St. Martin's Press and NetGalley provided me with an electronic copy of The Girls at 17 Swann Street. I was under no obligation to review this book and my opinion is freely given.
The Girls at 17 Swann Street follows Anna as she navigates the road to recovery after a severe eating disorder. Placed in a recovery center after it became painfully clear that she needed outside help, Anna must learn to adopt healthy eating habits and choose to live before it is too late. As Anna explores how she ended up in such a fragile state, readers are taken through her past and given an insider view into the young woman's mental health. Will Anna allow the other residents, the professionals dedicated to helping her survive, and her husband guide her to recovery, or has she traveled too far down the path?
The format of the book made it slow to start, so I warmed up to Anna and the rest of the characters quite gradually. I did not think that the flashbacks were particularly effective, as they did not allow the reader to really become invested in Anna and her fragile emotional state. The author did a good job of explaining the detriments to health that eating disorders cause, as there was enough information without being too preachy. Anna's path to an eating disorder seemed fairly common, but her road to recovery seemed too quick. Overall, The Girls at 17 Swann Street was a good read, as it was both heartfelt and compelling at times.
The Girls at 17 Swann Street follows Anna as she navigates the road to recovery after a severe eating disorder. Placed in a recovery center after it became painfully clear that she needed outside help, Anna must learn to adopt healthy eating habits and choose to live before it is too late. As Anna explores how she ended up in such a fragile state, readers are taken through her past and given an insider view into the young woman's mental health. Will Anna allow the other residents, the professionals dedicated to helping her survive, and her husband guide her to recovery, or has she traveled too far down the path?
The format of the book made it slow to start, so I warmed up to Anna and the rest of the characters quite gradually. I did not think that the flashbacks were particularly effective, as they did not allow the reader to really become invested in Anna and her fragile emotional state. The author did a good job of explaining the detriments to health that eating disorders cause, as there was enough information without being too preachy. Anna's path to an eating disorder seemed fairly common, but her road to recovery seemed too quick. Overall, The Girls at 17 Swann Street was a good read, as it was both heartfelt and compelling at times.