What is this about?
Mindy is a young barista, who is a binge eater. Her life is stuck/ stopped and when she pics up a chocolate called Eat, and Love Yourself, and takes a bite, she begins to relive parts of her past, and begins to understand exactly why she is the way she is.
What else is this about?
Eat and Love Yourself is a gorgeous coming that takes readers on Mindy’s journey of self-discovery and her start to understanding her past and her body dysmorphia. This is a story that tackles a big topic in a way that is incredibly understandable.
Blurb
A story about Mindy, a woman living with an eating disorder who has to learn how to love herself again.
In pursuit of the perfect body, Mindy buys the low-fat diet products and the glossy magazines which promise the secret to losing weight. One night, while perusing the aisles of the neighborhood convenience store for a midnight snack, she finds a new product. A chocolate bar called “Eat and Love Yourself”. On a whim, Mindy buys the curious candy, not knowing that with every piece of chocolate she eats, she will be brought back to a specific moment of her past — helping her to look at herself honestly, learn to love her body the way it is, and accepting love. Perhaps, she will even realize that her long lost high school best friend, Elliot, was more than just a friend…
Eat, and Love Yourself is a little gem of a graphic novel.
It’s Mindy’s story; she is an overweight barista, who feels a stuck in a rut, even if she doesn’t want to admit it. Life is a cycle of work, sleep and binge, before she throws up her junk food.
Mindy would call herself fat, given the way she art depicts her pinching the fat on her belly. The first time I saw her, I thought she was gorgeous, and voluptuous, but isn’t that the word people use to avoid calling women fat? I liked Mindy; I can see myself in her. I’ve been doing it this past couple of weeks — snacking incessantly bc I am worried about something or the other, and regretting it later and wondering why on earth I needed that snack when I wasn’t exactly hungry.
Mindy though has deeper issues to deal with; issues that stem from her childhood, and that’s when the Eat and Love Yourself chocolate come in. Set in an innocuous display at her local grocery store, she buys it. But when she eats it, she is transported to memories of her childhood, when her father berated her for being late to everything, or letting her know she could afford to miss a meal here and there. Her mother, while good natured, never really defended her.
Things like that build such insecurities, flip comments that the speaker doesn’t really think about — but the person listening takes in. Comments like that matter like Mindy discovers, recalling too the psychiatrist she talked to and diagnosed her with body dysmorphia.
There’s a romance floating around in the background of this story, but this story is about Mindy acknowledging she has to work on herself before she can do anything else with anyone else.
There’s beauty in this story, in the way that Mindy begins to understand herself better, and begins to stand up for herself. I know there are plenty of moments I would have liked that sort of understanding myself.
Go get Eat, and Love Yourself — go share it with a young woman or man in your life you think might need it. And even if they don’t, give it to them anyway — these are the stories young readers need to see.
This sounds promising, thanks for sharing your thoughts
Sounds like a very good and important read for any girl or woman. Thanks so much for bringing it to my attention!
This one has such an important message. I love seeing books that feature different characters with different physical or mental struggles. This kind of representation is SO important!
This definitely sounds like a story a lot of people can relate to!
I think this is a story that will resonate with a lot of women. Sounds really good!
Wow, this sounds wonderful and it’s such an important book. I can think of several people I’d love to recommend it to because I think Mindy’s journey would really resonate with them.
This sounds like a beautiful and thought-provoking graphic novel. I find that I am able to connect to a story and enjoy it more when I can relate to the main character. I’ve been snacking too much also lately. The combination of stress, and boredom with the shelter in place and everything going on right now seems to be contributing to it.
Oh wow, this sounds fantastic! I do love a good graphic novel, and I think I’d be able to relate to the MC a lot too.
I NEED this one. It does sound really great. And like you, I think that Mindy is absolutely gorgeous!
This sounds like a great story! Thanks for bringing it to my attention.