Bluebell or BB as she is better know (or Big Bones) is a sixteen-year-old girl who is overweight. She actually doesn’t mind being overweight and embraces her body. She loves food, decent food, but when she has an asthma attack her mum takes her to the nurse who warns her she must lose weight. After a heated discussion over wanting to get an apprenticeship as a barista instead of going to sixth form, whilst in the nurse’s office, the nurse and her mum come to a decision. She has to keep a food diary for six weeks and she has to join a gym, then they can talk about the apprenticeship when she returns. BB is a headstrong young woman who likes a challenge so she sets out to write her food diary, although it becomes more of a normal diary featuring food. This is her diary. Big Bones is an amusing, laugh-out-loud at times book that deals with teenager BB and her weight and her love for food. It also covers her family issues, her mum and dad are having a break from each other and her dad has moved out of the family home. There is also BB’s little sister, thirteen-year-old Dove who loves Parkour. As well as keeping a food diary and going to the gym (when she can be bothered), she also gets herself a part-time job at Planet Coffee, a cafe run by Australian Alicia who thinks as her staff as aliens, or earthlings, depending on her mood. It is here that BB is trying to get her apprenticeship. Each chapter is titled mainly by a different food item and BB tells you why she loves or hates that item, as well as something that happens in her life too. I like BB, she didn’t care that she was overweight, she didn’t want to do the same thing everyone else was doing, she was happy just being herself. Yes at times she could be self-centered but I think that had more to do with her age than her weight. I loved her take on life and also the way she thought about food. It had to look good and taste good, she was a food connoisseur. Dove loved her food too, the difference between the two is that Dove is this slight, slim young girl who never kept still. She was always out with her friends jumping from one rooftop to another, pushing her limits. This is a beautifully written book that deals with far more than a young girl being overweight. It deals with a lot of things that teenagers BB’s age are going through. Family issues, problems with siblings, what to do once you have finished school, waiting for GCSE results, friendships, and young love. By the time I’d reached the end of the book, it felt like I’d been following a real persons life. I was invested and I was sorry to reach the final page and would love to hear more from Bluebell in the future.

Our narrator, the feisty, funny, beautiful and big Bluebelle is a foodie; her descriptions of food are mouth watering. In an age of fast food on one hand and ever new diet fads on the other – something ever younger girls are exposed to – it is great to see a novel that celebrates good food and cooking and enjoying your food. This is also a book about body image and body positivity, it advocates acceptance and enjoying the body you have (and that includes moving it!). This is also a story about being young and not knowing what to do with your life. It is about friendship, sisters, first loves and (not?) fitting in. All this, and a cracking, enjoyable read. I just loved this book. I really wish I could have read this 15 years ago, and I am happy for all the teenage girls (and boys?) who get to read this story now! Thanks to Hot Key Books for my review copy, I devoured it in a few days!

This story was both hilarious and heartbreaking. Bluebelle is told that she is obese and needs to lose weight after a serious asthma attack. A nurse gives her a food diary to keep track of her diet. The diary ends up turning into a journal where she talks about everything in her life. It takes a serious accident for her to rethink her life choices. There was so much delicious food described in this book! This is definitely not a book to read when you’re hungry. There was a paragraph that described toast, which made me crave it. I’ve never read toast described in such detail before! The only thing that bothered me about this book was the cover. The character is supposed to be so obese that she is unhealthy, or at least that is the way she is described. However, the girl on the cover looks like she’s a healthy body weight. I wish her size was represented with a more appropriate model on the cover. I really enjoyed this story! Thank you Penguin Random House Canada for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book from start to finish and I absolutely fell in love with Bluebell! Sassy, confident and utterly hilarious, her narration and food diary was so much fun to read. God, her love of food speaks to my soul, I mean, who doesn’t love a plate of crumpets covered in butter that melts through the holes? I think I have more food cravings after reading this than when I look through an actual cookbook! BB’s forced to confront her body in ways she previously hasn’t had to, and it’s really interesting to see how that develops and impacts upon her character. The tragedy mentioned in the blurb was heartbreaking and yet had some positive influences upon BB and her family. There’s are so many parts of this book that I found myself nodding along with as they’re so relatable, whether it be when I was 16 or now, at the age of 33. It’s a must read for fans of Holly Bourne and if you enjoyed Moxie by Jennifer Matthieu.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher. I really enjoyed this one; the protagonist, Bluebelle, is incredibly funny with super sharp wit (I kind of want to be her!) Brimming with wise-cracking, relatable content, this brilliant YA British contemporary is perfect for fans of Holly Bourne and Non Pratt!