thank you St. Martin's Press and Net Gallery for a digital copy of The Girls at 17 Swann Street by Yara Zgheib.

This is a very good read, not only is it a story but I learned a lot about anorexia. This is the first book I've read on the subject and gave me some insight into the life of someone with a eating disorder. Anna meets friends on 17 Swann Street and is learning to come out of her shell and deal with her disorder. I absolutely loved the romance between Anna and her husband. I recommend this book to anyone friends, family.

thanks again

Cherie'

#The Girls at 17 Swann Street #NetGalley is a very informative first novel by Yara Zgheib. The girls living here are all suffering from eating disorders. Anna has had anorexia nervosa for a long time. As a professional ballerina, her staying thin was absolute and she took it to an extreme. An injury took that away from her but her image of herself being thin didn’t change. Finally, her husband Matthias convinced her to go to Swann St for help. All the girls have underlying mental problems, need to recognize them, and be trained to eat again. Their meals and snacks are individually prepared, and there are consequences for not finishing at a given time. The bathrooms are lockek! Support and understanding from family and friends and even with the other girls is so important. Matthias comes to see Anna everyday. His love is so important and not always easy. Recovery requires a long time and may not be permanant. The reader wants to tell Anna and the other girls to keep trying and not give up! We become invested in all of them! It’s a special book with a story to tell and teach!

The Girls at 17 Swann Street by Yara Zgheib was an emotional read about a girl, Anna, who struggles with anorexia. Very powerful story. I, personally, enjoyed it. Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and #Netgalley for allowing me to read and review this book.

Very intriguing and emotional read! I was really enthralled by the whole thing.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own

As a survivor of both anorexia and bulimia, this is a must read for those who suffer from ED. The emotions and associations with food could not have been more spot on and it was a tough read but necessary for those who choose to live and not have a life dictated by food. Thank you for this honest depiction.

Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced reader's copy of this book!
I loved it. The Girls at 17 Swann Street is raw, real, heartbreaking and most of all: human. This one enthralled me!

I am a former therapy associate. Working with eating disorders was something I never aspired to because I didn’t think I could deal with the heartache. Research has shown how difficult it is to treat eating disorders and this author has painted such an accurate picture that it’s almost painful to read. Anna, the main character, has had so much unresolved grief piled on top of her, situations over which she has mostly had no control. Her anorexia began subtly, in the midst of a heartbreak, when she felt fat and ugly and ‘not chosen.’ Gradually, Anna realized there WAS something she could control-her food intake. And over time, her brain learns to lie to her and tell her she hates the food she used to love. Despite losing a lot of weight, what she sees in the mirror is a fat young woman.

This is the story of Anna and the husband who loves her, and the girls at 17 Swann Street who help her heal.

Thank you to Netgalley & St. Martin's Press for this ARC. This book was a work of art. The writing was so beautiful it inspired me to want to write my own tragic novel, to go out and take photos, to embark on a new project, to do something beautiful. Despite the heartbreaking premise of this book, it was still poetic, still beautifully sad yet inspiring. It was like reading a poem. It was tragic, touching and heart-wrenching. I found myself highlighting line after line to keep in my heart, and I will now add "Keep walking" to my list of affirmations. This book gave an insight into eating disorders that I did not anticipate, to the point that my heart broke for the author, because so much of it seemed so real and so tangible, that I hope the author did not have to experience any of the disorders she wrote about. On top of this amazing story, every time I read about Paris, I feel as if I am biting into a buttery, flaky croissant or a crisp, tart apple. A brilliantly talented author can transport you and this book made me only want to travel to Paris more, the author and narrator's love so showed through. I will be looking forward to more from this author.

