Complications from eating disorders result in one death every 62 minutes, according to the Eating Disorders Coalition. To understand the danger of Wintergirls, one must understand the nature of eating disorders. I became a “wintergirl” - a girl ' who is half alive and half dead.' From Wintergirls, I learned how to cut myself, and I learned how to hide it from my family and friends. Soon, I began mimicking Lia's methods of losing weight. It was one of my favorite books - yet, the weight loss methods, calorie counting, and goal weight tracking that are mentioned frequently in the novel took over my life. Wintergirls was published in 2009 by the acclaimed author of Speak, a novel about sexual assault it was a New York Times best-seller, and it received glowing reviews, including one from The Guardian that described the book as an “intoxicating story for teenagers.” The story centers on 18-year-old, Lia Overbrook whose struggles with anorexia and self-harm become even more challenging after her best friend Cassie, dies as a result of complications from bulimia. I adored the imagery and the prose, and I was infatuated with protagonist Lia Overbrook: Why couldn’t I be as thin as her? Why didn't I have the willpower to be her size? I finished a digital copy of the book in a day. Warning: This article contains information about eating disorders, suicide, and self-harm, which some may find triggering. “There’s a great book about eating disorders I think you should read called Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson,” she told me. I lost weight, my appetite was gone, and I started and ended every day with my head in the toilet. After my first major breakup, my chronic depression was at its worst. I’m scared that you’re getting sick,' a friend texted me, what seemed like a lifetime ago.

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