Starfish is a middle grades novel in verse about Ellie, an overweight eleven year old. Ellie is the youngest of three children, and both of her big siblings criticize her size. One of her siblings is responsible for her awful nickname, Splash. Despite that, Ellie loves to swim every morning- it’s the only place she feels weightless. 

Ellie’s mom is constantly bemoaning her weight and limiting her food. Her father is a bit more supportive and early in the story, he begins taking Ellie to therapy. I loved Ellie’s growth in therapy and how she took that into her world. 

This is a heavy book. It brought up a lot of my past experiences with a fat phobia parent. Take care of yourself if you read this, but please don’t write it off. It is beautiful, brave, and full of messages we all need to hear.