Kelly deVos is no stranger to tough conversations. Her new book, Fat Girl on a Plane, has garnered acclaim for it’s tactful and relatable approach to body image at any size. Now she’s raising her bold and unique voice in the New York Times in her essay “The Problem with Body Positivity” to explore just that. Here’s a taste:
“Everything I thought I knew about body positivity had somehow become wrong.
One morning last year, I logged into my teenage daughter’s student profile to add lunch money to her account. I was surprised to find only a few dollars missing.
We were driving when I confronted her. I could tell she was having difficulty putting her thoughts into words. “Mom,” she blurted out, “I want to lose weight.”… My daughter — an average-size teenager — had been buying only a diet soda each day. She hadn’t eaten lunch in a week. My daughter and I are tight, so my first question was, “Why didn’t you discuss this with me?”
But I knew the answer: The body positivity movement had hit our relationship.”
Check out Kelly’s book, Fat Girl on a Plane on sale June 5th!
Praise for Fat Girl on a Plane
“Author Kelly Devos tackles the topic of body image and loving all of yourself in Fat Girl on a Plane.” – Girls’ Life
“Fat Girl on a Plane [is] packed with smart zingers about what it feels like to be fat and have a body that people criticize, joke about, even ban from airplanes. But Fat Girl on a Plane is not just about that. It’s also a fairytale romp through the New York City fashion world.” –Carolyn Mackler, B&N Teen Blog
“A savvy, smart, and funny book about taking control of your body and your destiny.” —Kathleen Glasgow, author of the New York Times bestselling novel Girl in Pieces
“Bold, unique, and completely original, Fat Girl On A Plane is unafraid to stand up and take action. A debut both spirited and inventive, much like its indomitable heroine.” —Laurie Elizabeth Flynn, author of Firsts
“This is a realistic portrayal of the frustrations of weight loss and size acceptance, complete with realistic and authentic depictions of sex, body positivity, and ambition. VERDICT A strong choice for most YA shelves.” —School Library Journal
“Readers will appreciate deVos’s characterization of Cookie, who realistically struggles to stay true to herself, regardless of the numbers on the scale.” —Publishers Weekly