The Girls at 17 Swann Street by Yara Zgheib - Reshelved Books

Hello Dewey Readers!

Do you know what time it is!? That's right, it's book review time!  I recently finished  Yara Zgheib's novel The Girls at 17 Swann Street. This novel is fantastic.  

The Girls at 17 Swann Street tells the story of one young woman's struggle with anorexia. 

Anna is 25 years old and used to be a dancer.  Although Anna is happily married now to a wonderful man, her past relationship was controlling, especially when it came to her weight.  Coupled with the pressure of being the best and thinnest dancer, Anna began to restrict her food.  She would compromise with herself, if she were to go to the movies with her husband in the evening and eat popcorn, she would fast the day before.  After suffering an injury, Anna was unable to dance and was thus replaced.  Her husband was also transferred from France to America for work, causing Anna to uproot her life both in terms of where she lived and her career.  Her anorexia only became worse.

Anna's husband and family chose to ignore the signs, until her disease escalated to the point where if she didn't get help she would die, and so Anna enters a treatment facility for girls who suffer from eating disorders at 17 Swann Street.  This novel tackles the mental and physical aspects of anorexia, the struggles, the triumphs, and the setbacks.  Zgheib uses short chapters and short paragraphs to tell the story allowing for a quick pace, which compliments how the reader is immersed in the story and lives of the characters, wanting and needing to read more.       

This novel is a haunting and necessary read, and one that I thoroughly enjoyed.  I leave you with a rating of 5 out of 5 Coffee Beans.

Until the next read!
~Jessica