Weight is a big issue in Carmen's life - not surprising when her mother is obsessed with dieting and is determined that her daughter will be thin. But with a long list of failed diets behind her and a mountain of empty wrappers under the bed. Carmen knows the comfort of forbidden food. Swept off to Birmingham by her mum. Carmen finds her old life disappearing - her home, her friends and her father. With everything to gain and nothing to lose Carmen starts to ask: if she were thin, very thin, could it all be different?
Reviews of Massive
' . . .boldly yet sensitively explores complex interactions between emotional and nutritional needs . . . perceptive and disturbing . . .' The Bookseller
'. . . told with sympathy and humour and somehow manages to be enjoyable as well as thought-provoking.' Big Issue
' . . .examines the pressures being yourself and trying to fit in. Big, bold and brave.' J17
'Novels for teenagers about eating disorders can be tricky. Bell's debut novel is tough, grimy and truthful as it looks at three women in the same family with food problems. For Carmen's mum Maria, thin equals success. She despairs of her podgy teenage daughter and, when a job opportunity arises in Birmingham, she whisks Carmen away to the big city. Soon Carmen is discovering her roots, including a grandmother who equates food with affection. Bell comes at her subject with a clever obliqueness, using the dislocated experience of the strange city to reflect Maria's and Carmen's fixations on food. A small chink of hope at the end suggests that Carmen will break the vicious circle and that the legacy will not be passed on.'
The Guardian
And my favorite review from Alison from Canada who wrote on Amazon:
'An Amazing Mistake: I was leaving for a family vacation, so as usual I stopped by the book store and library. I happened upon this book because it was one of the few I hadn't read in the section I wandered into. I was pleasantly surprised. This is an amazing book with a really good story, I would recommend it to anyone who likes the works of Francesca Lia Block, or suffers with an eating disorder or family problems.'
