I fell head over heals in love with this book and its characters. I am far away from when I first read it but still think often of Rachel and the lives she was moving away from, growing into, wishing to create.

Slightly complicated, funny book. I really enjoyed the character dive into Rachel's difficult relationship with her mother, journey in therapy, and relationships. The author made her all at once unrelatable and familiar.
Though their addition made the story and characters feel more open and raw, especially among Rachel's seeming female Oedipus complex, the sex scenes felt a bit contrived and seemed to take away from the other parts of the story, which I thought were the best of her writing.
Not sure if all of this novel will stick with me BUT I know for sure the analogy about not going to the hardware store for milk rang so true and won't be soon forgotten!

A significantly entertaining novel that perfectly articulates the experience of someone with an eating disorder, not quite anorexia and not bulimia but still sharp, including calorie counting and portion control and body dysmorphia... fun stuff that affects how the protagonist, Rachel, loves herself and therefore how she might be able to love anyone else... and therein lies the point... this is a story about not being controlled (in Rachel's case, by her mother) and giving up control (of food) in order to find self-love. There is also an extraordinary amount of sex. For some readers, it might be the main event.

I was given a copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion- so here goes....For me this novel was a struggle to read and to finish. I was constantly looking to see how much I had to go to finish.
Some could find this book funny while exploring body image, religion and intimacy. I found it sad. I enjoy reading to be entertained not to feel sorry and sad for the characters.

OMG! What a book! And what a talent! Melissa Broder is fearless. I guarantee you will not read a funnier or more erotic book this year. Her book 'The Pisces' is one of my all-time favorites (and is being made into a movie!) and I could not wait to see what Ms. Broder would write next.

Rachel works at a talent agency in Los Angeles and is plagued by an eating disorder. She carefully controls and plans single every morsel of food and she obsesses over food and eating every waking minute. When and what she should eat literally consume her. ("Better to suffer now and have something to anticipate than to leave a big chunk of my day’s food in the rearview mirror. That was a worse kind of suffering.") At the suggestion of her therapist, she breaks off all contact with her overbearing mother, who instilled in Rachel from an early age that thin is better.

Rachel develops a crush on Miriam, who comes from an Orthodox Jewish family. Miriam is the opposite of Rachel: she is "undeniably fat, irrefutably fat. She surpassed plump, eclipsed heavy. She was fat.” Miriam is every one of Rachel's worst fears about her own body.

There are about a zillion incredibly awkward scenes in this book as well as brilliant prose and very sharp wit. I am not sure non-Jews will think this book is as funny as I did but think it is truly one of the most original books I have read in a long time.

I can't even begin to describe the exquisite detail that Ms. Broder uses to describe food and Rachel's eating experiences ("After we sang, we ate and drank. Mrs. Schwebel had cooked an incredible dinner: roast chicken with a crisp and buttery skin on the outside, juicy meat inside. The chicken had been filled with a salty stuffing—crunchy and full of celery. She served some kind of apple compote that tasted like it was its own apple pie. There were braised carrots with cinnamon, a terrine of sweet-and-sour meatballs with raisins in the sauce, and challah with margarine.") Every word of this story was an absolute delight. Sad, funny, tragic and profane - this book covers all the emotions. Highly recommend this one.

Milk Fed follows Rachel as she deals with her obsessive food rituals, work problems, family issues, her religious identity, and a budding but confusing relationship with a woman she meets at a yogurt shop.

There were a lot of things I loved about this book. It felt so real and raw. Rachel really came alive in this story, and I felt myself feeling protective over her, and rooting for her the entire time. She wasn’t exactly likable but I loved Broder’s way of putting it all out there. Her running stream of consciousness was fascinating, and I loved all of the connections she made to themes of mothers, religion, love, and sex.

I also related to Rachel’s struggle with her own identity, finding herself at a constant crossroads with her religion, her sexuality, her career, and her body. It felt like she had no idea what she was doing in life, and in that struggle she held on tighter to her irrational sense of control.

Yes, this book is full of secondhand embarrassment, cringe worthy sexual descriptions, and extremely uncomfortable themes that at times seem gratuitous. I know this will be a very polarizing book, but the more I sit with this book in my mind, the more I like it.

