Hopeless. Pitiful. Horrifying. These are the words that Skinny, fifteen-year-old Ever Davies' alter ego, whispers in her ear constantly. Skinny tells Ever all of the things Ever's classmates are thinking about her. Ever knows she weighs over three hundred pounds, and she knows she'll never fit in, but Skinny won't let her forget it. But there is another voice inside of Ever too, and that is her beautiful singing voice. Partly hoping to try out for the school musical, and partly hoping to save her health once and for all, Ever decides to undergo a risky weight loss surgery. Supported by her best friend, Ever begins the slow process of starting over, but thanks to Skinny, finds that change doesn't come easily. Ever will have to confront her biggest demon before she can move on.

Skinny is a moving and inspiring story that will appeal to any girl who has ever struggled with self-esteem, whether related to weight or not. For fans of the fairy tale, there is also a Cinderella theme throughout the book. Ever lost her mother before the start of the story, and her father is remarried to a woman with two popular and pretty daughters. Though Ever sees her as a real person, Skinny is her own conscience and self-doubt speaking to her--something that most young women will relate to. Skinny voices the mean thoughts that Ever assumes her classmates have about her. As Ever gains confidence and finally rids herself of her demon, she begins to realize that her perception of what her classmates thought of her was just that, and that she too carries some responsibility for creating relationships. There is a fair amount of matter-of-fact discussion about the gastric bypass procedure and its after-effects in this book, but the real story is Ever and the emotional makeover that she undergoes. There are excellent lessons about friendship--the most important being that if you want a good friend, you need to be a good friend. The positive message about Ever's evolution is realistic--she loses a dramatic amount of weight, but she knows she will never be a size 2. Her discovery of inner strength is inspiring. This is a relatively wholesome read that could be enjoyed by mature middle schoolers and high schoolers alike.

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