Book Blog #8 - Letting Ana Go, Anonymous

"Don't think about how hungry you are.. thunk about how thin you're getting."


The Premise

Letting Ana Go is the true diary of an unknown 16 year old girl which tells her story of battling anorexia.
It started out as a "food diary", some dumb thing the cross country coach is making the team do to track  their calories. But as time went on and sophomore year ended, the author (we don't know her name so I'll call her Ana) makes some serious changes in her diet.
She was on a boat cruise with her friend Jill, who is a ballerina, so it isn't weird to anyone that she is so thin. While on the boat, Jill reveals to Ana that she is only eating 1,700 calories per day. At first, Ana is in shock, but Jill's mother is very judgemental when it comes to weight, so Ana gives lowering her calories  a try. Jill's mother tells Ana the only way you will get a boyfriend and be pretty is if you are super thin. With this image in her head, Ana joins Jill in the work  of anorexia.



Significant Passage

There were a lot of things that stunned me in this book.. that people actually say about themselves and others. One passage was:

"THE THIN COMMANDMENTS 1. Thin = Attractive. If you are not thin, you are not attractive. 2. Thou shalt do everything within your power to make yourself look thinner. This includes clothing, hairstyle, exercise, and taking laxatives when needed."

I just think that this passage is crazy. This book is about real girls, so the fact that they thought about themselves like this. There were also more "commandments" but this one was the most prominent and tied in the the terrible theme running through thus book.


In conclusion, this book was really really good and I couldn't put it down. I highly recommend this book if you are looking for something different.