The Girls at 17 Swann Street by Yara Zgheib
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Published: February 5, 2019
It's Monday an Anna is checking into 17 Swann Street. Anna is a dancer, a daughter, a sister, a wife to Matthias and she has anorexia. All the girls at 17 Swann Street have some type of eating disorder. Their days are filled with scheduled meals, therapy sessions and meal planning with a nutritionist. They can't go outside or use the bathroom without permission. All this in an effort to get them to an ideal weight and BMI. Anorexia is a disease and Anna has come to 17 Swann Street to conquer it. Will she be successful?
Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read and review this book.
Anorexia is not a disease I am familiar with, although I can say I have my own struggles with food and weight. Personally, this book was quite interesting for me to read at this particular time in my life. Most of us make resolutions at the beginning of the year that has something to do with our weight or overall health, and I am no exception to this.
Imagine if the only food you ate were apples and popcorn. I love popcorn as much as the next person, but I don't think I could survive on it and Anna isn't. When her husband finds her collapsed on their bathroom floor, they can no longer avoid the issue at hand. She hasn't been eating and he loves her too much to let this continue, to allow her to kill herself. But does she love him and herself enough to stop? At 17 Swann Street, she meets other girls who are maybe her age, maybe younger. It's hard to tell the way this disease ravages your body. So the goal is to eat whatever food you are given(3 meal, 3 snacks) with no exceptions. You don't follow the rules, you face the consequences.
This is a book where you are routing for everyone to win. It will stay with you for a long time, the author has painted vivid images of what the girls at 17 Swann Street look like. The girls work together to help themselves and each other. I highly recommend this book.
About the Author:Yara Zgheib is a Fulbright scholar with a Masters degree in Security Studies from Georgetown University and a PhD in International Affairs in Diplomacy from Centre D'études Diplomatiques et Stratégiques in Paris. She is fluent in English, Arabic, French, and Spanish. Yara is a writer for several US and European magazines, including The Huffington Post, The Four Seasons Magazine, A Woman’s Paris, The Idea List, and Holiday Magazine. She writes on culture, art, travel, and philosophy on her blog, "Aristotle at Afternoon Tea" (http://www.aristotleatafternoontea.com/).
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This is an important topic, especially for young girls. Nice review.
ReplyDeleteThank you Barb.
DeleteNice review Lorrea. I have read several reviews and most have been positive. This is definitely an important topic for young girls.
ReplyDelete