This is a very important book!

If you have a kid, were a kid at some point, or are in any way kid-adjacent, you should probably read this book.

Genuinely one of the most important books I could have read this year. Or any. I learning so much of the fatphobic bullshit that was ingrained into me from an early age thanks to my upbringing and society was intense and therapeutic. Reframing that in context to raising two kids in this world blew my mind entirely. I will be recommending this to anyone and everyone for such a long time.

Parent or not, I'm begging every person who is around, has ever been around, will ever be around, or has ever been a child to read this book.

Some excellent stuff in here. The first 25% is just trying to convince you that dieting is bad and fatness is neutral, and you can get that perspective in many other places. Where this book shines I think is in the how-to's. Lots of sample scripts for talking to thin kids and fat kids alike about anti-fat bias, as well as other people in kids' lives, like grandparents, coaches, teachers, and friends. Huge resource section in the back.

The one thing I thought was missing was more engagement with capitalism (I mean, of course I thought that, I'm a Marxist sociologist, but still). There's a chapter on social media that's great, and emphasizes building kids' media literacy, which is essential, but also leaves out much discussion of how platforms profit from our attention. Also, I'm sympathetic to the effort to not demonize any foods, and I was relieved to read that there isn't actually any conclusive research on sugar being addictive, but thanks to the capitalist growth imperative, it IS in more and more foods, and there IS incentive to create and sell more and more processed foods, because that's where the profit is at. I'm still struggling with this piece. I certainly don't want to condemn anyone for relying on convenience foods when we're all just trying to get by, but I really want a discussion of the growth of processed foods that doesn't jump straight to fatphobic, classist, ableist, etc. rhetoric.

I will definitely read this book again. Maybe I’ll revisit it every couple of years. So important.

Appreciated this one. It was especially interesting for me to read because I have a little child (>1 percentile) who requires monthly doctor visits for weigh-ins, so this was helpful to have as a resource as I navigate that medically.

Also helpful for my sweet, very-changed postpartum body to remind myself that bodies are good and weight is not reflective of morality or health. I am learning in this area! Sole-Smith does good work.

PHENOMENAL! This book should be required reading for anyone who interacts with kids of any age. This might be the most important and useful parenting book I've ever read. And honestly, it made me rethink how I think about my own body and where that comes from.

A lot of good perspectives on the pervasiveness of anti fat biases, trying to catch and correct your own thinking, as well as a thoughtfully supporting kids and youth in your life. Some definite inconsistencies in the presentation of research related causation/correlation links in favour of Sole-Smith’s point of view. Still worth the read, for many first-person insights and perspectives to keep in mind, and for pointing out many existing gaps in weight related literature; if not for scientific objectivity.

So thought provoking, affirming, and convicting - a must read for anyone who has a body and anyone raising a child with a body ... so, um, everyone!