Reading Diary: Hungry Ghost by Victoria Ying

Here is a synopsis from the author's website:

Valerie Chu is quiet, studious, and above all, thin. No one, not even her best friend, Jordan, knows that she has been bingeing and purging for years. But when tragedy strikes, Val finds herself reassessing her priorities, her choices, and her body. The path to happiness may lead her away from her hometown and her mother’s toxic projections—but first she will have to find the strength to seek help.


This beautiful and heart-wrenching young adult graphic novel takes a look at eating disorders, family dynamics, and ultimately, a journey to self-love.

I got this graphic novel specifically to have in my classroom library. I started this year with an activity where students set goals for themselves, and easily half of the students, if not more, put "get thinner" or some variation of that as one of their four goals. It breaks my heart. The protagonist of this book is a Taiwanese-American girl, and the author writes in the end notes that this story is based on similar struggles with disordered eating in her own life.

Having this book in my classroom library is a blatant ploy to help any students who might be struggling see that they are not alone and there is hope.