Lia
Overbrook and Cassie Parrish have been best friends since the third grade. But as they grow up, they both develop
destructive obsessions with body image, dragging each other down because each
is afraid of dealing with her appearance.
Lia is anorexic, and Cassie is a victim of bulimia. As things become too tough, Cassie is put into
rehab by her parents. After she is
“recovered,” Cassie breaks off her friendship with Lia. Six months later, after not having
communicated with her ex-friend in ages, Lia receives thirty-three phone calls
from Cassie in one evening but refuses to answer. When she discovers the next day that Cassie
has died alone in a dirty motel room, Lia realizes that Cassie had been calling
for help and she is confounded by guilt.
Lia's parents divorced and absorbed in their own careers and new lives,
are unaware of the severity of their daughter's eating problem. Through all this, Lia keeps her family at a
distance, concealing her inner turmoil and tricking them into believing she’s
healthy. Lia's fragile hold on health
and reality is slipping; haunted by Cassie's ghost, she finds herself losing
control of her life, sinking into cutting and starvation that can only end in
her own death.
Lia’s
story is written from her point of view, which is very effective in showing how
serious her problems are and how she views life. Being able to read her thoughts and actions
is both disturbing and thrilling—it’s what gives the story its power. I think that girls would be interested to
read this book and see the life of Lia and how she lives with anorexia, because
it can show them that starving to become skinny is never the answer and can
lead to death. Also, if someone is suffering from an eating disorder, this book
could save their life. Having an eating
disorder is no laughing manner, and could end in death or serious injuries to
the person’s health. This book shows Lia
as she starves herself and as she walks on the brink of death in her constant
struggle of eating enough to live and not eating too much to be “fat.” Maybe Wintergirls
could prompt someone to recognize that they—or a friend—has a problem and needs
professional help.
I
wouldn’t recommend this book to those under the age of thirteen, and even then the
reader must be able to handle serious topics and situations. For those thirteen and older, this book shows
it isn’t easy being anorexic and the disease is not something to make fun
of. I would also recommend this book to
parents because if they see the signs in their children, they can stop them before
it’s too late and get them help. The
only problem with this book is it’s very powerful and could be hard to get
through form some readers. Laurie Halse
Anderson did it again- she wrote another stunning and serious book to show the
reader a problem and what it’s like to have this problem. She is an amazing writer of teen and adult
novels and I’d recommend any book by her, especially Wintergirls.
Reviewed
by Katie
Laurie Halse Anderson speaks about Wintergirls
Links to important Anorexia Websites
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