Young Adult

No Big Deal

No Big Deal

  • Downloads：1892
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2021-06-07 09:55:24
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Bethany Rutter
  • ISBN：1509870059
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary

'It's not my body that's holding me back。 I think it's more of a problem that people tell me my body should hold me back。'

Meet Emily Daly， a stylish， cute， intelligent and hilarious seventeen-year-old about to start her last year at school。 Emily is also fat。 She likes herself and her body。 When she meets Joe at a house party， he instantly becomes The Crush of Her Life。 Everything changes。 At first he seems perfect。 But as they spend more time together， doubts start to creep in。

With her mum trying new fad diets every week， and increasing pressure to change， Emily faces a constant battle to stay strong， be her true self and not change for anyone。

A warm， funny inspiring debut YA novel from Bethany Rutter: influencer， editor and a fierce UK voice in the debate around body positivity。

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Reviews

Sia ，

I wish these types of books had been around when I was 17。 It would have been a real comforting cushion。 Such an easy， good， fun and also moving read that really taps into the fat experience。 It made me cry a bit too much。

Ella ，

LOVED IT！！

Rosie Ellen ，

Very wholesome story about trying to work out who you are as a teenager。 I thought Emily was a bad ass， wish I was half as sure of myself as her at 17。

Hannah • BooksForHannah ，

CUTE， CUTE， CUTE 😍𝗪𝗵𝗼 𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝟭𝟳 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮 𝗰𝗿𝘂𝘀𝗵？！ The internet-stalking （in my days， MSN/checking their BlackBerry status）。 The "I-hope-I-bump-into-them-at-the-party" phase。 The constant nausea of thinking about them All。 The。 Dang。 Time。 It's rough， y'all 😂This novel takes us through just that through the mind， emotions and perspective of Emily experiencing her first crush。💫 Emily is smart。💫 Emily is witty。💫 Emily is funny。💫 Emily can achieve anything。。。。she's also， in her words， fa CUTE， CUTE， CUTE 😍𝗪𝗵𝗼 𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝟭𝟳 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮 𝗰𝗿𝘂𝘀𝗵？！ The internet-stalking （in my days， MSN/checking their BlackBerry status）。 The "I-hope-I-bump-into-them-at-the-party" phase。 The constant nausea of thinking about them All。 The。 Dang。 Time。 It's rough， y'all 😂This novel takes us through just that through the mind， emotions and perspective of Emily experiencing her first crush。💫 Emily is smart。💫 Emily is witty。💫 Emily is funny。💫 Emily can achieve anything。。。。she's also， in her words， fat。This novel is a YA romance/coming-of-age story about accepting yourself， rejecting misogyny and what it feels like to be a seventeen year old who isn't thin by society's standards but has their crush where their beliefs are put to the test。💭 Can Emily be annoying？ Yes。 Very。💭 Can Emily be frustratingly self involved？ Yes。 Like most 17 year olds。💭 Does the story explore weight in deeper detail？ No。💭 Is this targeted to a much younger audience than I am？ Yes。💭 Is it a quick read？ Yes。💭 Does the story support body positivity？ Yes。✍ I wish the novel was less boy-focused and more Emily-focused。 I think there's a lot to uncover around body positivity and acception that one can learn without the need for a romantic interest。 But overall， I enjoyed the book and would recommend。⭐⭐⭐💫 （3。5/5） 。。。more

Aleksandra ，

2。25⭐️

Nadia Olszewska ，

1。75

Lauren Gillman ，

I wasn't sure I'd like this as it's not my usual type of read but I absolutely loved it！ This is the book I needed when I was a teenager and found myself relating to Emily so much even now I'm nearly thirty。 This is the book every fat teenager needs to read and probably every fat adult as well。 I wasn't sure I'd like this as it's not my usual type of read but I absolutely loved it！ This is the book I needed when I was a teenager and found myself relating to Emily so much even now I'm nearly thirty。 This is the book every fat teenager needs to read and probably every fat adult as well。 。。。more

chriso ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Joe is such a scumbag

