Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson is the touchstone YA novel for eating disorders and self-harming. This book is stark, beautiful, and also painful. At times the book is disorienting, but this seems to align with Lia’s state of mind. In addition to wrestling with an eating disorder and self-harming, she struggles to come to terms with the grief and loss of her friendship. A girl is dead.
While reading this story, I often felt confused and even uncomfortable, which was the point, I think. Lia’s guilt and anorexia is palatable. Laurie Halse Anderson writes beautifully and gives the reader an understanding of someone living with an eating disorder.
In fact, Laurie Halse Angerson is such a great author that she’s on my list of Best YA Authors to Binge on Kindle Unlimited because she’s all-around amazing! If you loved Wintergirls, you should definitely check out her other novels as well.
I’ve collected several authors and titles that explore the topics of eating disorders, self-harming, grief, and friendship in this list. The first three are by the same author, and I think you’re going to love them. In fact, Delinquent Hero is one of three novels by Khristina Chess in the top 100 Best Sellers in Teen & Young Adult Fiction on Self-Harm and eating disorders.
The Delinquent Hero by Khristina Chess
“It’s easier to think about food and the physical pain inside my body from not eating than the other pain of not having Kat. My sister would totally understand this. She would. As long as I’m connecting to her this way—our familiar, hungry old way—she’s with me.” ― Khristina Chess, quote from The Delinquent Hero
Wow! The Delinquent Hero grabbed me from the first page and never stopped!
Although pitched as an action-packed murder mystery, this YA is also a raw and unforgettable story about a complicated sisterhood, eating disorders, and loss. It’s hard to put down. The present story line is an investigation of the odd circumstances and events that landed Kat in the hospital on a ventilator, but as the hours and days unfold, the close relationship between these sisters becomes apparent, and Molly finds herself connecting with her older sister in their same old way:
"I'm not very hungry. I am, and I'm not. I am hollow, but this feeling seems less about food and more about Kat. At any rate, I do not want to eat."
Everyone is saying Kat fell and hit her head, causing a catastrophic brain bleed. She’s severely malnourished and on life support, and in a few days, the doctors will remove the machines.
But when 18-year-old Molly visits her sister’s rental house, it looks more like a crime scene that someone cleaned up. Rather than face her grief about what's happening, she becomes a detective and asks hard questions about the inconsistencies in stories, the crime scene at the house, and the knife beside her sister's bed. Kat was afraid of something. What?
What I love most about The Delinquent Hero is the puzzle that Molly is trying to solve—not just about the how this terrible thing happened, but also about her sister herself. It’s a great novel that shows the way eating disorders can impact the people who love them the most. There is so much pain in trying to answer why?
If you loved Wintergirls, don’t miss this great new YA book about eating disorders, sisterhood, and grief.
The Cutting Edge of Friendship by Khristina Chess
“Sometimes my inside hurts so bad that I need to make the outside hurt worse so the inside will stop.” ― Khristina Chess, quote from The Cutting Edge of Friendship
Sadie and Elana are keeping dangerous secrets.
Best friends since elementary school, they know everything about each other, but on the night of the fireworks, something terrible happened to Sadie that she hasn’t told anyone. She can’t even say the word to herself. Instead, she’s started cutting to deal with the pain.
Elana has a secret of her own; she’s texting Hunter and making plans for a clandestine meeting with him. She doesn’t know what he did or why he really wants to keep their relationship secret.
To end this dangerous cat-and-mouse game, Sadie must reclaim her courage and rescue Elana before a rapist can attack again.
So powerful! The Cutting Edge of Friendship instantly drew me into the tangled conflict, and I couldn’t look away until the girls were safe.
What I love most about The Cutting Edge of Friendship is Sadie’s fierce and resilient character and the raw and authentic emotion as this painful story escalates toward its thrilling climax. This is the kind of novel that really shows how someone self harms to cope with pain in the aftermath of sexual assault. If you enjoyed Wintergirls, you won’t want to miss this thrilling story about the complicated nature of friendship and cutting. And if you’re looking for other YA books about sexual assault and like Laurie Halse Anderson, you might check out my post, Books You’ll Enjoy If You Liked Speak.
Hollow Beauty by Khristina Chess
“I’d always called my body ‘athletic.’ Words like ‘stocky’ and ‘muscular’ described my figure. I was the fastest girl on the track and cross country teams. Muscular, stocky girls weren’t beautiful, though. Skinny girls were. Girls like Erica Miller.” ― Khristina Chess, quote from Hollow Beauty
When tall, gorgeous Brody asks Olivia to the prom, she's ecstatic until he suggests that she use the two months before the dance to lose some weight.
But how thin is thin enough?
Body's comment sends Olivia on a spiral of dangerously rapid weight loss that borders on anorexia. As her pounds vanish, her friendship deepens with Ross, the new prep cook at the diner where she works. Despite his mysterious limp, he doesn't suffer crippling low self-esteem issues like she does; she can't even look at herself in the mirror anymore. The only time she doesn't feel ugly or fat is when she goes riding dirt bikes and cave-hunting with Ross. With Brody, instead of finding romance and true love, she feels like a terrified rabbit he's going to devour.
She's almost thin enough to be beautiful for the prom when the unthinkable happens.
Holy cow! Buckle up for a fast read because Hollow Beauty hooked me from the beginning.
