Following on the heels of American Naomi Wolf’s critically acclaimed The Beauty Myth and the recently published Lip Service: The Truth about Women’s Darker Side in Sex, Love and Friendship by Canadian journalist Kate Fillion, come two comparable books, which deal more pointedly with society’s pressure on women to be thin, and its rejection of those who are not.

Toronto entrepreneur and former plus-size model Jackqueline Hope writes about her struggle with dieting and her eventual self-acceptance, while Albertan journalist Terry Poulton takes a hard-nosed look at the realities of feminine obesity.

Hope’s approach is the gentler, more personal, and is designed, it would seem, to inspire her reader. And indeed, Hope is an inspiration, not only to those women struggling with weight problems, but to all women – and men, for that matter – who are faced with challenges and obstacles.

Written in a conversational style, Big, Bold and Beautiful: Living Large on a Small
Planet talks to its readers, tells them the trials of Hope’s life, and urges them to move beyond the negative, as Hope herself has found the strength to do. With an honesty that is at times poignant, Hope recounts her disastrous first marriage, detailing the cruel attacks her husband made on her weight and appearance.

An essential part of Hope’s improved self-image came from developing her own business, Big, Bold & Beautiful, which includes a plus-size modeling agency, leading plus-size clothing boutiques for both everyday wear and wedding wear, and Big On Fitness, an exercise program designed for large women. Hope’s success as an entrepreneur lends credibility to her story, but this does not mean that the book itself is not flawed. It lacks cohesion in following no particular timeline, and the conversational tone borders occasionally on the simplistic.

Terry Poulton, too, includes a great deal about her own battle with the scale in No Fat Chicks: How Women Are Brainwashed to Hate Their Bodies and Spend Their Money. Details of her life, however, are overshadowed by a hard-line journalistic approach that examines what Poulton calls “the billion-dollar brainwash,” a term she coins to refer to the diet phenomenon, claiming that it is not about beauty or weight at all, but about how much money women will spend trying to be thin.

Poulton’s book reads like a long magazine article, which is one of its strengths. In addition to quoting a good number of studies, medical practitioners, acclaimed books on sociology and eating disorders, and citing interviews with many experts in the field – including perpetual dieters, Poulton uses herself as a case study, describing a project she did in 1982 for Chatelaine. She lost 65 pounds in six months and documented her trials in monthly articles for the magazine. Although she succeeded, it was an arduous process, and one that made her realize that admiration for losing weight was not the kind of admiration she was seeking. In fact, it made her understand that society’s emphasis on thinness was unhealthy, and this understanding led ultimately to the writing of this book.

Poulton covers such subjects as the “anti-fat profiteers,” like Weight Watchers and Slim-Fast, which take women’s money in exchange for guaranteed slimness. She also discusses eating disorders and the often irresponsible behaviour of doctors treating obese patients. Social prejudice and workplace discrimination against those with weight problems is another topic, along with the unattainable standards set by the fashion industry. Poulton makes specific references to Wolf’s text and also speaks of Jackqueline Hope as an icon among plus-size women.

While Poulton writes with conviction, No Fat Chicks can be a little much. Using the first-person plural, she writes as though she is speaking for the masses, carrying a torch for all women. And though in some ways she may be, there is an aggressive, sometimes angry tone that leads one to question her study’s objectivity. For example, she calls fitness “a euphemism for thinness,” and suggests that women only work out to be thin. Poulton seems to have overlooked the fact that some women do exercise because they enjoy it, or because it releases stress, or improves their cardio-vascular health. Generalizations such as this lead the reader to question Poulton’s credibility, even though the better part of her book is convincing and often moving.

Although neither Big, Bold and Beautiful nor No Fat Chicks is always structurally sound, both provide an interesting perspective on present sociological trends. Read in sequence, they complement one another well; read separately, they are valuable individual studies.