Noemi ，

This book hit me on so many levels， and it made me shed quite a few tears。 I resonated with Emily a lot， although I wished I was as confident as she was， especially during my high school years。 What family， especially parents say really gets incorporated by the children， and sometimes what parents do thinking that it's the best for their children， it's actually quite harmful。 I loved how Emily recognised her worth and didn't let neither her family， nor friends nor Joe mess with her self-confiden This book hit me on so many levels， and it made me shed quite a few tears。 I resonated with Emily a lot， although I wished I was as confident as she was， especially during my high school years。 What family， especially parents say really gets incorporated by the children， and sometimes what parents do thinking that it's the best for their children， it's actually quite harmful。 I loved how Emily recognised her worth and didn't let neither her family， nor friends nor Joe mess with her self-confidence。 This is a book that I would recommend to any teenager！ 。。。more

Samantha Keeley ，

3。 5 stars

Gena Machado ，

I was about to give this book 4 Stars， but that last chapter。。。 loved it！ So 5 stars it is :）

Dylan Jarvis ，

NOT YOUR BODY NOT YOUR PROBLEM！Such an amazing book that highlights a major issue still going on in today’s society！ This has such a powerful message brought by such a strong lead， the way that emily sticks true to herself throughout the story is so beautifully。Would 100% recommend this read， it’s such an easy to follow story full of love， teenage drama and life lessons much needed for many readers of today！

Sinead ，

I read this in one sitting but it didn’t really hit any spots you know？ I like the fact it was body positive and I could relate to Emily’s relationship with her mother and being the only ‘fat’ friend but the story with |Joe| was just pulling at any loose strings & wasnt that interesting。 I did like the book but not quite enough for a 4/5 star rating

Cerys ，

I didn't have massive hopes going into this novel but I was pleasantly surprised。 I find it hard to find books in which I can see myself within the character but Emily is someone who I can relate to， especially in the way she thinks as well as the way she acts。 It was also nice to see a plus-size main character who， even though she has her insecurities， doesn't completely fixate on her weight and who doesn't go soft on the first man that shows her interest。 I really enjoyed how this rounded out I didn't have massive hopes going into this novel but I was pleasantly surprised。 I find it hard to find books in which I can see myself within the character but Emily is someone who I can relate to， especially in the way she thinks as well as the way she acts。 It was also nice to see a plus-size main character who， even though she has her insecurities， doesn't completely fixate on her weight and who doesn't go soft on the first man that shows her interest。 I really enjoyed how this rounded out and the fact that it could have gone in a very different way but the decisions that were made were definitely the better ones。 It has simpler writing but it was very intriguing and easy to read！ 。。。more

Kym Payne ，

If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like being a fat chick。 （It’s okay to use the word fat， it even says so in this book） then this book is for you。Rutter writes about Emily， an intelligent overweight girl and her love interest Joe。 We see the struggles and stigma that Emily goes through with being the size that she is。 – （If you are on the smaller side and fatphobic you should also read this book） We witness her mother trying to force her into weight loss groups， and onto faddy unhealthy diets， b If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like being a fat chick。 （It’s okay to use the word fat， it even says so in this book） then this book is for you。Rutter writes about Emily， an intelligent overweight girl and her love interest Joe。 We see the struggles and stigma that Emily goes through with being the size that she is。 – （If you are on the smaller side and fatphobic you should also read this book） We witness her mother trying to force her into weight loss groups， and onto faddy unhealthy diets， but we also witness friendship， love， broken hearts。 – and girl power， with strong girls sticking up for themselves。A fantastic read。 4/5 。。。more

Denise ，

"I kind of hate talking about it because talking about it only proves to me that I really care about it， and I don't want to care， because caring is painful"Cue page 1， describing a very real situation most of us larger ladies have encountered at least once in our lives。 So I thought this was going to be good。 A humorous description of what it is like to be fat and how to learn to be okay with it。 Turns out it wasn't and then it was a little bit。 The story was a rather run-of the mill girl-meets "I kind of hate talking about it because talking about it only proves to me that I really care about it， and I don't want to care， because caring is painful"Cue page 1， describing a very real situation most of us larger ladies have encountered at least once in our lives。 So I thought this was going to be good。 A humorous description of what it is like to be fat and how to learn to be okay with it。 Turns out it wasn't and then it was a little bit。 The story was a rather run-of the mill girl-meets-boy story and at times I found the main character wavering back and forth too much between total self confidence and a complete lack thereof。 That being said， there are little nuggets of wisdom spread throughout the pages of this book for everyone who has doubted themselves for whatever reason。 It's for these nuggets that I would recommend this book to everyone who needs a bit of a pick me up。 Synopsis: Emily knows she's smart。 Emily knows she's funny。 Emily knows she's awesome。 Emily knows she's fat。 She doesn't need anyone to tell her any of these things - she likes herself and she likes her body。 She just thinks it's time everyone else caught up。With a newly-slim bestie， a mum knee-deep in fad diets， and increasing pressure to change， Emily faces a constant battle to be her true self。 But when she meets gorgeous Joe， things start to change。 Somehow， she's going to have to convince everyone， and herself， that it's all no big deal。 。。。more

