30 review for Running on Empty: A Diary of Anorexia and Recovery

1. 

   5 out of 5

   Liralen – Jan 01, 2011

   I missed my old life, and the only way to find my way back was to close my eyes, grit my teeth, and gain the weight. I didn't have to like it. I just had to do it. (page 143) The author says early on that what sets her book apart from other memoirs on the topic is that she talks not only about being sick but about how she got better. I'm not sure this is entirely true -- she does talk about getting better, but the focus is still on anorexia rather than recovery. I get the impression that she was I missed my old life, and the only way to find my way back was to close my eyes, grit my teeth, and gain the weight. I didn't have to like it. I just had to do it. (page 143) The author says early on that what sets her book apart from other memoirs on the topic is that she talks not only about being sick but about how she got better. I'm not sure this is entirely true -- she does talk about getting better, but the focus is still on anorexia rather than recovery. I get the impression that she was still finding her footing as a writer, and while I found the book intensely quotable, there's still an identification with illness that's hard to shake. She's nuanced about it, though, recognising that identification. I had a tough time finding this one, and her more recent stuff is both easier to find and more complex. Not a standout, then, but at least well done and, again, quotable.

2. 

   4 out of 5

   Janine Darragh – Feb 03, 2014

   When I put 4 stars, it's not that I really liked it, but that I think it is a harrowing, horrifying, realistic depiction of the complexity of the diseases anorexia, bulemia, and OCD. I also appreciated the doctor's note at the beginning, the extensive bibliography at the end, the author's admission that she is still on her recovery journey, and her hopes that this book would not read like a manual for others struggling with the disease. I think this would be a wonderful text to use as a case stu When I put 4 stars, it's not that I really liked it, but that I think it is a harrowing, horrifying, realistic depiction of the complexity of the diseases anorexia, bulemia, and OCD. I also appreciated the doctor's note at the beginning, the extensive bibliography at the end, the author's admission that she is still on her recovery journey, and her hopes that this book would not read like a manual for others struggling with the disease. I think this would be a wonderful text to use as a case study for discussion for counselors-in-training.

3. 

   4 out of 5

   Rachel – Mar 02, 2014

   It was a good book but, like another reviewer said, there seemed to be a lot of fillers, especially at the end. It doesn't cover recovery a whole lot though, because she has a lot of relapses, but then again, that's the nature of AN. It was a good book but, like another reviewer said, there seemed to be a lot of fillers, especially at the end. It doesn't cover recovery a whole lot though, because she has a lot of relapses, but then again, that's the nature of AN.

4. 

   4 out of 5

   Roanne – Feb 19, 2009

   Local girl and Marya Hornbacher wanna-be. I wanted to like this more, but why do most of these books dissolve into a platitudes?

5. 

   5 out of 5

   Erica – Dec 26, 2011

   About 25 pages too long. That was filler to make this book long enough to publish.

6. 

   5 out of 5

   Cat –

7. 

   4 out of 5

   Derrick Gilmore –

8. 

   5 out of 5

   Orieyenta –

9. 

   4 out of 5

   Rosemary –

10. 

    5 out of 5

    Kathleen –

11. 

    4 out of 5

    Ashlie –

12. 

    4 out of 5

    Reva –

13. 

    4 out of 5

    Elizabeth –

14. 

    5 out of 5

    Jen –

15. 

    4 out of 5

    Emily Kitsch –

16. 

    5 out of 5

    Deanna –

17. 

    4 out of 5

    Dorian –

18. 

    5 out of 5

    Noah –

19. 

    4 out of 5

    Allison –

20. 

    5 out of 5

    Angela –

21. 

    4 out of 5

    Nicole –

22. 

    4 out of 5

    Brynna –

23. 

    5 out of 5

    Hannah Watkins March –

24. 

    4 out of 5

    Shley McNeal –

25. 

    5 out of 5

    Charlie –

26. 

    4 out of 5

    Rachel –

27. 

    5 out of 5

    Els –

28. 

    4 out of 5

    Gina Jones –

29. 

    4 out of 5

    Bev Mattocks –

30. 

    5 out of 5

    Hamda –