Eating Disorder Memoirs: How many have you read?
17 May
Hi Gang! I was asked to participate in a study for the Department of Sociology at the University of Cambridge regarding Eating Disorder Memoirs. The survey is quite interesting, and it only takes a few minutes, so if you would like to be a part CLICK HERE.
If you do take the survey, please leave me a comment here, I am curious to see how many of us will take it.
As I went through the survey, the main thing that struck me was how many eating disorder memoirs there are! I would guess there are over 50 on the list. I found that I have not read very many (probably because I spend so much time on this blog and elsewhere on the web communicating with people on the subject).
I would also be curious to know how many of these books you have read….5, 10, 50?? Maybe its time to write your own! 
mamaV
Related posts:
Ill take it now.
Done! read 8 of them and agreed to take part in online or telephone interview thingy
I took it. I read about 10. Going through my book lists if you include other books about ED, not just memoirs, it’s closer to 30! Interesting.
Yeah I have books that are about them but are not memoirs too. Id be closer to around 18 – 20 including them
I think I only read 3 of them. I recognized several other names, but couldn’t recall if I had read them. Most of the (many) ED/related books I’ve read in the past have been fiction. I had no idea there were quite so many memoirs!
I’m going to take it ^-^
hey mama v,
I have read 10 books on that list…and there were some that weren’t even on there…i used to sit in barnes and noble hour after hour day after day reading those books to find solace or something to help me know i wasn’t alone is some way. This is a very interesting survey
by the way mama v, i am the kay that got busted on your site, and you know what- that moment most likely saved my life…so thank you from the bottom of my heart
I took it and found I haven’t read any of them. I had heard of one, though. I usually read fiction ED books.
Did the survey. I read 10 of them.
I did the survey. I’ve read 11 of them.
I read about ten of them- half of them are very old and from the eighties that I did not like as much as I have liked newer more recent ones because the information about the illness and treatmodels and options is far more accurate and current with what we know now that most people didn’t back then when I first got sick.
I really liked the books Hungry, Purge, Thin, and Life without ED- I didn’t like Life without Ed’s sequal as much because I tend to disagree with her theory that while it is possible, most people at least the gazillion ed patients I know and have met still do struggle with ed thoughts and some, behavior even after weight restoration. I think for the majority, it’s still always there even if you aren’t acting out on it. At least it is for me. I’ve also read a lof fiction books on anorexia like best little girl in the world, and a few whose titles I cant remember from Hight school. I read winter girls a few months back by Laurie Halse Anderson. It was really good, but disturbing
I think I read around 25 of them.
Wintergirls was a veguely disturbing book but I really liked it. It was very thoughtful and I thought that the author showed the life of someone with an eating disorder in a remarkably clear way for someone that never had one.
I am actually working on editing my journals and clearifing the main points of it so hopefully in the end it will be something that makes sense to other people, perhaps a memoir…Mostly beause I have been journalling extensively since I was 8 years old so I figure I should do something with the over 1,000 pages of journal entries.
I had read or at least invested time into about 10 of them and had heard of many more. Sad to admit, I think a lot of them I read in hope for some type of trigger more than seeking resolution from an ED. There was one not on there, maybe not really a memoir I guess “Telling ED NO!” which I have enjoyed.
I LOVE “Go Ask Alice”.
I took it!
I’d read 4 or 5 of the ones on their list although I’ve read more and ther ED related books (The Golden Cage is probably still my favourite). I also read them to be triggered and I’m yet to find one that gives me any useful fuel for my recovery. They all make me a bit uncomfortble to be honest, but I’ll keep buying them.