Dietland
 The front cover of the first edition (hardcover) | |
| Author | Sarai Walker |
|---|---|
| Cover artist | Laserghost |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | Houghton Mifflin Harcourt[1] |
Publication date | May 26, 2015 |
| Publication place | United States |
| Media type | Print (hardbackandpaperback),e-book,audiobook[2] |
| Pages | 320 |
| ISBN | 9780544373433 |
| OCLC | 885225468 |
Dietlandis thedebut novelbySarai Walkerthat was first published on May 26,2015byHoughton Mifflin Harcourt.[1]The novel explores the beauty industry and society's obsession withweight loss.[3]Atelevision adaptationof the novel byMarti Noxonpremiered on June 4, 2018, on AMC;Joy Nashplays the role of the lead character, Plum.[4]
Synopsis
[edit]The novel follows Plum Kettle, a 300-poundghostwriterhired to respond to the hundreds of emails written to the editor of popularteen magazineDaisy Chain.Plum fantasizes about being thin and after years of failed diet plans, she schedules an appointment forweight loss surgery.While awaiting her surgery date, Plum finds herself recruited by an undergroundfeministcabalknown as "Calliope House".[5]Meanwhile, a guerrilla group known as "Jennifer" begins carrying out increasingly violent acts ofvigilante justiceagainst those who mistreat women, and Plum soon finds herself at the center of a sinister plot.[1]
Development
[edit]Sarai Walker was inspired to writeDietlandafter watching the 1999 filmFight Club."I came out thinking that I had to write the female version," Walker said in an interview withYahoo! Beauty,explaining that it was the film's "social construction of masculinity, of gender, which makes it fascinating from a feminist perspective."[6]Walker's experience working for teen and women's magazines also inspired much of the novel, with the protagonist ofDietlandalso being a teen magazine writer.[6]
Themes
[edit]Critics have calledDietlanda "subversive" and "feminist" novel,[1][7]dealing with themes ofbody shaming,misogynyandhypersexualization.[8]A central theme of the book isfat-andself-acceptance,withThe Guardian's Arwa Mahdawi noting that: "Plum's self-hatred transforms into self-acceptance. She goes from rejecting her fatness to embracing it."[9]NPR's Annalisa Quinn noted however that: "the novel doesn't rest with a predictable message of sugary self-acceptance:Dietlandswerves suddenly and powerfully fromchick litto revenge fantasy. "[10]
Reception
[edit]Dietlandwas selected as one ofEntertainment Weekly's 10 Best Books of 2015.[7]The magazine gave the novel an "A" grade, calling it "a thrilling, incendiary manifesto disguised as a beach read."[11]Kirkus ReviewsdescribedDietlandas "hilarious, surreal, and bracingly original," concluding: "PartFight Club,part feminist manifesto, an offbeat and genre-bending novel that aims high—and delivers. "[1]
The Guardian's Lydia Kiesling was not impressed by the book's "structural oddities" but noted that "its message resonates", saying: "It's vanishingly rare...to see a novel that looks like the much-maligned"chick lit"– and sometimes reads like it – so gleefully censorious ofrape culture."[5]
References
[edit]- ^abcde"Dietland - Kirkus Review".Kirkus Reviews.March 5, 2015.RetrievedJuly 8,2017.
- ^"Dietland".Publishers Weekly.RetrievedJune 25,2017.
- ^Littleton, Cynthia (October 28, 2016)."AMC Lands Hot 'Dietland' Drama Project From Marti Noxon, Skydance TV".Variety.
- ^"'Dietland' Scripts Got Rewrite After Harvey Weinstein Scandal to Reflect 'Post-Reckoning World'".TheWrap.June 4, 2018.RetrievedJune 5,2018.
- ^abKiesling, Lydia (June 11, 2015)."Dietland by Sarai Walker review – gleefully censorious of 'rape culture'".The Guardian.
- ^abDuan, Noël (June 9, 2015)."Fight Club for Women: Why 'Dietland' is Not Another Chick Lit Novel".Yahoo! Beauty.
- ^abEW Staff (December 10, 2015)."10 Best (And 5 Worst!) Books of 2015".Entertainment Weekly.
- ^Harris, Joyce Sáenz (May 2015)."Fiction review: 'Dietland,' by Sarai Walker".The Dallas Morning News.
- ^Mahdawi, Arwa (April 27, 2016)."Dietland author Sarai Walker: 'London is the most fat-shaming place I've been'".The Guardian.
- ^Quinn, Annalisa (May 27, 2015)."Fat Is Not A Four-Letter Word In 'Dietland'".NPR.
- ^Biedenharn, Isabella (May 21, 2015)."'Dietland' by Sarai Walker: EW review ".Entertainment Weekly.