The new book by Yara Zgheib, The Girls at 17 Swann Street, is a fictional account of an extremely difficult disease and the difficult path to recovery. Anna Roux is a 26 year-old former ballerina. She loves her home country of France, her husband, and her family. Unfortunately, Anna suffers from anorexia and is at the point where if she does not complete treatment she will die. At under 90 pounds, subtle bumps and bruises become agony. She has no ability to control her body heat and every bite is a battle. With no hope left, she is brought to 17 Swann Street, a light pink home that houses women who are no longer able to fight on their own. 

The Girls at 17 Swann Street is a brutal book, but anorexia is a brutal disease. Though Anna is fictional, her struggle seems very familiar. The book chiefly focuses on Anna, but also introduced readers to other characters that will relapse, be removed from treatment, and the stunning realization that sometimes when a new girl comes in, it means another girl has died. Yara Zgheib creates characters that feel like people you've met, and that makes it hurt so much more if someone is hurt. With facts about eating disorders mixed in, the book helps create a feeling of empathy for those who suffer from them.

The Girls at 17 Swann Street is now available from St. Martin's Press.

#The Girls at 17 Swann Street #NetGalley:
Wow - I tried. I tried to read this book containing a personal inside view of a girl with and eating disorder. The more I read, the more depressed I became. I decided not to finish the book. Maybe if I had I would have had a different opinion. However, this type of book and this story wasn't for me. I wanted to understand her, to feel her pain, but all I felt was depression. I apologize for not finishing the book and I apologize for not understanding and feeling the pain this type of disorder brings. I am sorry, I did not like this book!

I received an advance copy of this book from NetGalley. I requested the book because I was interested in the topic anorexia. I don't have it but it is a health issue that is very serious an in too many cases leads to death. I first became aware of it when I was young and Karen Carpenter died.

I liked this book. The main character Anna was very easy to come to care about. Her struggle was real and I found myself rooting for her from the start. The way her story is told gets you into the mind of someone suffering from anorexia. Everyone's situation is unique but you get to see how they think and how they struggle with extremely strong irrational thoughts.

While to topic is heavy I did not find the book depressing. I found it very hopeful.

I found this book to be incredibly moving and engaging from start to finish. It is a reflection of what it means to live with an eating disorder and mental health issues and how this affects relationships. It was a truly worthwhile read and one I won't be quick to forget!

First of all I would like to thank Netgalley as well as the publisher St. Martin's Press for the chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Anna Roux a 26 year old dancer has been dealing with the eating disorder anorexia for years but after years of struggling things have finally come to a head.. Her husband Mathias convinces her to go to treatment facility at 17 Swann Street. There she meets a group of girls suffering from anorexia or bulimia. Ash she becomes friends with the girls there she also begins to discover herself.

When she first arrives and through much of the book Anna is at a loss as to why she is even at Swann Street. Sure, she watches her diet but she is a dancer and dancers need to diet to stay in shape don't they? Yes, she restricts most foods but as a vegan once again that is something that vegans do.....right? The answer is no, to both things. When she first arrives Anna is in complete denial. She remember things differently than her family does. A trip with her husband is remembered fondly as a trip with lovely hikes and boat loads of fresh strawberries but Mathia remembers it as desperately trying to find food, any food that Anna would et and that she could barely make it a half a mile before she was exhausted.

Yara Zgheib does a wonderful job of letting us hear Anna' voice while sharing Anna's medical reports throughout her stay where we have a better idea of what is really happening with her. Anna is a kind, sweet voice and you care deeply about her as you root for her to beat her eating disorder. You long for her to heal and you also find yourself rooting for the other girls at Swann Street, the Emms, Valeries and Julias. The girl lost on the grips of this disease that has a tight rein on them. The care and understanding they give one another is heartwarming and you want them all to heal.

This is a beautifully written, haunting novel full of wonderful characters and a inspiring, gripping story.

As someone with food issues I do get triggered when people discuss weight and dieting and yet I am able to read these kinds of books without being triggered. Maybe because often books like these are written by or about survivors. I do want to give trigger warning at the start if you are in recovery for an eating disorder and are sensitive to these kinds of stories. I myself did not find this triggering at all though.

