It's easy to poke fun at the latest weight-loss scheme, but when you're struggling with a poor body image you're willing to try anything that promises results. Such was the case for Lisa Sargese when, at the age of twenty-three, she became one of the first in the United States to receive the adjustable gastric band as part of a 1988 experiment group. Unfortunately, the very thing she thought would solve her problems only made them worse. Frankly recounting her weight-loss surgeries and resulting complications, Losing 140 Pounds the Hard Way follows Lisa on her difficult journey to recovery-not to a certain weight, but rather to a holistic understanding and acceptance of her body that goes beyond dress sizes or gym hours. Both a memoir and a manual, this book will change the way you think about food, fitness, and yourself. Learn the art of affirmation, discover how to respond gently to your body's needs, and then watch how improving your emotional well-being helps your physical body, inside and out.

The funny, sad and compelling diary kept by an overweight teenage girl that became the basis for the British television sensation of the same name available to stream on HULU. It's 1989 and Rae Earl is a fat, boy-mad 17-year-old girl, living in Stamford, Lincolnshire with her mum and their deaf white cat in a council house with a mint green bathroom and a refrigerator Rae can't keep away from. She’s also just been released from a psychiatric ward. My Mad Fat Diary is the hilarious, harrowing and touching real-life diary Rae kept during that fateful year and the basis of the hit British television series of the same on HULU. Surrounded by people like her constantly dieting mum, her beautiful frenemy Bethany, her mates from the private school up the road (called “Haddock”, “Battered Sausage” and “Fig”) and the handsome, unattainable boys Rae pines after (who sometimes end up with Bethany...), My Mad Fat Diary is the story of an overweight young woman just hoping to be loved at a time when slim pop singers ruled the charts. Rae's chronicle of her world will strike a chord with anyone who's ever been a confused, lonely teenager clashing with her parents, sometimes overeating, hating her body, always taking herself VERY seriously, never knowing how positively brilliant she is and keeping a diary to record it all. My Mad Fat Diary – 365 days with one of the wisest and funniest girls in England.

From Tanisha Thomas, co-host of Crazy Talk and star of Bad Girls Club, a searingly honest, laugh-out-loud funny memoir of life, love, and rolling with the punches. Tanisha Thomas is best known as the hot-headed, larger-than-life diva from Oxygen’s hit show Bad Girls Club. Confident, successful, and never afraid to speak her mind, Tanisha seems to have it all. But appearances can be deceiving. After years of battling the dreaded scale, seeking self-acceptance in the public eye, and struggling to find The One--or at least one who will pay for dinner--Tanisha is F.A.T.: fed up and tired. On the heels of a toxic breakup and the devastating passing of her father, she decides to throw out her vision of a picture perfect life and make peace with herself. Life might be sending her lemons, but Tanisha is determined to make lemonade . . . or find some chocolate. In this compelling and wildly entertaining memoir, Tanisha dishes on her journey from Brooklyn to Hollywood and her ongoing search for happiness and fulfillment. From the ups and downs of her reality TV career to her search for love and well-fitting shapewear, Tanisha shares a hilarious, behind-the-scenes look at her unbelievable life story, urging fans to laugh along the way—and learn from her mistakes.

A Novella of Bugtussle, Mississippi Back in Bugtussle, Mississippi, after her relationship with her ex-fiancé has fallen apart, Ace Jones is naturally depressed. What’s worse is that every time she leaves the house, she winds up in some kind of altercation. She can’t help but wonder if she’s an idiot magnet, or if she’s the smart-mouth stirring things up. Hoping for a little peace of mind, Ace gives in to the advice of her best friend and goes to see a therapist. But she quickly discovers that the road to nirvana isn’t what it’s cracked up to be. And as Ace goes from one therapeutic misadventure to another, the plus-sized spitfire becomes more determined than ever to find enlightenment—even if it means bending herself into a pretzel to do it. Includes excerpts from Diary of a Mad Fat Girl, Happily Ever Madder, and Down and Out in Bugtussle.

Diary of a Mad Fat Girl’s plus-sized spitfire Graciela “Ace” Jones returns in a hilarious new adventure from New York Times bestselling author Stephanie McAfee. Ace has left the tiny Mississippi town of Bugtussle for the palm fronds and mojitos of Pelican Cove, Florida. She’s finally opening her long-dreamed-of art gallery, is kick-starting a life with her fiancé, Mason, and has vowed to leave her straight-talking, sassy ways behind her. From now on, she’s going to be as sweet as sugar. Unfortunately, something comes along to sour her plans. That something is Mrs. Lenore Kennashaw and her coterie of crones. They’re a bunch of snippy, snarky, and just plain mean ’ol ladies who aren’t quite as smart or rich as they’d like to think they are. But that doesn’t stop them from treating everyone else like second-class citizens. And when Ace inadvertently takes some of the steam from Mrs. Kennashaw’s stride, she becomes their #1 enemy. But with the support of a new group of fabulous friends, as well as her friends from Bugtussle—and her always-faithful chiweenie Buster Loo—Ace will find a way to make it, even if she has to throw some weight around…

Gabi’s a girl in pieces. She wants a lot of things. Will she find the thing she needs most?