Poor Little Sick Girls

As a 21 year old who has been (and still is) bed/housebound for 5 years now with a chronic illness, this book was raw and overwhelming to read but in the best way. I’ve never read a book that I identified SO much with and at times felt as though I could’ve actually written myself (except I’d never be able to summarise my thoughts as eloquently as she has!!)

Poor Little Sick Girls explores Ione’s experiences being diagnosed with and living with Crohn’s disease which is threaded throughout the book in between musings, criticism and opinions on topics like capitalism, social media, feminism, identity politics, self care, creative industries, gross women, the patriarchy and the male gaze, depictions of illness in media and throughout history, medical sexism and racism, class and so much more, and the ways in which many of these issues are interlinked.

While dissecting many of todays issues, being a woman on the internet and life inside a sick body, Ione manages to keep this book accessible, humorous, relatable and extremely engaging. Even the chapter titles themselves are super engaging and make you want to continue reading with headings such as ‘The Tragic and Gorgeous History of the Sick Girl’, ‘A Love Letter to Bed’, ‘Inside All of Us Is a Gross Girl’ and ‘It Costs a Lot to Look This Cheap’.

I can’t recommend this book enough, and want to thank Ione for not only sharing her life and thoughts with us, but for creating a piece of work that so many poor little sick girls will relate to and feel seen in for years to come.

There is so much more I feel I should say about this book and I hope to do a longer review on my blog/instagram when my physical copy arrives but for now I want to leave you with a couple of my favourite quotes from the book which I will be tabbing to high heaven…


“For most people, a few extra hours spent in bed is one of life's little luxuries. Our beds are our havens. They're often the only place in which we can truly block out the rest of the world's problems. Against my will, I've clocked up more hours under my sheets than most people in their twenties and not in a sexy way. For me, my bed is both my biggest comfort and my worst enemy. My life rotates around it: from work, to sleep, to socialising, to eating, and back to sleep again. While a selfie at home may be a rarity for those who spend their weekends out in the world, I ration the amount I allow myself to be seen on social media from my bed, for fear the mere sight of my covers in the corner of the frame will signal an inability to live normally. My bed is one of the small reminders that as much as I can construct myself as a functoning member of society, often Iam not one. While it can be a source of comfort, my place of rest can often feel like a prison. My codependency is not by choice, but because I suffer from chronic fatigue. Living with debilitating tiredness was not what I expected from the prime years of my life- my twenties.”


“From birth, cisgender straight white men have the luxury of watching their own dark emotions parroted on our screens. If they wish to, they can watch themselves murder, kill, manipulate, run organised crime rings, commit fraud and ruin families. Not only that, but we’re also exposed to endless rationalisations as to why men behave in these ways. Women and marginalised people not only do not have the representation they deserve, but the absence of a mirror help up by the world has real implications for our emotions and what we feel we can do with them. We have no framework for where our rage can go, what it can do or the implications of unleashing it.”


“In the case of disability, my body may behave in ways that make me feel hopeless, but through this comes an immense power: the power to confuse a world that only accepts an empowered woman when she acts within the parameters of usefulness to society. Society has no script on how to deal with a fat, chronically ill woman in her twenties who refuses to accept invisibility. Because of that, the potential to write my own narrative is infinite.”

Ione Gamble is the founding editor in chief of Polyester zine and host of the Polyester podcast and this is a collection of essays about her becoming chronically ill at the age of 19. Seh writes about grappling with girl boss feminism and identity written from the perspective of her sick bed and concern her obsession with self care and her issues with being overweight.

While dissecting many of todays issues, being a woman on the internet and life inside a sick body, Ione manages to keep this book accessible, humorous, relatable and extremely engaging.

This is an excellent collection of essays on chronic illness, feminism. class, social media and creative industries for anyone who feels marginalised in todays society.

I received an advanced reader’s copy in exchange for a. honest review.

It is exhausting as well as financially draining to be disabled. While here in the US the disability rights movement lags far behind the UK, it is refreshing to see this woman across the pond doing this activist work calling feminism back from post-capitalism girlboss culture and wellness back from online marketing. Should be read by everyone, not just because of us with chronic illness.

This was a wonderfully written collection of essays on living with chronic illness. It also touched on other topics, such as feminism and social media. The author wrote the book in such a way that it will be accessible to many people (chronic illness sufferers and anyone who wants to understand better the challenges they bring). I really enjoyed reading the experiences and thoughts from the author, and as a fellow chronic illness sufferer, I feel I got something back from it too.

Thank you to Netgalley, the author and publisher, for a chance to read and review this book.

Brilliant collections of essays exploring the every day of suffering from a chronic illness. I don't suffer with a chronic illness, but my wife does, and I could see many of her experiences reflected here.

This book is smart, addictive, wry and insightful. As a chronically ill person I really resonated with this handy book! Recommend for all!