There is nothing disappointing about this book. Readers experience not just being anorexic but also being human. Anna is never to be pitied, but understood as more than the entries in her treatment plan. Even the writing style, with its eloquent efficiency, reflects Anna's inner world. Don't let the topic dissuade you as too depressing or not understandable. There is so much meaning to mine beyond the face of the topic.

The Girls at 17 Swann Street is a profound book. Anna is a 26 year old Parisian who has anorexia. She is sent to in patient treatment at 17 Swann Street in St Louis, Missouri when her weight gets down to 88 pounds. This is the story of her 6 weeks at Swann Street.
This book does a beautiful job of presenting these girls as humans and not their disease but while I could never understand what they go through I am able to empathize with them. The variety of characters is great with the girls who have different needs and eating disorders as well as the family member who either support or reject them.
The book is written from Anna's perspective but it is told through different styles. There are the treatment records which give an unbiased opinion on her treatment, the flashbacks, and the current storyline. This really gives you a full view of her as a person and helps you understand where it started.
I would recommend this book to anyone. It is a quick read because the chapters are short but it helps you view people with eating disorders as persons with a disease not as someone that is just choosing to does this.

The girls at 17 Swann street are captivating and touching. At first I was finish it difficult to get into the book when suddenly I was transferred into a world struggling to be that “perfect image”. An image we are bombarded with every day through magazines, news, daily shows and just walking around shopping. This book hits deep in reality of woman struggling to be perfect and a deeply satisfying experience of seeing this disease through someone struggling. At some point this will go through every persons mind? Is this meal with the calories, worth the weight gain ? And honestly it was amazing to finish and see that life is worth it and you my darling are worth it !

3.5 Stars
The Girls at 17 Swann Street is the story of Anna, a 26-year-old dancer, who undergoes treatment at a residential facility for women with eating disorders. Through this process, we learn about the life and struggles of Anna and some of the other women at the facility.

I found Anna’s story to be gripping and very interesting. Most accounts of anorexia and bulimia that I’ve read or heard of focused on teenagers. This story provided a unique perspective of how eating disorders affect adult women and their families. The book also gave me a better understanding of how anorexia devastates not only the body, but also the mind and the spirit, and how difficult (but possible) it is to overcome it.

While I really liked the parts of the story that took place in the facility, I felt the back story was a little disjointed, and I was left with some unanswered questions. Also, the book’s nontraditional text formatting (italics instead of quotations, for example) confused me in spots.

Overall, it was a worthwhile read, and I thank NetGalley for an advanced reader’s copy in exchange for this review.

The Girls at 17 Swann Street is the beautiful story of Anna, a former dancer, and her attempts at recovering from anorexia. Going into this novel, I only had a superficial understanding of this disease. I loved learning more about Anna as well as the psychology behind what caused her illness and how she worked to overcome her diagnosis. Though this book dealt with an incredibly difficult topic, it wasn't a depressing read. Zgheib did a wonderful job of balancing Anna's recovery with happy stories from her past and humorous events inside 17 Swann Street to keep the reader engaged and entertained. My only complaint is that I wish this novel was longer-I would have loved to read more about Anna's past and the events that led to anorexia.

I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for my honest and unbiased opinion.

Absolutely brilliant, riveting novel about one woman among many struggling with the disease and dis-ease of anorexia. An emotionally complex and deeply realistic, moving story about life, and how we live it, how we don’t live it, and everything in between. Your heart will break, and then it will break wide open to the possibilities of the beauty of life is we are brave enough to face our suffering as well as our joys. Highly recommend.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author and publisher for an advanced reading copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This book is not an easy read, but it is worth it. It is heart-breaking what a person with an eating disorder goes through. A very eye-opening book. It is very well written and once you start reading you can't stop. Thank you St. Martin's Press via NetGalley for the ARC copy of this book. This is my honest opinion of this book.