Yara Zgheib The Girls at 17 Swann Street

The Girls at 17 Swann Street by debut author Yara Zgheib is primarily about Anna Roux, a former dancer who has become ill due to anorexia.  Anna trained as a ballerina but had fallen and loses her spot in the Paris Opera's Corps de ballet.
 Anna is 26 and has moved from her life in Paris to the United States with husband, Matthias. She is often left alone as Matthias is away for his job. Anna cannot find a position as a dancer in St Louis and she becomes depressed and decides the one thing she can control is what she chooses to eat. Anna also fills her time during the days with her routines of running and exercise.
I am very familiar with persons suffering from anorexia nervosa. If a family member or loved one wants to learn more about the thoughts, reasoning, and anxieties of a person with anorexia, then you need to read this book. If you are a person in the process of dealing with and recovering a normal healthy eating lifestyle, I would caution you NOT to read this book until you are secure in your stage of recovery.  There is an arrogance in Anna's attitude and thoughts in this story.  Also, the 'Direct Care' team or personnel are depicted as being cruel. I know if a caregiver tried to force a full meal blended into a shake or liquid form to be ingested within a short time, that could cause extreme problems within a digestive system.
Some of the care Anna receives just did not make sense to me with the training I received years ago when I was a caregiver to an anorexic patient.
Publication Date: February 5, 2019

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Art Images and Photographs by Diane Lochala-All Rights Resrved 

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