The Clothes Make the Girl (Look Fat)? audiobook

This book actually made me laugh out loud multiple times, pause to have some serious conversations with myself, and shout really powerful comebacks to no one (just practicing in the event that a situation ever arise in which I need to defend my muffin top). Brittany Gibbons killed it again with this book!

If you have ever been called sturdy …I wasn’t an overweight child. I was a slightly pudgy teenager. It was all up from there, my weight, I mean. For years I punished myself by saying awful things to my reflection in the mirror, stuffing myself into clothes that didn’t fit, and eating bad food to feel better for a moment. Right about the time I realized something had to change, I found Brittany’s blog. It wasn’t an entry about body positivity, it was about her daughter scaring the bejeezus out of her in the middle of the night. I feel in love with her humor in an instant. Then I read more and I fell in love with her love of women and body and empowerment. Please do yourself a favor and read this book and if you haven’t already, read her first book- Fat Girl Walking. Find her online. Read her words. Then let them sink in. Repeat as needed until you treat your body and your heart the way they deserve to be treated. You can thank me later.

OH MY GOODNESS I LOVED THIS BOOK! It’s like Gibbons wrote this FOR me. We’re almost the exact same age and both from the Midwest, so all of her middle/high school references were so so relatable and hilarious, as was so much of the book. I laughed out loud uncontrollably so many times that my kids kept asking if I was okay. If you are a woman who has ever despaired over finding clothes that fit, this book is for you. And if you are a woman who has ever questioned the “rightness” of the size of your body, this book is for you. LOVED IT.

I have followed Brittany Gibbons' blogs since 2007. I read her online magazine, Curvy Girl Guide, and when that suddenly ended, joined on the ground floor of the Curvy Girl Guide community. I feel like that distant, yet extremely proud, aunt who has watched her niece grow up on Facebook and through the books she has written. While I'm not really her aunt, in fact, I've only been to Ohio once on purpose, I am SO PROUD of Brittany. Not just because of where she is in body acceptance and how she has helped so many designers and clothing companies wake the hell up and realize that they are screwing themselves out of business by NOT making plus size clothing for the majority of the population that wants to wear more than men's jeans and sequins sweat tops, but also because of how she has helped so many of us face the reality that we ARE POWERFUL and BEAUTIFUL and ENOUGH, regardless of what that number is written on the tag in our pants. In this book, Gibbons tells the world that we plus size women are just like other girls....we are sexual, successful, healthy, amazing, and have no reason to be ashamed or apologetic that we don't fit YOUR idea of what beauty is. The best part of this book, for me, was the chapter called "Everything I Want to Say to My Daughter." Here is where women need to learn to address the fact that our daughters are dry sponges soaking up all of our bad habits of self-loathing and being hyper-critical of our bodies. If we are going to raise self-confident daughters who love and respect themselves enough to not allow others to walk all over them, then we must teach them through our own example. I loved this book.

This book is exactly the kind of book that every woman needs to read. The kind of book that makes you nod with familiarity and understanding. The kind of writing that makes you feel like someone else understands what you’re going through in the dressing room, pool, doctors office and school pick up line. Over the last few years I’ve been inspired by Brittany and the amazing women in her group to try new things and find myself. There has always been a few things I couldn’t get past. Wearing shorts in public, my legs are very very pale and very thick, and wearing a two piece swim suit. The honest words she wrote in this book has inspired me to make my 2018 the debut of Grace’s legs, a re-launch if you will. So tonight after finishing this book, which I read in a few hours because I couldn’t put it down, I ordered a two piece bathing suit. This book is hilarious, brutally honest and unashamed. I wish I could gift one to everyone I know. #WereNotSorry

My only negative about this book is that it wasn’t long enough! Brittany has once again killed it with her real life writing. This book took me on what could have been a replica of my own childhood and journey into adulthood. Finding myself, learning to love my body (still) and all of the ins and outs. I laughed out loud countless time, I smiled through tears of complete understanding and cringed a lot, a lot, feeling the pain of being shamed as a plus-sized woman. I will be coming back to this book for years to come, when I need reminding that being a self-loving woman is far more important to what the haters are out there saying. This book wasn’t intended to be a “self help” guide for women, however I think many woman are going to be able to take away a lot of ways to help themselves feel stronger as a bad ass woman!

After Brittany Gibbons first book I said I wanted her to be my best friend. Sadly I think she's in too high of demand for that closeness. However after this book I do want to thank her profusely for putting into perfect words for me to read aloud to my partner what I could never seem to accurately convey, "You can't fix it." As a mom to an also stunning young lady your comments on what we teach our daughters made me both laugh and cry. You deal with the stress and the triumphs of maneuvering a plus size body through a petite minded world with humor and brilliance. You are a hero just for saying it all out loud for the rest of us.

Brittany is a fun writer to say the least. She really went there in ways I have never read in a book before, to the point where I have pretty much confirmed that having kids is now not only terrifying but even more disgusting then I thought. I really do have to say I felt more positive about myself after reading this book.

I will never be able to give Brittany less than 5 stars because she is so damn relatable and keeps me laughing and devouring her words. Reading her two books are like when you are convinced the singer on stage is looking at you and singing to you exclusively. Brittany is talking to me and I am still fangirling hard.

Another amazing read! I read ever last single page laughing! I was so happy that Brittany wrote a second book after loving her first. Her second was just as amazing and humorous and left me feeling like I was reading a book by my best friend.