Hunger So Wide And So Deep: A Multiracial View of Women's Eating Problems / Edition 2

by Becky Thompson

Overview

A new feminist classic—now in paper!

Based on in-depth life history interviews with African-American, Latina, and white women-both lesbian and heterosexual-this book chronicles the effects of racism, sexism, acculturation, and sexual abuse on women’s bodies and eating patterns.

“A wonderful book: gripping, creative and profoundly humane. In lucid prose Thompson offers an original explanation for women’s eating problems. She argues that many women turn to food-bingeing, dieting, purging, or starving- as a sensible means of coping with physical and psychic ‘atrocities’ deriving from ‘racism, sexism, homophobia, classism, the stress of acculturation, and emotional, physical, and sexual abuse.’” Women’s Review of Books

“Surprising and alarming. . . . Thompson urges a second look at our national obsession with weight and proffers theories and practices that could save the lives of women of all colors and sexual orientations.” Lambda Book Report

“Thompson breaks new ground and offers hope for the multitudes of women who have swallowed their pain.” Evelyn C. White, Editor, The Black Women's Health Book

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780816624355
Publisher:	University of Minnesota Press
Publication date:	07/15/1996
Edition description:	First edition
Pages:	176
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.40(d)

About the Author

Becky W. Thompson is an assistant professor of sociology at the Center for Research on Women at the University of Memphis and coeditor (with Sangeeta Tyagi) of Beyond a Dream Deferred: Multicultural Education and the Politics of Excellence (Minnesota, 1993).

Editorial Reviews

Thompson's look at the motives behind eating disorders draws on interviews with women from a wide range of backgrounds. (Aug.)

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

In this highly readable account, Thompson (editor of Beyond a Dream Deferred: Multicultural Education and the Politics of Excellence, Univ. of Minnesota Pr., 1993) has broken down the theory that eating disorders are temporary afflictions of the white, middle-class, teenage population. Based on interviews with 18 white, Latina, and African American women, aged 19 to 46, the author found that in one-third to two-thirds of cases, eating disorders were linked to emotional or, more particularly, sexual abuse. These women were seeking control over something in their lives, argues Thompson. Food was more accessible than drugs or alcohol and, unlike substance abuse, binging allowed women to perform their daily lives with a clear head. The author also examines the healing process, detailing these women's experiences with Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), Overeater's Anonymous (OA), or individual counseling sought out in response to some life crisis. Thompson ends the book with short biographies of the interviewees. Her uniquely balanced view of women with eating disorders is highly recommended for public, academic, and medical libraries.-Lisa Wise, Univ. of Southern Colorado, Pueblo

Library Journal

A readable account based on interviews with 18 white, Latina, and African American women aged 19-46 in which the author found that in one-third to two-thirds of the cases, eating disorders were linked to emotional or, more particularly, sexual abuse. Such women are seeking control over their lives, Thompson argues, and food is the most accessible tool. She also examines the healing process, detailing these women's experiences with Alcoholics Anonymous, Overeaters Anonymous and individual counseling. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Booknews