title and the cover do not do it justice at all.

I'm not the biggest fan of poetry but I was blown away by this. I've never read any of Rachel Wiley’s poems before but I feel like I've been missing out! Some of the poems are raw and moving, while others made me laugh out loud. However, all of them are really impactful. A stand-out for me was Wife Material, I read it three times in a row.
All of Wiley’s poems are so current, and I think that makes them even more brilliant, when I thought of what was currently happening in the USA as I read Blood Tongue I got goosebumps.
Poetry is hard to review since it’s so subjective, but I personally really, really enjoyed this collection and would not be surprised if I found myself reading it again in the future.

Rachel Wiley’s writing is the perfect balance between wit, ferocity, and vulnerability. She manages to portray important topics like eating disorders, body positivity, race, and feminism in a way that speaks both to her personal experiences, and the bigger picture. Her poems themselves are beautiful and the message they manage to send is one that everyone deserves to hear. As a queer biracial woman, she offers a perspective that is uniquely intersectional, but nonetheless speaks to every person in some way or another.
Thank you to NetGalley and Button Poetry for making this inspiring collection of poetry available.