*****
In The Obvious Game, Rita Arens shows us one girl's downward slide into a serious eating disorder. Diana, the main character, is a high school student that most of us would identify with in some manner. She's not the popular girl, she was teased about her weight, her circle of friends is changing, she falls for the new boy in town. Oh, and her mother is battling cancer. (That one isn't on everyone's list, I'm guessing.)
Quite often while I was reading I wondered, "How did Rita get into my head?," my identification with Diana was so strong. Her inner dialogue about her appearance could have been written by a teenage me. (And quite honestly, sometimes it could be written by a current me.) We come to see what pushed Diana past that line, but what about my own line? Would an event tomorrow cause me to cross that line in my own life? And what or who would notice or be able to 'save' me?
Diana has stuck with me for weeks since finishing the book.
*****
I highly recommend this book for young adults and adults alike. I think that it would be a great conversation starter for a mother and daughter to explore body image, stress management, communication, and more. I would also suggest you urge your local middle school and city libraries to have copies as well. The topic is that important and books like this are a great way to start the conversation.
Get your copy of The Obvious Game at these retailers: (both sellers have print and digital copies for sale)
Barnes and Noble
Amazon
Oh, and when you visit the Rita Arens page on Amazon there are links to all of Rita's published works. Worth it.
*****
I was given a digital copy of The Obvious Game for review. No other compensation was received. All opinions are my own.
3 comments:
You said, "Would an event tomorrow cause me to cross that line in my own life? And what or who would notice or be able to 'save' me?" My gosh, but this sentence alone was enough to make want to grab a copy of this book. Great review, Kendra, thanks for the heads up!
Thanks so much for taking the time to read and review my novel! If you ever wonder how often women experience disordered thinking about eating, just look at the reviews of this book. It's shocked even me, but also buoyed me because I'm realizing this book can work for adults as well as teens, and that is so amazing.
Sounds like a good book. I am going to put it in my cart on Amazon.
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