Weight is a problem in our society today, whether you see the problem as too many people weighing too much or there being too much of a focus on weight all together. Either way you cut it, it's a dangerous topic to embark upon.
Stephanie Klein, author of Straight Up and Dirty, has discussed this topic in her new memoir Moose: a memoir of fat camp. In it, she describes her lifelong battle with weight, focusing on a summer at Camp Yanisin, a camp designed for kids who are overweight. She talks about her family, her battle with food, and her constant attention on weight, including her brief stint with bulemia.
As someone who has struggled with weight issues myself, I was thrilled to be given a chance to read this memoir, to see how someone else might have dealt with the constant teasing and looks that come with being a little too plump. I went into the book hoping for a happy ending; a girl who overcame the odds to prove everyone wrong. What I got instead was a rather dry commentary that was all too easy to ignore.
It was not until the end of the book, when Klein starts discussing her troubles in high school, college, and beyond that I really had difficulty putting the book down. Before that, it was quite a struggle, and this is certainly one of the books I've had the most trouble getting through. Her frank discussion of her sexuality as a thirteen year old was mildly disturbing (though only in the sense that she speaks so frankly of it, and it might offend some people), and seemed a bit out of place in a novel about being fat.
Furthermore, I was more than a little annoyed when she would continuously call herself fat when she says she weighed a measly 130 pounds, or managed to fit into a size 4 dress. I have long given up the hope of being able to fit into anything smaller than a size 10 dress, so her going on about how fat she was at that point in her life was disturbing.
If you enjoy getting into the minds of people, this might be a good book for you. If you're looking for some interesting plot, this is probably not a good book for you, as it will seem entirely too dry at points. I give this book 3 of 5 stars.
Written by Chelle
Moose: A Memoir of Fat Camp
by Stephanie Klein
ISBN: 9870060843298
$16.47 new on Amazon.com
