Looks

Reach for this book when your teenager is feeling invisible or targeted by the social hierarchies of high school, particularly if they are struggling with body image or self-harming behaviors. It is a raw and honest look at the protective walls young people build when they feel they do not fit the mold. The story follows Meghan, an obese girl who seeks solace in her solitude, and Aimee, a girl struggling with anorexia who expresses her pain through poetry. Together, they form an unlikely alliance to reclaim their power from the peers who have marginalized them. This is a sophisticated and gritty novel that addresses the complexities of eating disorders and social alienation without offering easy, sugar-coated solutions. It is most appropriate for mature high schoolers who can engage with heavy themes like body dysmorphia and social revenge. Parents might choose this to open a channel of communication about the difference between physical appearance and internal identity, or to validate a teen who feels like an outsider in their own skin.