This book follows Rachel a culturally Jewish and eating disordered young woman. Many of her food issues appear to be traced back to her mother, or so her therapist seems to think. When Rachel meets Miriam, future heiress to a froyo empire, her life of rules and calorie counting gets turned upside down.

Broder is a masterful writer, she reminds me a little of Moshfegh. Like Moshfegh (specifically see MYORAR) Broder can write an unlikable and neurotic female character in a way that makes you want to be their BFF. I really loved this aspect of the book. Rachel’s neuroticism is on point and I loved being in her head. However, I got really tired of the sex scenes. I get it, I do. By eating up Miriam Rachel finds freedom from her (food related) eating issues. I did find some of it funny and darkly silly too (e.g. bike seat), but it became repetitive. I found myself skipping through the non stop liquid, gushing, crevices, lapping and licking. I wanted more of Rachel’s outlook, on life than Miriam’s nether regions. With that being said I have bought The Pisces because I want more of Broder’s writing in my life. Thank you to NetGalley and Scribner for the copy!

I had to DNF this at 30% because the representation of an eating disorder was too triggering. There has been a lot of fiction lately exploring eating disorders, but I wish this one had had a stronger content warning.

Milk Fed has a lot to unpack. There's concerns over mother/daughter relationships, body dysmorphia and eating disorders, sexuality, and spirituality. Rachel and Miriam are polar opposites in pretty much every single way. When Rachel starts a cleanse from her mother, she's able to see the world from a different perspective. She lets go of a lot of her insecurities. I liked that this was a coming of age story of sorts, albeit a very erotic one. What Rachel truly seeks is unconditional love, which she's never felt from anyone her life. No one truly knows her and no one has loved her the way she longs for. Broder writes with rich symbolism in a way that's shocking yet relatable. I definitely want to go pick up both The Pisces and So Sad Today by Broder.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a free copy in exchange for my honest review.

Trigger warning: eating disorder

Rachel is a 24-year-old non-religious Jewish woman living in LA. She works at a talent management company and sometimes does stand-up, but her main activity is calorie restriction. The opening chapters of this novel dive deep into Rachel's consumption patterns, her exact math of how many calories she eats and how many she burns on the elliptical at night. Rachel's therapist recommends she take a 90 day "detox" from her mom, who taught her calorie restriction as a child and is constantly calling and texting her from New Jersey. Days later, Rachel's patterns are further interrupted when the man who sells her her daily cup of frozen yogurt is replaced by his sister Miriam, who refuses to stick to Rachel's calorie regimens.

Miriam comes from an Orthodox Jewish family and is the catalyst for a sexual, chaotic coming-of-age story all about Rachel uncovering the ties between her relationship with her mother, her eating disorder, her religion and her sexuality. At times it felt like a car crash; I was cringing but also could not look away.

***eArc provided by NetGalley & Scribner in exchange for an honest review***

Having not yet read Melissa Broder's first novel, The Pieces, but being an avid fan of her twitter account So Sad Today I knew that this book was going to make me absolutely feel. And that it does. Despite not 100% fitting into Rachel's shoes, I fit close enough that the deep and resonate sadness filled me up in a way I wasn't expecting. (It's like we wear the same size, but my feet are wide and her's simply are not.)

Rachel, a mid-20s Jewish woman living in Los Angeles, knows religion. She's found God not at a synagogue, but with calorie counting and dieting. After years of psychological and food-based abuse by her mother, her therapist gives her some new food for thought: cut your mother out. 90 days. Just see how it goes.

And goes it certainly does. Milk Fed is a story of love and food, and how they get so tied together in our society. It's erotic, thought provoking, and plays with identity in easy, but powerful, ways. Broder has done a really tremendous job, and I can't wait to see what comes next.

I’ve seen the world “repulsive realism” in a few reviews and I feel like that phrase is applicable to “Milk Fed” I felt like I was reading the diary of a young woman who is on the cusp of figuring out who she is and losing control all at the same time. A funny, sexual, raw, and a compulsive read. I haven’t read Broder’s other novel “The Pisces” but now I can’t wait to get my hands on it.

