Body Loving Book Review #3: FAT!SO?

FAT!SO? by Marilyn Wann

When I first got this book in the mail and saw the cover, I was a bit disappointed. It kind of has that Year 9 English assignment "Design a new front cover for your novel" kind of look, ha. But it's really not like that on the inside! The pages are interactive with fun pictures, charts, testimonials, headings and subheadings, paper dolls, quizzes, quotes and statistics. FAT?SO? started as a magazine, and it really has retained that look. 

Wann, an American author and activist in the Fat Acceptance movement, wrote this book in the late 90s (which does mean some of the links no longer work). From what I understand, it's one of the first of its kind and is considered a bit of a "bible" for those who are a part of the Fat Acceptance movement or who just believe fat people have the right to exist with the same respect and rights as anyone else.

Wann's approach is humourous, lighthearted and fun. This would be the first book I would direct people to read if they were on their body acceptance journey, because it covers all the basics. It's well researched, logical, heartfelt and joyous. I read it with a lead pencil as my bookmark and would underline things all the time. 

A favourite page in the book is a list of comebacks for when people comment on your weight. 

Occasionally, people mistakenly assume that I'm pregnant, because of my tummy. I'm dying to say, "Nope, I'm not pregnant - but hell, the night is young!"

The book looks closely at health and what medical journals and professionals have to say (some of the discoveries are surprising), fat myths, body confidence, prejudice, bullying, childhood experiences, BMI, shopping, and love/sex/relationships, to name a few topics. Her personal trainer writes a short piece in there, and Wann herself writes a little on principles of good health.

This is the kind of book that doesn't have to be read in one sitting. I've been reading this book off and on for months, so in that regard, it is also like a magazine in that you can pick it up and open it at any spot. It's divided up into four parts that are entitled "Anatomy Lessons" - The Butt, The Belly, The Chin and The Upper Arm. Wann encourages the acceptance of the F-word (fat) so that people cannot use it against you. There is also a timeline of prescription diet drugs for the last one hundred years and their affects. Wann also writes about childhood obesity and how to educate teachers about fat prejudice (I've got that bit underlined for my own practice). There's also a few poems which I loved.

I recommend this book for anyone, fat or thin, who wants to take a closer look at body image and health and who might need some fine-tuning of their self-esteem (who doesn't?). I'm a better, more knowledgeable person having read this book and I definitely feel more empowered.