Hunger: A Memoir of (My) Body

(Author)
Available
4.9/5.0
21,000+ Reviews
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Product Details
Price
$18.99  $17.66
Publisher
Harper Perennial
Publish Date
Pages
320
Dimensions
5.2 X 7.9 X 0.8 inches | 0.55 pounds
Language
English
Type
Paperback
EAN/UPC
9780062420718

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About the Author

Roxane Gay's writing appears in BEST AMERICAN MYSTERY STORIES 2014, BEST AMERICAN SHORT STORIES 2012, BEST SEX WRITING 2012, A PUBLIC SPACE, MCSWEENEY'S, TIN HOUSE, OXFORD AMERICAN, AMERICAN SHORT FICTION, VIRGINIA QUARTERLY REVIEW, and many others. She is a contributing opinion writer for The New York Times. She is the author of the books AYITI, AN UNTAMED STATE, The New York Times bestselling BAD FEMINIST, the nationally bestselling DIFFICULT WOMEN and The New York Times bestselling HUNGER.

Reviews

"A gripping book, with vivid details that linger long after its pages stop. . . . Hunger is arresting and candid. At its best, it affords women, in particular, something so many other accounts deny them--the right to take up space they are entitled to, and to define what that means." -- Atlantic

"A work of staggering honesty . . . . Poignantly told." -- New Republic

"The book's short, sharp chapters come alive in vivid personal anecdotes. . . . And on nearly every page, Gay's raw, powerful prose plants a flag, facing down decades of shame and self-loathing by reclaiming the body she never should have had to lose." -- Entertainment Weekly

"Bracingly vivid. . . . Remarkable. . . . Undestroyed, unruly, unfettered, Ms. Gay, live your life. We are all better for having you do so in the same ferociously honest fashion that you have written this book." -- Los Angeles Times

"Searing, smart, readable. . . . "Hunger," like Ta-Nehisi Coates' "Between the World and Me," interrogates the fortunes of black bodies in public spaces. . . . Nothing seems gratuitous; a lot seems brave. There is an incantatory element of repetition to "Hunger" The very short chapters scallop over the reader like waves." -- Newsday

"Luminous. . . . intellectually rigorous and deeply moving." -- The New York Times Book Review

"Her spare prose, written with a raw grace, heightens the emotional resonance of her story, making each observation sharper, each revelation more riveting. . . . It is a thing of raw beauty." -- USA Today

"Powerful. . . . fierce. . . . Gay has a vivid, telegraphic writing style, which serves her well. Repetitive and recursive, it propels the reader forward with unstoppable force." -- Lisa Ko, author of The Leavers

"This is the book to read this summer . . . she's such a compelling mind . . . . Anyone who has a body should read this book." -- Isaac Fitzgerald on the TODAY Show

"Unforgettable. . . . Breathtaking. . . . We all need to hear what Gay has to say in these pages. . . . Gay says hers is not a success story because it's not the weight-loss story our culture demands, but her breaking of her own silence, her movement from shame and self-loathing toward honoring and forgiving and caring for herself, is in itself a profound victory." -- San Francisco Chronicle

"Hunger is Gay at her most lacerating and probing. . . . Anyone familiar with Gay's books or tweets knows she also wields a dagger-sharp wit." -- Boston Globe

"Wrenching, deeply moving. . . a memoir that's so brave, so raw, it feels as if [Gay]'s entrusting you with her soul." -- Seattle Times

"It is a deeply honest witness, often heartbreaking, and always breathtaking. . . . Gay is one of our most vital essayists and critics." -- Minneapolis Star Tribune

"Searing." -- Miami Herald

"This raw and graceful memoir digs deeply into what it means to be comfortable in one's body. Gay denies that hers is a story of "triumph," but readers will be hard pressed to find a better word." -- Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"A heart-rending debut memoir from the outspoken feminist and essayist. . . . An intense, unsparingly honest portrait of childhood crisis and its enduring aftermath." -- Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

"Displays bravery, resilience, and naked honesty from the first to last page. . . . Stunning . . . essential reading." -- Library Journal (starred review)

"A work of exceptional courage by a writer of exceptional talent." -- Shelf Awareness (starred review)

Praise for Bad Feminist: "A strikingly fresh cultural critic." -- Ron Charles, Washington Post

"Roxane Gay is the brilliant girl-next-door: your best friend and your sharpest critic. . . . She is by turns provocative, chilling, hilarious; she is also required reading." -- People

"[Gay is] hilarious. But she also confronts more difficult issues of race, sexual assault, body image, and the immigrant experience. She makes herself vulnerable and it's refreshing." -- Tanvi Misra, Atlantic, "The Best Book I Read This Year"