Blue Wolf Reviews

Tag: image

  • Splash

    Splash

    Charli Howard is a model, and a body positivity ambassador. She is the founder of the All Woman Project, a charity which works with young people to educate them about body image and mental health issues. Splash is her first novel which showcases her passion about young girls, their need for acceptance, and the power of peer pressures today. She has chosen to write about an eleven-year-old girl called Molly.  Molly is tall, has broad shoulders, and strong legs, and loves the water.

    The story raises several issues. There has been a strong friendship between Molly and Chloe since early school days, and both will be going to the same Secondary School next year. Molly is incredibly grateful that she will have Chloe’s friendship for this daunting change in her life. However, Chloe, who is popular, is also a dominating and fickle friend. Molly’s great love is swimming and Chloe persuades her that it is inappropriate for a young girl, and it just develops a strong body, and who wants that?

    Molly’s need for acceptance from her friend, and the group almost makes her give up swimming. This is a common issue with young girls and sport today, as we see many teenagers drop out of physical activity because of body image. Charli Howard has also touched on factors which arise at this age and incorporated them into the story in a meaningful way. Meeting up with boys at the swimming club poses thoughts again about body image for Molly. She has been raised by her grandparents with much love but now her body is developing she has many questions which need answering.

    For a first book, Charli Howard is to be congratulated. She has ensured that girls who read this will feel more empowered to make choices about themselves, with less regard to others thoughts. They may also see that often pressure results from envy from peers.

    Hopefully we will see more of Molly in future books.

  • The Nude Nutritionist

    The Nude Nutritionist

    Lyndi’s story is one that will be familiar to many young people today. As a girl she was tall and had a big frame. In a leotard at ballet, she realized that she was larger than the other girls and so from an early age her need to conform to size and shape was developed. The issue of being slim equals being liked, became a confused time for her and she began counting calories and exercising. Weigh ins became routine and despair followed when she gained weight.

    The next step was binge eating and starving which led to adopting a set of rules which were not easily conformed to. By this stage, Lyndi was an emotional mess and diagnosed with Clinical Anxiety. She knew she had to stop trying to control her eating and that years of dieting had just given her a disgust of herself and her body.

    Over the next four years the author lost more than 20 kilos. Her focus became fixed on feeling healthy, and at peace, and at all costs, avoiding a diet. It is suggested that dieting can contribute to slowing your metabolism, making you feel deprived, and increasing your cravings for forbidden foods. The next piece of advice is to become an intuitive eater. By listening to your body, it will make you aware of when you are hungry, and what sort of food you need.

    Food cravings are often an issue for people. They can be caused by hormonal changes, sleep deprivation, or habit. It is suggested that you wait an hour when you have a craving. If after an hour you still need something sweet, then have it and enjoy it mindfully. You are giving yourself permission to enjoy the treat. The more you practice the one-hour trick, the less your cravings will become. There is a page devoted to “Awesome, non-sucky, life-changing healthy habits you might want to sink your teeth into.” One of those suggests you meet with friends on a walk, rather than for coffee.

    The chapter on a healthy environment suggests not to waste food. Older vegetables can be made into soup, dips or stock and buying in bulk without plastic bags helps the environment to be healthy as well. Another suggestion is to teach children to tune into their hunger. A sense of fullness is the body’s way of saying we have had enough food to eat.

    There are many case studies in this book which are interesting to read. People ask questions about issues which affect them and also help us to realise what solutions there are to problems. The recipe section at the back has some wonderful and inspiring recipes which are easily cooked and look extremely inviting.