3 May 2016

Review #418: Dietland by Sarai Walker



My rating: 5 of 5 stars


“I am a better person when I have less on my plate.”


----Elizabeth Gilbert



Sarai Walker, an American best-selling author, has penned her debut entertaining diet-obsessing book, Dietland that is a powerhouse of fun, food and diets that will make the readers roar with laughter over the protagonists the story to lose weight and live her life as a normal human being. So buckle up your seat belts for this hilarious ride that can at times throw you off the edges off your seats.






Synopsis:

The wickedly funny feminist revenge fantasy that takes on the beauty industry, gender inequality and our weight-loss obsessed culture with fists flying.

Plum Kettle does her best not to be noticed, because when you're fat, to be noticed is to be judged. Or mocked. Or worse.

But when a mysterious woman starts following her, Plum finds herself involved with an underground community of women who live life on their own terms. At the same time, a dangerous guerrilla group called "Jennifer" begins to terrorize a world that mistreats women. As Plum grapples with her personal struggles, she becomes entangled in a sinister plot, the consequences of which are explosive.

Part coming-of-age story, part revenge fantasy, Dietland is a bold, original and funny debut.



Plum, a.k.a Alicia, who is supposed to be the thinner version of this thirty-something and a 300+ pound woman who has led pretty much all her life by hiding behind her life or trying to get lost in the crowd, so that no one gives her a second look. Plum works as an assistant to a famous teen magazine editor where her job is to answer teen fan mails citing issues and real-life problems, which she does not enjoy at all. She is working as an assistant only to save enough money for a surgery that will make her thin and for that purpose she is already shopping for her thinner version. But one day, she finds herself getting stalked by a strange girl who then leads her to a strange world where women with one motto wants to kidnap and kill men who did injustice to the women and to the world where women live freely and eat freely without worrying about what others will probably think about their weight. Will Plum turn into Alicia and live her life? Well, its for you to find out the answer to that question.

I absolutely LOVED this dark humor, multi-layered story involving Plum who is on a path to self-respect and self-love, and yes the book is honest about so many bitter truth and it does feel like taking a blow below the belt. Okay to be fair, I know many might not enjoy this kind of story which is so heavily layered and meddle among them at the mid of the story line. Moreover, some light find it bit cliched as there are so many novels featuring a plus-size protagonist. But I found it refreshing as the author twists the story that addresses and touches it base with so many current-day issues.

The author's writing style is witty and articulate and is laced with funny anecdotes. The narrative is engaging and is layered with suspense and humor. From the very first page, the readers might find a difficulty in connecting the parallel stories running along with Plum's story, but midway through the book, the readers will find the book extremely engrossing. The pacing is quite swift as the story freely flows into one direction with a number of twists and turns.

The central character is an absolute darling who brightens up the whole book even though she is depressed with her life and weight. Plum or Alicia, I liked both the versions of this girl, who is perfect to hold the baton lead those who feel de-motivated towards their life because of their weight issue. Her demeanor is extracted from reality and she is easy to connect with as the author delves deeper into her childhood thus letting the readers comprehend with her issues. The supporting characters are highly interesting and are well-developed.

The background of Plum's story is incorporated with stories from real-life like incidents like rape, verbal abuse, porn-stars, beauty treatments those are put to justice by a group of women called "Jennifer" and when both the stories leap into one another, the result is something compelling and thought-provoking.

Verdict: A highly thrilling, absolutely feminist yet thoroughly captivating coming-of-age novel.

Courtesy: Thanks to the author, Sarai Walker's publicist, for giving me an opportunity to read and review this book.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Author Info:
Sarai Walker received her M.F.A. in creative writing from Bennington College. As a magazine writer, her articles appeared in national publications, including Seventeen and Mademoiselle. She subsequently served as an editor and writer for Our Bodies, Ourselves, before moving to London and Paris to complete a Ph.D. She currently lives in the New York City area. Dietland is her first novel.
Visit her here



 Book Purchase Links:

0 comments:

Post a Comment

Thanks for your feedback!