Lori Gottlieb is 11 years old and lives in fabulous Beverly Hills . Her dad is a stockbroker, and her mom is your average housewife, obsessed with her weight, appearance, and shopping.
In school, Lori notices her friends starting to act weird. Instead of focusing on school and tests, everyone seems to be more interested in hairstyles, clothes and boys. Lori could care less.
Lori's mom is always trying to get her to work on her appearance. Her hair isn't exciting enough, and her clothes are not fashionable at all. Lori is constantly told that if her looks don't improve, she'll have problems finding a husband, and will have to go to secretary school.
Fed up with all of the interference in her life, and her parents' inability to listen, Lori starts a regime of strict dieting. She becomes obsessed with counting calories, reading diet books, and exercising. She finds herself repulsed by the thought of food, and is convinced she can gain weight by just smelling delicious foods.
Lori's parents become concerned when her weight drops dangerously low. They force her to see a psychiatrist, who doesn't seem to get Lori's logic. She is unwilling to follow her doctor's orders, and doesn't put on any weight. In face, her dieting gets worse, and she gets even skinnier, eventually resulting in hospitalization.
This is Lori Gottlieb's true story about her struggle with anorexia when she was 11 years old. Lori found her old diaries in her parents' house and pieced them together to form "Stick Figure: A Diary of My Former Self." This is a great read for anyone who enjoyed Laurie Halse Anderson's "Wintergirls." Lori entertains the inconsistencies between what society tells young girls to strive for, and what is healthy and good for our bodies.
