Best Little Girl in the World

Rating:
Summary: Thinner is definitely not the winner.
Review: Have you ever heard the saying, "Thinner is the winner"? I would bet that most people haven't. That's because it's the personal saying of a young dancer named Francesca Dietrich. Francesca has always been quiet, mild mannered, and academically Successful. But, when pressure starts building up to lose weight at dance, and the deafening silence of being ignored at home becomes overwhelming, a new person emerges. Her name is Kessa. She's the new and improved version of Francesca, she's an anorexic. She starts slipping down dramatically, in weight and grades, and also into an obsessive eray of rituals centered around weight loss. If you like books about psychological disorders, and books that you can learn a great deal form, then this book is for you. But, those with a weak stomach beware; the sad truth about this disease is quite sickening.

Rating:
Summary: Interesting but typical account of anorexia nervosa.
Review: I first read this book about a year ago and have continued to read it on and off since then. The account of anorexia, bulimia, and obsessive-compulsive disorder it presents certainly makes for an interesting read. However, I feel that the book is somewhat a typical eating-disorders story. The usual characters (passive mother, bullying alcoholic father, helpful non-judgemental therapist) are present, and the book does not offer a deep or honest enough glimpse into 15-year old Kessa's head, nor does it offer any hint of Kessa's personality pre or post-disorder. I also found it odd that Kessa was hospitalized when her weight hovered around 71 lbs; with a starting weight of 98 lbs on a 5' 4" frame, surely she would have been hospitalized before such a fatal weight was reached. Finally, a 15-year-old is not representative of the eating-disordered population. This book is ideal for junior-high anorexia sufferes, but a more realistic and captivating portrait of the diseas! ! e can be found in the recent Wasted by Marya Hornbacher.

Rating:
Summary: Formulaic and disappointing
Review: This would have worked far better if it hadn't been so predictable and stereotypical. Maybe it's because the author is, first and foremost, a psychologist/psychiatrist (I don't know which) rather than an author of fiction. This means that the book is very accurate at describing the development and characteristics of eating disorders but the prose is often slightly stilted and the characters one-dimensional. It was also a major problem for me that the protagonist weighs only 98lbs BEFORE she starts to starve herself; she believes herself to be overweight, which for an anorexic is to be expected, but surely her ballet teacher would not say that a fifteen-year-old of average height is overweight at 98 pounds! She's in fact underweight already, so is her ballet teacher very irresponsible? If not, why did Levenkron have her start the book at such a low weight?
Another thing is the stereotypical nature of the characters. Kessa/Francesca is the youngest in a rich middle-class family; she's a high achiever; her parents don't understand or listen to her; she's a dancer and compulsive exerciser: it's such a textbook case that certainly informs about the teenagers most at risk from EDs but does nothing to defy any stereotypes. Something that annoyed me a lot was the treatment Kessa got from some of the psychiatrists, mostly along the lines of 'You're behaving like a little child, now stop being so silly or we'll put you in hospital'; surely a trained psychiatrist would know about anorexia? Maybe there was little awareness of it when the book was written.
The book tries to be both factual study of anorexia and a work of fiction, but is neither fully. For people searching for hard facts you'd probably be better off with a textbook (Levenkron has written some, I think).

Rating:
Summary: Struggling With Anorexia.
Review: Struggling with Anorexia
Imagine being caught between two personalities as well as being an anorexic. How would you feel? Or even react? This book has the answer. Yes, I would recommend it. The Best Little Girl in the World
is a novel with a great deal of information. It also warns you of possibilities and outcomes.
The Best Little Girl in the World is a well thought out book with an informational and interesting conflict. For example the dialogue an thinking of Kessa gives you a perspective of a troubled young anorexic female. Throughout the book Kessa is struggling with a disease called Anorexia Nervosa, which I thought was caused by a ballet teacher. As a split personality Kessa has two sides. Francesca of she sees as a fat straight A girl, and Kessa who is skinny and pretty. Later she kills off Francesca and in turn kills off food. Although it takes Kessa's parents a while to realize that she is sick and unhealthy, they do try and help her. Her parents make her see two doctors for treatment. Still unwilling to eat she is put into a hospital where she seeing a physiatrist by the name of Dr. Sandy Sherman. All alone she feels confused and scared. I think that if Sandy Sherman wouldn't have help Kessa through her problems, she wouldn't have gotten all her feelings and problems out. Dr Sherman gets Kessa to open up and share her feelings, which was the beginning of a new relationship.
Dr Sherman aided Kessa with her struggle of Anorexia Nervosa. Although Kessa felt comfortable around her physiatrists there was still things she didn't share. It was good that Kessa eventually began to trust Dr. Sherman enough to tell him everything. I thought he was an honest guy who devotes himself to Kessa and her problems. As a result sandy figures out what really bothering Kessa, and is able to help and tell others. I think since his help, Kessa has mentally and physically gotten better. Dr. Sherman shows that he cares and gives Kessa attention, because he wants to know the inside look of an anorexic. It's good to see Dr. Sandy Sherman is an extreme help to Kessa throughout the book
Even with the physical and mental help of a physiatrist, the ending has a twist. This is a book I would recommend reading, because it not only shows you possible outcomes. It also shows you the meaning of relationships.

