Product Description

After undergoing gall bladder surgery at age twenty-three, Jennette Fulda decided it was time to lose some weight. Actually, more like half her weight. At the time, Jennette weighed 372 pounds. Jennette was not born fat. But, by fifth grade, her response to a school questionnaire asking "what would you change about your appearance" was "I would be thinner. " Sound familiar? Half-Assed is the captivating and incredibly honest story of Jennette's journey to get in shape, lose weight, and change her life. From the beginningdusting off her never-used treadmill and steering clear of the donut shopto the end with her goal weight in sight, Jennette wows readers with her determined persistence to shed pounds and the ability to maintain her ever-present sense of self. "

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #48526 in Books
• Published on: 2008-05-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 250 pages

Customer Reviews

what a lovely, inspirational book
I enjoyed this book so much. I loved the way Jennette never felt sorry for herself, or needed to blame anyone (including herself)for the way she found herself weighing almost 400 pounds. She "woke up and smelt the coffee" (my words) and decided to do something about her weight, and just got on with it. She was down to earth and very likeable, and had so much common sense I found myself nodding frequently as I read her story. I have tried blaming my emotions or lack of willpower for being overweight, but at the end of the day I need to eat less and move more. As simple as that. And Jennette made me see the light, even though she was so against becoming evangelistic to others about her weight loss. She plodded on happily and enthusiastically, never making it seem easy, but at the same time she made it seem possible. It was a delightful story and so well written. I think the best compliment I can give to Jennette's book is that it has gone straight back into my bookcase for me to read again one day.

very enjoyable
Jeanette Fulda's memoir is very inspiring and humorous in many parts. What I find most refreshing is that she was someone who liked herself and believed in herself even when she weighed 372 lbs (26 stone 8 lb). She lost half her body weight doing exercises she enjoyed - walking, running, pilates; as well as learning to cook and eat healthy meals. And she seemed to relish everything she was gaining - greater flexibility, ability to run more and more miles without getting exhausted, fitting into restaurant booths and normal length seat belts - rather than getting obsessed with the number on the scale. I tend to think here is someone who succeeded because she enjoyed every step of the journey.

Ms. Fulda is a terrific writer and I am a regular reader of her blog (pastaqueen.com). However, I think she is better at writing essays than an entire book. For one thing, she is reticent about some personal issues (for instance, she skirted around wanting to find a relationship), that's OK for a blog but I expected a memoir to be more revealing. And although she is very witty, the last chapter seemed to run out of material and she exhausted every analogy in order to say the journey isn't over yet and she could still gain back all the weight. These are the only reasons I am not giving it five stars.

Overall, a very worthwhile read.