A Personal Look at Eating Disorders

Eating disorders are among the most perplexing ailments of the psyche. Theories are offered and published regularly by the experts who treat the many young women (and some young men) with anorexia and/or bulimia. Marya Hornbacher’s personal account of her long battle provides another window through which to contemplate these mysterious illnesses. Hornbacher, a freelance writer whose original, prize-winning essay published in Minneapolis/St. Paul magazine led to the book, states that she disagrees with much of the official word on eating disorders. She doesn’t try to replace old theories with new ones, but instead contributes greatly to the idea that the causes of eating disorders are multiple and deeply buried within the tangled roots of biology, personality, culture and family experience. Don’t look in this book for any reassurances that good health ultimately wins out or that treatment always succeeds. “Wasted” is compellingly written and very sad.