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Title details for Good Girls by Hadley Freeman - Available

Good Girls

A Study and Story of Anorexia

by Hadley Freeman
Hadley Freeman
Audiobook (Includes supplementary content)
1 of 1 copy available
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1 of 1 copy available
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.

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    April 18, 2023

  • Formats

    • OverDrive Listen audiobook

      • ISBN: 9781797157979
      • File size: 227739 KB
      • Duration: 07:54:27

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • Publisher's Weekly

      April 3, 2023
      Sunday Times journalist Freeman (House of Glass) chronicles her struggles with anorexia in this illuminating memoir. At 14, a classmate referred to Freeman’s body as “normal,” which sent her spiraling into disordered eating: “A black tunnel yawned open inside me, and I tumbled down it, Alice into Nowhereland.” To better understand the disorder that gripped her for more than two decades, Freeman interviews patients she came to know during her own hospitalizations, talks to doctors about treatment, and traces links between eating disorders and autism, depression, and—rather dubiously—gender dysphoria, which she suggests may be rooted in body hate the same way eating disorders are. Freeman also posits that anorexia is, in part, a way for girls to rage against enforced passivity: “It isn’t really about the food.... It’s about trying to say something without having to speak; it’s about the fear of sexualization and fear of womanhood; it’s about sadness and anger and the belief you’re not allowed to be sad and angry because you’re supposed to be perfect.” The most poignant aspects of the book, though, are personal, as when Freeman recounts her lack of close friends in adolescence. For readers wishing to understand this disease, Freeman offers valuable (if sometimes questionable) insight. The result is affecting, though uneven. Agent: Georgia Garrett, Rogers, Coleridge & White.

    • AudioFile Magazine
      Hadley Freeman's British accent and strong sense of pacing make for easy listening on the difficult subject of anorexia. Her transitions, both in writing and in narrating, are flawless as she merges 30 years of personal experiences, interviews with professionals and patients, research about treatment and causes, humor, horror, and heart. The views she presents are thoughtful, stereotype-busting, surprising pictures of what anorexia is and is not. She dispels the typical explanation--"it's the mother's fault"--instead focusing on quiet trigger moments when girls fear womanhood and the sexuality and performance issues that it portends. Descriptions of her experiences are studded with poignant imagery, and her meaning is often expressed with humorous disgust--for example, when she recounts the many reasons given by professionals for her anorexia. S.W. © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine
    • Library Journal

      June 10, 2024

      Sunday Times journalist Freeman (House of Glass) documents her struggle with anorexia nervosa and describes being hospitalized at various facilities from the age of 14 through 17. In this gripping, self-narrated memoir, Freeman traces her difficult recovery, sharing experiences with family, friends, and teachers--some noticed her rapid weight decline, and others did not. Influenced by culture, gender roles, societal expectations, and self-hatred, the author discusses how she developed the eating disorder that would shape the rest of her life. She offers an approachable look into studies that show how the diagnosis, treatment, and recovery from the disease have changed in the 30 years since her hospitalizations. She also links the disease to her own experience with OCD and autism, sharing research that suggests that the two are linked. Throughout the book, Freeman resists overgeneralizing, acknowledging that there are many experiences of anorexia, and that this memoir represents her personal experience and understanding. She also provides a list of resources for those who want to learn more. VERDICT A brave and timely memoir, enhanced by the author's authentic, heartfelt narration.--Elyssa Everling

      Copyright 2024 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

subjects

Languages

  • English

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