Good Luck with That

Good Luck With That by Kristan Higgins

I wasn’t sure I wanted to read this. A bit too close to home.
But like all books by this author, the characters, dialog and writing were intense and wonderfully enthralling.
I loved it. Cringed a few times in self identification but wish for the self-acceptance that Georgia and Marley both achieve.

Emotionally intense for anyone who has struggled with their weight and self body image. So many true statements that you don’t want to admit to.
Food as an addiction. It’s not like you can stop, right? So then you must deal with the reasons and the emotional while still feeding the addiction.
And a bit profound in the end.

“ that’s what the list was about. The chance to get it right. It wasn’t show more about tucking in shirts and piggyback rides. It was about not letting your weight define you, and not letting that decide when you could be the person you wanted to be. She wanted us to stop waiting, and start living, the way she never got to, not totally.
In the most innocent way, our 18-year-old selves had written a map to loving ourselves. The only thing wrong had been the title. It shouldn’t have been “Things to do when were skinny.” It should’ve just been “Things to do.”
Excerpt from Good Luck With That by Kristan Higgins show less

Krista Higgins is my favorite writer of contemporary romantic fiction, but with this book she goes way beyond the category. Weight is a central preoccupation for many American women -- including me -- and Ms. Higgins shows how expectations and assumptions about weight can blight lives. Her three heroines are seriously overweight; one morbidly so, one to an extent that distorts her life, and one who actually manages to live with it fairly gracefully. Ms. Higgins shows the pain and self-loathing that bedevil women who are heavier than they want to be. She is vividly clear about the nature of food addiction, and about the horrible consequences of morbid obesity. At the same time, she manages to tell three involving stories. I really cared show more about the heroines, suffered when they suffered, and felt joy when things went well for them. A terrific romantic novel, and so much more. show less

Obligatory animal life update: IT'S OKAY THE BUNNY DOES NOT DIE.

I wrote this before reading other reviews, and I think I'll leave it that way. (With an additional two cents: 100% support you 1 starring a book you've read either 20% or 50 pages of. Do not support you 1 starring a book you haven't read. Okay I'm good now. Back to my thoughts.)

Oh, how LOVELY this was! How heart-warming and affirming and enveloping! This is Higgins back at her deeper self, writing real women's fiction as opposed to romance.

Though this does talk extensively about weight, the main plot line revolves around the girls doing things that scare them, just like one of those really good YA books where they make lists and try to accomplish them. Their list of things show more involved mainly things they had at 18 wanted to accomplish, and I loved seeing how these things were still relevant.

I love that there's a lot of positivity in this book. Both main characters demonstrate an ability to be happy without men in their lives. Their relationship with Georgia's nephew is absolutely phenomenal.

I don't have personal experience with being overweight, but I can still relate to the way society is constantly demanding of women to be skinnier, to wear more makeup, to wear less makeup, to look some particular way for the men in the world. I felt like this novel did an incredible job at documenting that struggle while being overall affirming.

This is one of Higgins's better ones, and I'm so glad I picked it up.

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. show less

I adored this story - it was brave, courageous and hard to read at moments - but it resonated with me so much. Good Luck With That is the story of three women who became best friends at fat camp and vowed that they would all change their lives and be skinny someday, but it opens up with a tragedy. Marley and Georgia have stayed really close - in fact they live in the same building - their pal Emerson though still lives a state away. It's been a few years since they've seen her and they are shocked when they get the call that she is on her death bed. When they arrived that are STUNNED at just how large Emerson is, she isn't just fat she is super morbidly obese and dying. What happened, how did she get so bad. They've all had weight show more issues their entire lives, but this is over the top. She gives them a letter and makes them promise to do what's in it. Sadly Emerson dies and they realize that she has given them the list from summer camp of all the things they said they wanted to do when they got skinny - get a piggy back ride, do a photo shoot, tuck in a shirt, etc. Marley and Georgia may not be super obese but they are both fat and they both have insecurities - is this list too juvenile... is it too hard? Wonderful and eye opening - a look at insecurity, weight, family, trust, and more. A wonderful novel. show less

4.5 stars.

Good Luck with That by Kristan Higgins is a poignant yet uplifting novel of friendship, love and healing.