I went into MILK FED (Scribner) blind. I hadn't read Melissa Broder's previous novel, THE PISCES which just about the whole world went crazy for. It was the cover of MILK FED that caught my eye. So imagine being thrilled and shocked when delving in, and finding it easily one of the most filthy, hilarious, embarrassing (I'm glad I was reading it on my Kindle) and and insightful stories on how our parents ruin us.

Rachel is a 24 year-old lapsed Jew, who counts calories like its a religion. By day she slogs at a talent agency, before heading off to the gym where she sweats on the elliptical machine to no where and finishes the day performing comic sets at the nightclub, "This Show Sucks."

"Do you want to be chubby or do you want to get boyfriends?"

Rachel's mother has been on her about weight and getting a boyfriend, since she was born and her therapist, Dr. Mahjoub suggests a communication detox for ninety-days. Rachel's mother freaks out, whining about being accused of being a "bad mother," but Rachel embraces the challenge.

Rachel meets Miriam, an Orthodox Jew whose family owns, Yo!Good!, the yogurt shop she regularly goes to. She's shocked by Miriam's comfort in her zaftig body, but slowly falls in love with her layers, clove cigarette habit and desire to get drunk at every opportunity. She hooks up with Miriam and together she begins eating food for pleasure and their relationship goes from "platonic amusement to amorous hysteria." Rachel finds enjoyment in Miriam's family's traditions, faith and loving relationship with her mother.

MILK FED is a journey of self-discovery, the desire of food, sex, family and god. There's a sense of magical realism to the story. Broder takes every opportunity to push the story to the edge of impossibility.

Warning: explicit sex and triggers for anyone who may have eating disorders.

Milk Fed was intoxicating, infuriating, and at times indulgent. It felt like I was reading something I shouldn’t. Like I had a dirty little secret in my hands. I saw so much—probably too much—of myself in this story.

Our main character and protagonist Rachel is “twenty-four, a lapsed Jew who has made calorie restriction her religion.” The start of this book is excruciating. @realmelissabroder opens the first few chapters by walking through Rachel’s obsessive routine and rituals. Those first 50 pages were so raw and honest, and more relatable than I expected, that I was considering the possibility of a DNF. I’m so glad I kept going.

On a journey to understanding herself, her family, and the life she has caged herself into, Rachel meets Miriam—a soft and fat woman. And Rachel can’t get enough of her.

Milk Fed is funny when it shouldn’t be, wildly erotic (wow), and deeply sad from start to finish. I was completely absorbed by every detail.

This book will not be for everyone, but it was certainly for me. I can’t wait to read more from Broder.

I believe this is called a Buldungsroman. A coming-of-age. But really, it’s an adult coming-of-age. Those years in your 20s when you’re figuring things out, maybe insecure, working through your parental baggage, haphazardly dating, testing the waters at work, etc. Now that I have read both “Milkfed” and “The Pisces,” Melissa Broder seems to specialize in female narrators growing up even once they’re grown, and especially learning about themselves through sex. There is a lot of sex going on in both of her novels.

“Milkfed” uses intimacy (between characters and within the mind) to examine body image, repressed sexuality, family trauma, isolation, and navigating strict religious beliefs. I won’t lie to you and say this was an easy read. The first ~10 chapters where we (the reader) are getting inside the head of a calorie-obsessed Rachel could be very triggering, but as Rachel begins to let go of her control over food, the narrative also frees itself to explore the relationships in Rachel’s life. Although we never really meet Rachel’s mother, she is an ever present character, and Rachel arguably searches for a substitute mother throughout the novel, coming full circle in the end.

I finished this book and had to spend a lot of time thinking about the themes to really see beyond some of the shocking scenes. Melissa Broder is doing really unique things in contemporary literature and I hope everyone has a chance to appreciate her works, although I think they require a strong stomach.

Milk Fed’s cover is just a glorious, illustrated boob, that could also be an aerial view of an ice cream sundae with a cherry on top. Both would be appropriate for Melissa Broder’s newest novel which grapples with weight and body image, mother and daughterhood, queer relationships, God, and frozen yogurt with equal sincerity. The mind behind the So Sad Today Twitter account and the very horny novel The Pisces, Broder writes bodies as if they are a feast. Milk Fed is an absolutely luscious novel—though one that I cannot in good faith recommend without mentioning its oft mother-centric erotica.

