Real Women Don't Diet!: One Man's Praise of Large Women and His Outrage at the Society That Rejects Them

by Ken Mayer

Overview

The book that started the revolution and re-evaluation of women, weight and self-image.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780884003687
Publisher:	Bartleby Press
Publication date:	11/19/1993
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	196
File size:	1 MB

About the Author

Ken Mayer is a long-time advocate for large women

Editorial Reviews

There have been books and magazine articles asserting that our society is dangerously obsessed with a single standard of female beauty, namely that of the thin body. Mayer's book stands out because it is written by a man and is a paean to what he regards as real beauty; strong, large women (preferably well over 200 pounds). Expressing heartfelt pain over tortures that overweight women endure (many were prescribed diet pills by alarmed doctors in their early teens), the book will offer comfort to any woman who falls outside the waif-like ideal. Mayer, a ``large-size'' fashion photographer and freelance writer, rallies facts and figures that verify that ``overweight'' women are not unhealthy and promotes the sensible idea that if a woman feels healthy, she probably is. Along the way, he throws in a lot of his own extraneous philosophy and practical tips (for instance, on how to reduce the cost of a home loan), and a veritable diatribe against this country's medical establishment and the destruction of the environment. However, with its arresting title and cover (a beautiful, 200 plus-pound woman, obviously pleased with herself and enjoying life), this book will have wide appeal. Photos. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

Mayer is in line with writers like Naomi Wolf ( Beauty Myth , LJ 4/1/91) who severely criticize our society's standards of feminine beauty. He focuses on body size or weight, arguing that big is not only beautiful but also healthy and takes to task the fashion and diet industries and physicians for encouraging women literally to harm themselves in order to be thin. The early chapters take the form of a personal journal about Mayer's coming of age and attraction to big women. Later chapters critique society's values in general to show that our obsession with body shape is just another flawed value. Mayer is correct that big is beautiful, but he loses some credibility when he argues that only big is beautiful. Still, any big woman who needs encouragement to accept herself will find it here, and other readers may be sensitized to the issue.-- John Moryl, Yeshiva Univ. Lib., New York

Library Journal

There have been books and magazine articles asserting that our society is dangerously obsessed with a single standard of female beauty, namely that of the thin body. Mayer's book stands out because it is written by a man and is a paean to what he regards as real beauty; strong, large women (preferably well over 200 pounds). Expressing heartfelt pain over tortures that overweight women endure (many were prescribed diet pills by alarmed doctors in their early teens), the book will offer comfort to any woman who falls outside the waif-like ideal. Mayer, a "large-size" fashion photographer and freelance writer, rallies facts and figures that verify that "overweight" women are not unhealthy and promotes the sensible idea that if a woman feels healthy, she probably is. With its arresting title and cover (a beautiful, 200 plus-pound woman, obviously pleased with herself and enjoying life), this book will have wide appeal. Photos.

Publisher’s Weekly

There have been books and magazine articles asserting that our society is dangerously obsessed with a single standard of female beauty, namely that of the thin body. Mayer's book stands out because it is written by a man and is a paean to what he regards as real beauty; strong, large women (preferably well over 200 pounds). Expressing heartfelt pain over tortures that overweight women endure (many were prescribed diet pills by alarmed doctors in their early teens), the book will offer comfort to any woman who falls outside the waif-like ideal. Mayer, a "large-size" fashion photographer and freelance writer, rallies facts and figures that verify that "overweight" women are not unhealthy and promotes the sensible idea that if a woman feels healthy, she probably is. With its arresting title and cover (a beautiful, 200 plus-pound woman, obviously pleased with herself and enjoying life), this book will have wide appeal. Photos.

Publisher’s Weekly