What makes Hollow Beauty special is the realistic portrayal of how Olivia falls into the self-esteem trap of trying to change herself for someone else. I worried about her. I loved seeing her journey and choices as the events escalated toward the story’s climax. It’s a great positive message. This is the kind of authentic novel that really shows how someone with even a little insecurity can be manipulated and hurt.
If you loved Wintergirls, you will definitely want to check this one out.
The Stone Girl by Alyssa Sheinmel
“The blade finds its way to her hip bone. Sethie’s favorite part, the part where the bone protrudes: the skinniest place on her body.” ― Alyssa B Sheimel, quote from The Stone Girl
This wisp of a book is a quick read, and its petite size seems to reflect the super-skinny shape of the heroine, Sethie Weiss. She’s such a disconnected character she’s almost hard to like. She’s so cold, made of granite, and not in touch with herself in any way. She makes bad choices. It takes awhile to realize that Sethie’s pain is part of this perfectionist state she’s iced herself into, and the things she does and says are linked to her illness.
Sethie focuses her love on Shaw, but he’s not good for her. As the relationship deteriorates, her weight drops, and health declines. The third person voice fits with the detachment she seems to have with herself, her body, and her situation.
In the end I rooted for her. I wanted her to become a real girl again.
If you liked Wintergirls, you should have a look at this powerful story about anorexia, eating disorders, and insecurity.
Girl in Pieces by Kathleen Glasgow
“People should know about us. Girls who write their pain on their bodies.” ― Kathleen Glasgow, quote from Girl in Pieces
This wonderful novel was the kind of story that kept pulling me away to a quiet room to curl up with a cup of tea and a lamp until I finished. I had to know what was going to happen to Charlie. I had to know whether or not she was going to be okay in the end. Because although she seemed to be making progress, this guy in her life wasn't a good choice for her. And then her friend from the hospital shows up, and she doesn't seem to be a good direction either. And if you've ever known addiction or seen someone struggling with recovery from anything, you know that the line is so easy to cross.
For Charlie, crossing the line might have devastating consequences because she has her tender kit, and it's full of glass. It's not tender but slashes and cuts.
So I read and worried and loved this young girl, who was so alone and hungry and living on the edge. I wanted someone to help her. Someone good.
This YA book about self-harming and cutting―and this girl―will stay with me for a long while. Fans of Wintergirls won’t want to miss this best-selling novel by Kathleen Glasgow.
Broken Things by Lauren Oliver
“Before we were the Monsters of Brickhouse Lane—before everyone from Connecticut to California knew us by that tagline, and blogs ran pictures of our faces, and searching our names led to sites that crashed from all the traffic—we were just girls, and there were only two of us.” ― Lauren Oliver, quote from Broken Things
Once there were three friends who were writers and obsessed with a fantasy novel about a magical world. But one of the girls was murdered, and everyone thought the other two killed her. They didn’t.
Five years after Summer’s death, the friends are reunited and put on a path to find out the identity of the real killer.
I’ve included Broken Things in this list of books if you liked Wintergirls because it’s about friendship and loss—two important elements of Wintergirls. This mystery is told in alternating viewpoints. I wanted to know what happened to Summer. Who murdered her and why? What happened that day in the woods? The dark plot twisted and kept me guessing until the end. You will love it.
(Bonus Round) The Merry Recluse, Appetites: Why Women Want, and Drinking: A Love Story by Caroline Knapp
In addition to those recommendations, one memoir writer stands above the crowd: Caroline Knapp. Her struggles with anorexia are woven through her writing in The Merry Recluse, Appetites: Why Women Want, and even to some extent in Drinking: A Love Story. Her work is funny, honest, challenging, and all-around amazing. I give her 5 stars all around and devoured everything she wrote:
"What is this drive to be thinner, prettier, better dressed, other? Who exactly is this other and what does she look like beyond the jacket she's wearing or the food she's not eating? What might we be doing, thinking, feeling about if we didn't think about body image, ever?" ― Caroline Knapp, quote from Appetites: Why Women Want
Ultimately, Caroline Knapp overcame her struggles with anorexia and adopted a dog, writing another great book, Pack of Two.
I was deeply saddened by her untimely death in her early forties.
If you liked Wintergirls and enjoy memoir, you should check out Caroline Knapp’s work.
(Bonus Round) Wasted by Marya Hornbacher
Okay, one more memoir writer should also be included: Marya Hornbacher. I read this one more than twenty years ago, but I remember how poignant and biting her voice was. Hornbacher doesn’t hold anything back. Her experience with anorexia, bulimia, mental illness, and everything else was painful, but she survived and shared it with us. She’s a brave person.
If you are someone who struggles with food or body image issues, do not take four decades to learn the lesson that I have learned: you are enough. You are small enough, good enough, smart enough. The number on the scale does not define who you are or who you will become.
Other Books If You Liked Wintergirls
If one of these books doesn’t appeal, Goodreads also offers a great book list: Books Similar to Wintergirls, as well as Eating Disorders Book Lists. You might also be interested in my post, Other Good Reads, which has a comprehensive list of reviews of YA books by type of tough topic, including eating disorders, self-harm, substance abuse, mental illness, and others.
I’d love to hear from you in the comments below.
Khristina Chess is the award-winning author of several YA novels about troubled teens turning corners. Hollow Beauty, her book about eating disorders, was named a finalist in the Next Generation India Book Awards. You can find her on Amazon, Goodreads, and Twitter as an active daily contributor in the #5amwritersclub.