I included this in my preview of winter and spring titles for Book & Film Globe: https://bookandfilmglobe.com/fiction/seven-books-to-look-forward-to-in-2021/

Thanks to Scribner and NetGalley for the ARC.

Rachel's been struggling for years and now she's backed herself into a rigid ritualistic way of eating and exercising. She's working with a therapist who has her put her overbearing mother (who mercifully lives across the country) on a break. And then, one day, someone new is working in shop where she buys a frozen yogurt every day. Miriam, the large and well loved daughter of an Orthodox Jewish family slowly but surely burns into Rachel's brain- and Rachel slowly starts to put aside all her rituals. This is a fascinating portrait of a young woman who has never been happy with her body (or herself) who also in love with her physical and emotional opposite. Know that there are some spicy spots. Some of the descriptions of food are equally lovingly written. Anyone who has or who has had food issues will recognize Rachel's calorie counting, rationalizations, and binges- so sympathetic to her. Miriam's conflict rings true as well. It's fascinating to watch Rachel's growth. Thanks to the publisher for the ARC. This is a great read. Broder clearly cares very much about these women and you will as well.

I'm not sure how I felt about this book when I finished it so I had to take some time to ruminate. It's a Coming of Age novel, if you could call 24-year-old Rachel a teen or tween! It's" weirdly wonderful" if that makes any sense! But I guess we all need coming-of-age moments at times in our lives as we re-assess and ponder next steps as we grow older. Rachel has been obsessively counting calories for as long as she remembers (seriously, this made me want to go make her, and me, a milkshake after the first few pages)! Her therapist encourages her to do a "detox" with her controlling mother which she agrees to. It is only then that she meets Miriam at the yogurt shop she patronizes where she only allows herself a very small serving of non-fat, non-sugar yogurt a day. But Miriam convinces her to try a concoction that she has invented and Rachel is in love--both with the yogurt and Miriam who is so completely different than she is! It's hilarious and quirky, passionate and graphic; this is a novel that's not for everyone, but if you like edgy, lovely disturbing and thought-provoking images of a woman shedding her past and finding herself than this is one you will love!

Thank you to Scribner and NetGalley for a free e-copy of Milk Fed in exchange for an honest review.

If you know me, you know how much I loved The Pisces. So the minute I heard Melissa Broder had a new book coming out, it went to the top of my list.

Milk Fed is the story of a white, Jewish woman, Rachel, who strictly counts calories, works for an entertainment management company, and has a toxic relationship with her mother. Her daily trips to Yo!Good, a yogurt shop, lead to her becoming intertwined with The Schewebel family.

The things I loved about The Pisces definitely carry through to Milk Fed. There are several parts where I laughed out loud, there are super hot sex scenes (real and imagined) between two women, and Broder writes repulsive realism so very well. Ultimately, Milk Fed is not about the romantic relationships that Rachel pursues, but her journey to finding her authentic self.

I, however, didn't love Milk Fed. I really didn't connect with the characters, and in some ways, they felt like characturers instead of real people. The short chapters made it compulsively readable, but it felt jarring as a reader to move to another chapter every few pages. I also felt like the beginning started super strong but by the end, it was harder to want to pick MIlk Fed back up.

I'm still very happy I read this book, and I will continue to pick up anything Melissa Broder writes. One final note, there are several elements of this book that might be triggering - especially Rachel's eating disorder.

This was my first Broder novel, and it take me a little to get used to her writing style; however, I really enjoyed it once I understood it. I thought the themes of this book could be triggering, and I did find myself feeling anxious reading so much about her obsessions with her day and her very disordered eating habits. However, this obsessiveness kind of flowed through the main character in all aspects of her life and especially in her thoughts and finding love. I think this book would be a great book club pick as there are so many themes to discuss. Relationships with mothers always seem to bring up good discussion topics! Thank you for the ARC. I read this quickly!

Adding in (a few days after finishing) that this book is still on my mind days later, so I'm changing my stars. I think Melissa Broder may be a genius.