I had purchased and read Ms Klein's other memoir, Straight Up and Dirty, and liked it so much I immediately wish-listed this one. I might have been in a different mind-set by the time I finally got it, or maybe I just don't relate with Stephanie's struggles as a mid-grade pudgy girl, but I wasn't as entertained by this one. I was quite struck by how sexual this young lady was at her age and how much of 'fat camp' is devoted to sexual experimentation.. ( )

I found this book to be sad. This is unusual since it is written with a great sense of humour and honesty. The story of a young girl battling with her weight and her experiences at "fat camp". The sad part was that she was so obsessed with her weight at such a young age (11) and the importance everyone in her life put on her "weight". All else aside, although the author was very honest in the book, I did not like her very much ... this was unfortunate since it was a good book that I found I just didn't enjoy very much. Make sense?
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I had mixed feelings about this book. I was never a particularly overweight child, but as a teen and adult, I've certainly experienced my own battles with my weight and accompanying self-image, so I was curious to read about what it was like for someone else.

I definitely empathized with her love/hate relationship with food, sneaking & gorging on those foods, and "well-meaning" comments from family regarding her eating habits & weight.

I didn't find this memoir riveting, but it was interesting to see what a fat camp experience was like for a child so enrolled, and to see how the damage being fat did to her in childhood continues to influence her adult life. ( )

A sad, depressing story of one girl's summer at "fat camp", but more than that, it is the story of one woman's life-long struggle with weight, self-esteem and the expectations of her parents. Well written, what this book really told me is that the author never really got over being an overweight child, and she still struggles with weight issues to this day, even though she is now "normal". A depressing message, and not just for the glimpse into the life of an overweight teen. ( )

This memoir is at it's best when Klein writes about her experiences of being an overweight teenager...and she's not a sad outcast, either! I thought this book depicts a teenager with a pretty confident outlook on life! I didn't like the ending, in which Klein goes off topic to discuss her struggles with her pregnancy as an normal weight adult...preachy, treacly; I just didn't care.