Gisele H. (gisele) reviewed on 3/24/2013 + 11 more book reviews

"Unbearable Lightness" is an intimate, honest, raw, powerful portrait of a successful Hollywood actress who almost killed herself in her obsessive quest for physival perfection to fit into our society's mold of what a young pretty woman should look like. At first simply wishing to fit into wardrobe sample sizes without embarrassment, Portia severely restricted her caloric intake, then was caught in cycles of binging and purging until, weighing merely 82 lbs, she could no longer function without debilitating joint pain. Diagnosed with lupus, she realized how close she was to dying and bravely chose to live. As she closely self-examined her motivation and saw how unattainable, unnecessary, and exhausting her need to be skinny was, she strove to replace her well-established, time-consuming destructive habits with a new way of life, which included counseling and medication, plus physical activities such as horse riding, walking, and learning to fly, but never again regimented exercise and calorie-counting dieting. Finally unafraid to be her natural lesbian self after making peace with her very private mother and dead father, Portia found happiness and fulfillment with her loving wife Ellen.

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