Author: Tara St. Pierre
Series: -
Genres: YA, Contemporary
Publisher: Smashwords Edition
Source: Ebook
Pages: 306
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SYNOPSIS: All Carrie Roberts wants is to be a little bit smaller.
To fit into the perfect dress for the Valentine’s Day Dance. To look beautiful for her boyfriend, the school’s star basketball player. To keep his jealous ex-girlfriend, a rival cheerleader, away from him. And to be noticed by her classmates.
Exercising and dieting don’t work, but an advertisement for weight loss pills promises a quicker solution to her problem. As time runs out, she takes more than the recommended dose until she’s just a few inches slimmer. Heads turn when she arrives at the dance, and the wonderful night with her boyfriend is beyond what she dreamed it would be.
Days later, Carrie discovers that her body is changing in ways that should be impossible. While her doctor searches for a cure, she desperately turns to her friends and family for support. Everyone is noticing her now whether she likes it or not, and even the media is intrigued by her incredible story. Getting everything she once wanted has created new problems—problems that are growing more terrifying every day.
Because Carrie Roberts is shrinking.
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"Just a Few Inches" is a Young Adult novel that deals with issues of body image, self-esteem, and teenage relationships. It is intended for readers age 13 and up.
I received a copy from the author in exchange for an honest review.
After coming out of a reading slump, mostly caused by the summer break, this book was what I needed. It was easy to read, cute and fluffy, but deep down it had a message we are tired of hearing but that we ignore all the time because of society's pressure:
After coming out of a reading slump, mostly caused by the summer break, this book was what I needed. It was easy to read, cute and fluffy, but deep down it had a message we are tired of hearing but that we ignore all the time because of society's pressure:
Love your body. Treasure it. Take care of it. Respect it. You only have one.
THE WORLD: Our messed up, annoying, world. The book is divided into chapters which mark Carrie's height at the top as we see her getting smaller and smaller.
CHARACTERS: Carrie Roberts is the average senior student... or so she thinks because it is exactly that thought which leads her to take weighting-loss pills. She wanted to fit into the perfect prom dress to impress her perfect basketball captain boyfriend, Todd, and rub it on her archnemesis, Janelle (conveniently Todd's ex). Although she achieves the goal she starts shrinking as an odd side effect and from there on her live crumbles as she knows it. She becomes a bit distant with her bffs, Trish and Lauren, she fights more with her family... but at the same time she experiences personal growth and eventually comes into terms with who she really is. Actually only thanks to Evan, who plays a major role at the end.
LOVE: Typical teenage love but it wasn't annoying or melodramatic. It was actually quite cute at times.
PLUS: Here is the major plus: the message. How we should realize that every body is different and not all of us are made to be standard models. We are more than our bodies as well. Of course we have society's pressure to have perfect bodies and be "pretty" all the time and it's up to us to want to maintain perfect bodies but, in the end, it all comes up to how much attention we give to ourselves. We should take care of our bodies in a healthy way. Not over-obsessing with diets, pills, more diets, occasional sporting. Carrie was pressured to fit into a size smaller than she was even though her body was already good, since she is an active cheerleader. That kind of pressure is what we should avoid. Take a look at the mirror and say: my body, my rules. You maintain your body however you want (please take care that it's healthy. Health should come first, right?).
What I liked about the writing was that no moment did I see any possible triggers. The insecurity issue is handled with grace so I don't think it is necessary to give trigger warning for this book.
I also liked the characters in general as the author did a good job as developing them and making them appear more and more complex in each chapter gradually. It was good to read about 3D characters in YA Contemporary.
MINUS: Well... my only minus was that I was laughing at the science used to explain Carrie's shrinking state. I mean it may sound plausible even but that's not how the body works. Anyway, I disregard it as the message of the book was more important.
OVERALL: 4 stars. It was a really cute, fast-paced read! I just came out of a reading slump and this book opened the window to a reading spree. I recommended it to everyone searching for an easy contemporary read.
What I liked about the writing was that no moment did I see any possible triggers. The insecurity issue is handled with grace so I don't think it is necessary to give trigger warning for this book.
I also liked the characters in general as the author did a good job as developing them and making them appear more and more complex in each chapter gradually. It was good to read about 3D characters in YA Contemporary.
MINUS: Well... my only minus was that I was laughing at the science used to explain Carrie's shrinking state. I mean it may sound plausible even but that's not how the body works. Anyway, I disregard it as the message of the book was more important.
OVERALL: 4 stars. It was a really cute, fast-paced read! I just came out of a reading slump and this book opened the window to a reading spree. I recommended it to everyone searching for an easy contemporary read.
What did you guys think about JUST A FEW INCHES?
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