Rating:
Summary: A shallow look into a serious disorder
Review: As a sufferer of anorexia, I can assure potential readers that you will be given a very shallow look into the disorder. The characters are so one-dimensional and such stereotypical components of "the anorexic family" that the story is almost predictable. There are several "flaws" to the story. For example, the main character, Francesca/Kessa (is this MPD or anorexia we're talking about! ), wouldn't just consciously DECIDE to starve herself so quickly--that's insane and the disorder doesn't work that way. Maybe Levenkron was saving paper, who knows? And she wouldn't think of herself as being thinner than anyone, let alone supermodels in a magazine. And oh, how wonderful is the male therapist Kessa finally sees? Couldn't be a mirror image of Levenkron himself, could it? Also, recovering anorectic readers won't be encouraged with the fact that the story begins with Francesca/Kessa at an already "very skinny" weight prior to the anorexia. If you want an awesome, powerful (perhaps too powerful for some) book on eating disorders, give WASTED by Marya Hornbacher a try. Now that's the best!

Rating:
Summary: Good unless you are struggling with an eating disorder
Review: This book is a good learning tool for someone who doesn't know anything about eating disorders and would like to learn, or you know someone who is suffering from an eating disorder and would like to help them. However I do NOT recomend this book to people who are struggling with an eating disorder. I am working on overcoming mine and this book was recomended by a friend who said it helped her learn about eating disorders, but it didn't help me except to give me tips on how to hide my problem more, and to be the "best" bulimic/anorexic. But thank God I have a good support system and I was able to talk to someone about the book and they helped me see that becoming a better bulimic isn't a good thing, in fact it's just hurting myself more.....So this is a good book as long as you aren't struggling with an eating disorder, but if you are steer clear, it was almost a stumbling block for me and almost put me back into the world I never want to return to.

Rating:
Summary: Good points, but too much language
Review: I'd love to share the book with my 12 year old who is suffering with anerexia, but the language was inappropriate. I agree with many other reviews, but nobody seemed bothered by the PG13 language. It's not how we talk in my family and I don't need to plant those ideas in my struggling girl!!!

Rating:
Summary: Interesing Account of a Girl's Desent into Anorexia
Review: As a recovering anorexic, I've developed a library of books on the subject of my disease. As a therapist, Levenkron gives some interesting insight about the anorexic mind that many other authors cannot share; though primarily told through the eyes of a girl modeled off Levenkron's clients, he also leaves room for the perspective of the girl's parents and the psychiatrist that eventually saves her. Though I don't necessarily recommend this book for an anorexic or bulimic, I wish that more people in general would read this kind of book; that way many of the myths about eating disorders would be dissolved.

Rating:
Summary: Written for author's advancement...
Review: I honestly could not stand this book. At first, I didn't know why. I thought maybe it was because of the way Kessa is treated by the hospital staff, (being called a "skinny" and such), or her family's stubborness. Then, I read "Wasted" by Marya Hornbacher. If you want to know about eating disorders, read that. In it, Marya mentions this book, and how the Levenkron uses this book to demonstrate "his own genius at curing eating disorders." I had to agree fully. Now, I consider myself a fairly good reader. That is, I try to put myself in the frame of mind of the time the book was written rather then my own state of mind today. This book sickened me. I must admit that it made me admire people with eating disorders for a while, for their discipline and skill at deceit. Reading "Wasted" removed the glamourized image "The Best Little Girl In The World" gave me. If anyone who has an eating disorder, or is at risk for developing one, they should NOT read this book. Kessa seems to be turned into a martyr almost, and Levenkron's portrayal of people with eating disorders reflects many stereotypes people have of eating disorders.
One other thing that bothers me is how it seems Kessa went from being perfectly healty to starving to death to healthy again in a matter of weeks. Eating disorders evolve over time. They aren't something that you can just wake up one morning and say "I'm looking chubby. I think I'm going to become anorexic." That message doesn't come across clearly. And they make it seem that once Kessa leaves the hospital, she's going to be perfectly healthy. Maybe in an ideal world..
While this book is a good example of stereotypes of eating disorders, and how medical knowledge advances over time, it is a sickening book that could send a person on the line of illness over the edge. I advise caution and that one keep in mind the time at which it was written if you are going to read it.

Rating:
Summary: Fabulous!
Review: This book was absolutley fabulous. I couldn't put it down, but I was upset once I had finished it, because it was so good. Although I just ordered the sequel "Kessa" off of levenkron.com and I can't wait to get it! I also reccommend "The Luckiset Girl in the World" by Steven Levenkron, he is just a terrific author!