Hadley Freeman

Good Girls

A Story and Study of Anorexia

• Broschiertes Buch

Produktbeschreibung

From Hadley Freeman, bestselling author of House of Glass, comes a “riveting” (The New York Times) memoir about her experience as an anorexic and her journey to recovery. In 1995, Hadley Freeman wrote in her diary: “I just spent three years of my life in mental hospitals. So why am I crazier than I was before????” From the ages of fourteen to seventeen, Freeman lived in psychiatric wards after developing anorexia nervosa. Her doctors informed her that her body was cannibalizing her muscles and heart for nutrition, but they could tell her little else: why she had it, what it felt like, what recovery looked like. For the next twenty years, Freeman lived as a “functioning anorexic,” grappling with new forms of self-destructive behavior as the anorexia mutated and persisted. Anorexia is one of the most widely discussed but least understood mental illnesses. Through “sharp storytelling, solid research and gentle humor” (The Wall Street Journal), Freeman delivers an incisive and bracing work that details her experiences with anorexia—the shame, fear, loneliness, and rage—and how she overcame it. She interviews doctors to learn how treatment for the illness has changed since she was hospitalized and what new discoveries have been made about the illness, including its connection to autism, OCD, and metabolic rate. She learns why the illness always begins during adolescence and how this reveals the difficulties for girls to come of age. Freeman tracks down the women with whom she was hospitalized and reports on how their recovery has progressed over decades. Good Girls is an honest and hopeful story of resilience that offers a message to the nearly 30 million Americans who suffer from eating disorders: Life can be enjoyed, rather than merely endured.

Produktdetails

• Verlag: Simon & Schuster
• Seitenzahl: 288
• Erscheinungstermin: 23. April 2024
• Englisch
• Abmessung: 213mm x 140mm x 18mm
• Gewicht: 231g
• ISBN-13: 9781982189846
• ISBN-10: 1982189843
• Artikelnr.: 68334299

Autorenporträt

Hadley Freeman is a staff writer for The Sunday Times in the UK. She was born in New York and lives in London. Her books include Life Moves Pretty Fast and the bestselling House of Glass, and her work has appeared in Vogue US and UK, New York magazine, Harper’s Bazaar, and many other publications.

Rezensionen

'A frank and insightful account ... offers insight into the unique struggle of adolescent girls in an era when they are told they can be anything' The Times

'A clear-eyed view of a debilitating and misunderstood illness' Guardian

'Freeman manages to turn this tragic and taxing tale into a gripping story' Financial Times

'This is a vital contribution that it's to be hoped will change how we understand anorexia, and perhaps also influence the messages we put across to young girls' Jewish Chronicle

'For parents of girls with eating disorders, this is vital, revelatory, and deeply moving' Caitlin Moran

'Recounting her years of anorexia with uncommon honesty, Hadley Freeman makes a powerful case for finding the will to live' Lauren Collins, author of When In French

'Breaking the silence around eating disorders with piercing honesty' Hugo Rifkind, Times columnist

'I urge any anorexic, or parent of an anorexic, to read this book' Daily Mail

'This is a heart-breaking account of what might lead someone to feel self-starvation is her only option and Freeman should be commended for her bravery in writing about this' Evening Standard

'She has brought to bear every ounce of her trademark clarity, precision and wit to render her own experience, and that of other women with anorexia, with the utmost specificity and sensitivity' New York Times

'Freeman is a brave, illuminating and meticulous reporter, and uses her experience wisely' Observer