Hunger Review

Description: “Thou art the Black Rider. Go thee out unto the world.”

Lisabeth Lewis has a black steed, a set of scales, and a new job: she’s been appointed Famine. How will an anorexic seventeen-year-old girl from the suburbs fare as one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse?

Traveling the world on her steed gives Lisa freedom from her troubles at home: her constant battle with hunger, and her struggle to hide it from the people who care about her. But being Famine forces her to go places where hunger is a painful part of everyday life, and to face the horrifying effects of her phenomenal power. Can Lisa find a way to harness that power — and the courage to battle her own inner demons?

My Thoughts: First off, the cover lured me in, then the words “Thou art the Black Rider. Go thee out unto the world” caught me. I thought, could this be, a book about the horsemen of the apocalypse? Thanks to reading the The Gardener by S. A. Bodeen this summer, I’d been reintroduced to the four horsemen of the apocalypse, which led to me doing a little “Wikipedia research”. Therefore, I was excited about Lisa becoming a horse..woman? (scratch that)...men. The idea of having a book about Famine (and the other three) caused me to drool over this book (not literally), but the story didn’t go the way I thought, or even hoped it would initially. Once I started reading, I was happy it didn’t go the way I assumed it would, because it took a more positive turn, by discussing a more important topic.

I don’t personally know anything about what it’s feels like to be anorexic, or the thought process that goes with it, but Kessler seems to portray Lisa as a legitimate example of a real life situation. She also wrote Hunger in such a way that any girl with any type of body issue can relate in some way to Lisa.

This book had for one, an important message, and one that at certain points in the story made it hard for me to continue on reading how the characters dealt with their eating disorders. It had quick-witted one liners that came mostly from Death, who apparently looks like Kurt Cobain and is considered to be sexy. It also had bad-a(**) steeds and great quotes that most would find useful (“You are full of fear, when instead you should be comfortable with your own strength”).

Hunger is so entertaining yet driven by an important message that when it comes out, I plan to give away a copy of her book, because 1) I think other girls (and guys) should read this book, and 2) a portion of the proceeds from Hunger is supposed to go to the National Eating Disorders Association.