Georgia Sloane, Marley DeFelice and Emerson Duval met one another at a weightloss camp when they were teens. Now in their mid-thirties, they remain close friends and when Emerson passes away, her last request is that Marley and Georgia complete the list of activities they compiled their last year at the camp. Despite their discomfort with some of the items on the activities, they agree they need to honor their friend's wish. Once they have completed the list, will Georgia and Marley have made progress in coming to terms with how being overweight has affected many aspects of their lives?

Georgia is a former lawyer turned show more nursery school teacher whose marriage failed due to her unresolved issues with her weight. Throughout her childhood, both her mother and brother frequently disparaged her appearance which still continues to some degree in the present. Cowed by their remarks and dismissive attitude, Georgia has never confronted them on their verbal and emotional abuse. Despite her recent weight loss following a family emergency, Georgia's perception of herself remains skewed and she cannot "see" herself as anything other than overweight and unworthy. When her ex-husband Rafe Santiago re-enters her life due to his niece becoming one of her students, Georgia is finally forced to confront how her body issues and lack of self-worth led to the self-destructive end of her marriage to a man who at one time worshiped her.

Marley has made peace with the fact that she will never be skinny. She lives a very healthy lifestyle and she has a positive relationship with food. Her family is warm, loving and gregarious but the loss of Marley's twin sister has left an indelible mark on her and the rest of the brood. Despite her happy and upbeat personality, Marley does not have much of a romantic history. In fact, for the past five years, she has been pining after a man whose treatment of her is absolutely abysmal. Yet, Marley is willing to settle for him because no one else has taken an interest in her. During the course of the book, Marley traverses the emotional minefield of dealing with the loss of her twin while at the same time realizing she deserves more than being some man's occasional booty call.

Emerson's part of the storyline is revealed through a series of diary entries. Not gonna lie, these passages are incredibly difficult to read because her self-loathing just pours off the pages. Emerson's relationship with food is incredibly toxic and her relationship with a co-worker is just tragic. Her food addiction leads her to become morbidly obese and this shame results in her distancing herself from Georgia and Sloane. In the end, Emerson's last request to Marley and Georgia has a much deeper meaning than just crossing items off of a list.

Good Luck with That is an incredibly heartfelt and emotional novel that inspires both laughter and tears. Georgia and Marley's close friendship is quite endearing and their love and support for each other is unconditional. Kristan Higgins deftly handles tough subject matter in a forthright manner and provides an insightful and thought provoking novel that realistically portrays women's struggles with weight, self-acceptance and body image. An extremely well-written and meaningful novel that made me laugh, cry and give serious consideration to the issues Marley, Georgia and Emerson have struggled with throughout their lives.

Read about Ms. Higgins' personal struggles with body image HERE.
Ms. Higgins discusses Good Luck with That HERE. show less

Georgia, Emerson, and Marley first met at fat camp. They have remained friends for years, especially Georgia and Marley. Emerson doesn't live as close so when the other two women find out she's dying, they feel devastated and guilty. They decide they must fulfill her dying wish that they check off the list of things they wanted to do back when they were eighteen and hoped not to be fat one day.
I love this book so much. While there are the sections where I laughed out loud (every Kristan Higgins book has some of this and omg, the magic act), I also cried (Mason's race). There were some parts that are, to be frank, quite horrifying, but the whole book is so authentic. Georgia, Marley, and Emerson have strengths and weaknesses like show more everyone. Almost all the other characters are the same, except maybe Rafe, but I could emphasize even with Big Kitty, the main villainess when Georgia realizes the reasons her mother has issues also.
There's a lot packed in here: Marley's twin died at age four and she's always felt guilty about it, Georgia pushed the love of her life into a divorce, Will is suffering from survivor's guilt. But it's never too much, and the laughter always balances the tears.
Good Luck with That is a lovely, lovely story, and I expect to reread it a few times in the future. I wish I could give it more stars. show less

Kristan Higgins is a reliable author for me. She started out writing smart and funny contemporary romances, and seems to have now transitioned permanently to general fiction (I refuse to call this "women's" fiction) dealing with families and relationships. Unfortunately, this one was a bit of a disappointment for me as I felt the secondary characters (which Higgins usually writes really well) were all a bit one-dimensional and cliched. That said, the themes of the book about self-image, body positivity, and the power of friendship are important ones, and Higgins still injects some of her signature humor. I think I was hoping for just a bit more.