One to Watch

Kate Staman-London

4/5 Lipstick Kisses

It's been two weeks and I'm not exactly sure how I feel about this read. I grew up as a chubby girl. No matter how hard I work, it still seems that I remain chubby. The thing is, I'm still "smaller" than the average woman, yet throughout my childhood, I was made out to be a fat whale.

Reading Beau's journey really triggered some memories for me. Mainly, reading about her own thoughts. All it takes is one person who to infiltrate your mind and contaminate thoughts moving forward. I met that person in high school. He really put it in my mind that I was not deserving of love, constantly telling me "you're my dream girl and we'd be together if you lost twenty pounds." That was almost ten years ago, and I've met an amazing man since, but those words still haunt me. Like Beau, I need constant reassurance that I'm not the grossest thing on this planet.

I wish this book had existed when I was going through this real-time. I think feeling less alone would have really helped the situation. Sure, I read a few books with plus-sized leads, but none of them were successful like Beau, and nearly all of the books centered around losing weight. Really, the only complaint I had was that I wish this book was a little more realistic and a little less focused on Beau's plus-sized body. I'm having trouble explaining it, but there was a part of this book that was lacking for me. Nevertheless, it did make me feel less alone, and a little justified. In the end, that's the purpose of writing.