| Title | Big Girl |
| Author | Danielle Steel |
| Publisher | BANTAM PRESS, 2010 |
| ISBN | 0593063066, 9780593063064 |
| Length | 310 pages |
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Two sisters, two very different lives - Victoria - a chubby little girl with blond hair, blue eyes and ordinary looks - has spent her whole life being second best to her perfect younger sister Gracie, being told that she is a disappointment to her parents, and unable to win their approval. While waging a ceaseless war against her weight, enduring her father's belittling comments about her appearance and seeing her academic achievements go unacknowledged, she knows that she has to get as far away from home as possible. Home is Los Angeles, where beauty and appearance are all. She moves to New York City, where she finds a job she loves - as a high school teacher - amongst the sleek and slinky of Manhattan. Her lifeline to her family is through Gracie - they couldn't be more different, but they love each other unconditionally. Victoria finds her own life in New York, while her battle with her weight continues. And then a chance encounter starts an incredible chain of events. But can Victoria really leave behind all the hurt, neglect and loss that she has tried to forget and step into a new and fulfilling future? And whatever the scales tell her, she is determined to cherish who she is.
Reviews (from Amazon.com)
| | 30 of 35 people found the following review helpful: 3.0 out of 5 stars Huge Disappointment,
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?) This review is from: Big Girl (Kindle Edition) Don't get me wrong; Ms. Steele is still writing books you want to read, just because it's DS -- the problem is that the storyline of this book was something that I can't imagine Ms. Steel even venturing into in 2010. To see women so subservient to their narcissitic mates, to allow cheating, to be verbally and emotionally abusive to your own child, isn't something I would have thought she'd write. I thought she was about the strong women while having problems that they overcome because of their strength and relationships. This one made me angry, not only because of the content (big people), but because she wasn't more of an advocate for the way these women are treated. It made me very sad to see that she wrote in this vein.Again, because it's Danielle Steel, I read it, but was hugely disappointed in what I thought her viewpoint of this might be. She could have really had a voice in how parents treat their heavier children, or those that aren't perfection. Instead she continued to feed the disparity between the children, and allowed a mother, a woman (her primary audience) to be so manipulated and subservient to her husband. All she cared about was playing bridge and doing her husband's bidding, then treating her first born as though she were a non-person. The impact she could have made on the issues she covered would have been enormous, but instead the story continued along without her seeing what impact it had on what she and her narcissistic husband referred to as the "tester." Our society looks at heavier (big) people in disgust, and she continued to feed into it, instead of making it better for the girl, I think the storyline made it worse. Big girl spent years in therapy and right up to the last page, DS didn't do anything to make the parents see and realize what they'd done to a daughter that didn't deserve it. The story could have been written with empathy, feeling and resolution, but instead, it continued on with the abusive parents being none the wiser. The perfect child was given a lavish wedding that was probably in excess of $200,000 in cost, and was cheated on prior to the nuptials, and instead of being strong and standing up on her own, or having her parents stand beside her and with her with a different decision, it was swept under the rug and the wedding continued. What does that say? That it's all right to be cheated on, it's all right for you to accept it, because you're marrying money? Her parents knew and it was kind of like a "oh well...these things happen." Hell yeah they do, but any self respecting woman, regardless of what Mom and Dad said or thought, would have stood up for herself and said "this doesn't happen to me," and a good swift kick in the bridegrooms priviledged butt would have gone a very long way in sending the correct and moral message to all readers. Because it was a Danielle Steel book, and because I read every book she writes, I read it, but my disappointment goes beyond the words I can convey. She could have made a difference, a real difference, but instead, for artistic reasons, chose to set us all back 50 years. Shame on her; I can only hope future books bring back the strong, independent and self-reliant women I've come to know through her stories. Thank you for reading my review. |
| | 11 of 11 people found the following review helpful: 1.0 out of 5 stars Steel & Publisher Should Be Embarrassed!,
This review is from: Big Girl: A Novel (Hardcover) I have heard that "popular" authors like Steel often have others help write their books. This must be the case with Steel. It is the only explanation for the constant and consistent repitition in her books over the last 7-10 years. There is no way an author could write 160 pages and say the same thing over and over, at least in my mind.I find it interesteing the Steel has labeled this character "big", "fat", etc at a size 12-14. She describes Victoria as having "killer legs" yet is huge at a mere 20 pounds or so overweight. What planet is Steel from? She clearly has no concept of weight, size and clothing size. The story is a waste of time, paper and ink. Nothing of interest is said or happens. Why I waste my time reading her books anymore is unknown. At least I am smart enough to get them from the library for FREE. I would NEVER buy a Steel book unless its her early work (back when quality writing and story telling were important to her). SKIP THIS!!!!!!!
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| | 15 of 19 people found the following review helpful: 4.0 out of 5 stars fascinating character study, This review is from: Big Girl: A Novel (Hardcover) Victoria Dawson loves her younger sister Gracie, but always felt inferior to her sibling. Her parents especially her father confirmed that belief making it clear she was a failed test before they got it right. Mom just sits silently in affirmation.Victoria leaves home accepting a job at an elite Manhattan school, but her verbally abusive dad calls her a loser for taking such a position. She begins to have an obesity issue and firmly believes she is unlovable although she seems to have everything going as a swinging single in New York. This is a fascinating character study of a woman who seems to have everything, but lacks self esteem after growing up being told she was a worthless loser while her sister was perfect. Victoria is an intriguing individual who rates herself as useless because that is all she heard from her parents. The problem with this family drama is just how verbally abusive her parents are towards the Big Girl as they are so over the top with their nastiness towards their first born vs. their kind nurturing of their second child, they lack credibility and are two dimensional. Still in spite of the cardboard vicious parents, fans will root for Victoria to realize how much she has going; overcoming negative fostering. Harriet Klausner |
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