Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson

After having written SPEAK a book about a girl’s traumatic experience, author Laurie Halse Anderson, began to hear from kids who had been or who were battling eating disorders. This spurred her on to write Wintergirls, a deeply compelling novel about Lia, an eighteen-year-old battling anorexia.

Lia used to have a friend called Cassie who was bulimic. Cassie is now dead but she seems to rule Lia’s mind, encouraging her to fatality. Who is going to help Cassie out of this cycle of despair? Lia is surrounded by her family, but do they really understand the demons that torment her?

The author very graphically details the suffering of an anorexic. However there is assurance in the conclusion, that there exists a glimmer of hope for Lia or for anyone with an eating disorder.

In an interview in the School Library Journal (June 2009) Laurie Halse Anderson says she did a lot of research on anorexia and even visited pro-ana Web sites (Web sites that promote anorexia). The author also elaborates that she used the myth of Persephone to tell the story.

Wintergirls is a book for secondary school and deals with the subjects of eating disorders, death, grief and emotional problems.

by Janice Rodrigues