Fasting Girls: The History of Anorexia Nervosa (Vintage)

When Fasting Girls first appeared in 1988, anorexia nervosa was widely considered a new disease.  In fact, most people thought it would go away.  Joan Jacobs Brumber's award-winning book changed that perception by demonstrating when and where anorexia nervosa originated and why it has become so "popular" in our time.  A classic work that is both a biography of the disease and a sustained inquiry into the cultural  forces that perpetuate it, Fasting Girls-newly revised and updated-will stand for years as the authoritative book on the subject.

Fasting Girls looks to the history of anorexia nervosa for answers to some of the most persistent questions about its origins, demographics, and treatment.  Brumberg presents fa tableau of female self-denial dating back as far as the thirteenth century: medieval martyrs who used starvation to demonstrate religious devolution, "wonders of science" whose families capitalized their ability to survive on flower petals and air, silent screen stars whose strict "slimming" regimens inspired a generation.  Along the way she traces the shifting social and cultural influences that have shaped how the disorder is perceived.  Incisive, compassionate, and illuminating, Fasting Girls offers real understanding to victims and their families, clinicians, and all who are interested in the history and future of this complex and characteristically female disease.