Skinny

An excellent, well written and shocking story, from the very first page I wasn't able to put this book down for long. Told from two point of views, were thrust into a world of two sisters, Giselle and Holly. They lost their dad when they were young and their home life hasn't been the same since. Holly, a junior high student who's deaf in her left ear, is athletic and was her dads "favorite." And Holly's sister, Giselle, is a smart 22 year old in medical school to become a doctor, who, because of her anorexia becoming so severe, has to stop going to medical school after a year of attending. As their world falls apart because of Giselle's struggles with her inner self, the writer tells an ending to this story, that while I knew was show more possible, I had hoped the whole time I was reading, for a different outcome. A heart wrenching tale of what it means to be broken, I definitely recommend this book. show less

Reviewed by Allison M. Rotonda for TeensReadToo.com

Giselle is an intelligent, over-achieving medical student who is self-destructive and tormented by her relationship with her dead father. Holly is a blossoming young track star that struggles academically for several reasons, including the fact that she is hearing impaired. Giselle has been hospitalized and forced to return home to recover from anorexia. SKINNY tells the story of the effects of Giselle's illness on these two sisters now that Giselle has come back to the family home. The sisters take turns narrating the story.

Each chapter told from Giselle's perspective is laced with medical textbook excerpts that hold keys to the story. Holly's chapters are often brief and yet very show more poignant. The book details both sisters learning their family history and struggling with its effect on their current lives. The dialogue between the sisters is very well written, as are their inner monologues.

This book has many subplots and some come together in the end and others are not tied up so neatly. At times it feels as though Kaslik has attempted to write two completely different books about the same characters and weaved them together and yet, overall, the story is incredibly moving and emotional. Each sister's words force the reader to empathize with them despite the fact that they often seem to be battling against each other.

Overall, Kaslik has written a remarkable book about the devastating effects of eating disorders on both the person suffering from the illness and those around them. This book is incredibly weighty and touches on some incredibly intense issues at times, and would likely pose a challenge to even some of the strongest high school readers. But their efforts would not be wasted, as it is an incredibly satisfying read. It is accessible on several levels, so if a younger reader were to read this book they would likely take something from it as well, but revisiting the book later would likely reveal a more complex set of issues and themes. show less

Skinny is a story about two sisters, one who thrives while the other wastes away. While Giselle ( a 22 year old brilliant,pre-med student) is suffering though anorexia, her 14-year-old sister and co-narrator Holly is becoming a track and field star. Both are traumatized by the early death of their father, a gorgeous Hungarian doctor who we meet on the first page. Has lots of sex,(both hetero and homosexual) swearing and a questionable message for students. I would not use this in a booktalk to any student below Year 11.

The ending was kind of disapointing because I thought that it was an easy way out for the author to kill the main character, but the rest of the book was a wonderful display of the isolation that goes on through anorxia.

A fast paced book for teens about a young girl's descent into anorexia, told from alternating points of view of the sufferer and her sister.
I liked the structure of this novel, and also the family dynamic displayed. The characters were well developed, and their interactions were believable. I would recommend this to teens, and adults that are interested in eating disorders or adolescent development.

In the book “Skinny” by Ibi Kaslik, twenty year old Giselle is a medical student and is battling anorexia. With the odd relationship with her dead father ,Giselle is determined to find the mystery of her parent’s love that soon affected her life. On the other hand her 8th grade sister Holly is a track star who shares a special relationship with her father. She struggles academically in school, especially math,considering she is half deaf, but she still stays strong while her older sister undergoes anorexia. This novel shows how a disease cannot only affect the person that has it but their family and friends too. This novel consists of alternating perspectives from both Giselle and Holly as they tell their story of their hard life show more during this time.
This novel by Ibi Kaslik is so realistic and heart felt. I enjoyed how their were two protagonists who got to share their feelings toward the plot by alternating chapters. It made the book less boring. I also liked the whole plot of the story. Picking a topic about a disease that is so popular yet doesn't get much attention. It shows the effect of their families and friends during this time. There wasn’t a lot of surprising scenes in the book, but considering it was so realistic it didn’t need them. Overall i enjoyed this New York Times Bestseller book and look forward to reading more of Kaslik’s novels! show less

This book is about a girl called Holly . She has an older sister called Giselle who suffers from anorexia. Holly struggles a lot with her sisters disease and the whole thing develops into a tapestry of a whole family. The chapters rotate between the voices of Holly and Giselle, which makes the story very interesting and authentic. It's a perfect book for young girls (and boys) and it's definitely worth reading!