Jodi Yim ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Actual rating: 2。5 stars Things I liked about this book: 1。 LGBT Repesentation （I。e。 Emily's friends Ella and Sophia）: while the book doesn't discuss their relationship too much， it's nice to know that Sapphic relationships such as Ella's and Sophia's can be presented in YA novels as a normal occurrence。 2。 Healthy father-daughter relationship: briefly speaking， Emily's dad listens to her， tries to understand her concerns about boys and school， doesn't overstep his daughters boundaries， and more Actual rating: 2。5 stars Things I liked about this book: 1。 LGBT Repesentation （I。e。 Emily's friends Ella and Sophia）: while the book doesn't discuss their relationship too much， it's nice to know that Sapphic relationships such as Ella's and Sophia's can be presented in YA novels as a normal occurrence。 2。 Healthy father-daughter relationship: briefly speaking， Emily's dad listens to her， tries to understand her concerns about boys and school， doesn't overstep his daughters boundaries， and more。 I found this kind of relationship very refreshing， since most YA novels tend to showcase fathers as being either abusive， neglectful， stoic， or simply deceased。3。 Message of empowering women to not stay in relationships where they don't feel valued: this is mostly shown in the discussion Emily has with her sister in the final part of the book。 I think this is an important lesson to teach to girls and women who have been hurt by their partners' 'selective neglect' in public situations。 Furthermore， the author does a good job conveying this message。 Things I did NOT like about this book:1。 Emily goes through insta-love way too fast， and her 'boy-crazy' attitude throughout the book （including stalking the boy she likes and basing her outfit choices on what a boy might like） heavily contradicts with her constant preaching about being an independent woman who doesn't need a man。 2。 I find the majority of the dialogue to be unrealistic， and most of the messages that the book tries to promote are incorporated in the story quite inorganically through expository information given by Emily。 This， I find， leads to Emily sounding like a pretentious know-it-all Mary Sue archetype。 3。 The story deals with open relationships in a problematic way。 Here I am referring to one of Emily's friends （I don't remember her name）， who is dating two people at once and neither of the two people know about the existence of the other。 Emily responds to this situation by telling her friend that it's okay to be in an open relationship and that she should live life to the fullest。 I find this response highly problematic， specifically because neither of the two people that Emily's friend is dating are made aware that they are in an open relationship to begin with。 Its fine that Emily's friend wants an open relationship， but she has to let the people that she's in a relationship with KNOW that BEFORE getting into a serious relationship with them。 Maybe the book was trying to convey that， but thats not the message I got from reading it。 4。 I don't understand Emily's aunt， specifically her relationship with Weird Dennis。 Weird Dennis is verbally abusive to his partners' family， targeting Emily for her weight and choice of major， as well as Emily's dad for apparently giving up his dream。 Despite all this， Emily's aunt decides to stay with him anyway， spouting some BS about living life to the fullest （which for some reason includes maintaining a relationship with an abusive man） and waiting until a certain breaking point to break up with him or something like that。 I know that she eventually breaks up with him at the end， but the book offers no substantial reason why she waited so long to finally do it。 5。 Holly's existence in the book was pointless。 I feel like she was only there because every YA essentially needs a 'Mean Girl' character or something， and she just needed to exist just to play that role。 Some might argue that Holly needed to exist so that Joe could cheat on Emily with her but I disagree。 Joe could have cheated on Emily with literally any skinny girl in order to convey the message that the book wanted to convey。 Holly was just there to say the occasional Mean Girl thing and prompt some #Woke and #NotLikeOtherGirls dialogue from Emily。 。。。more

Adnana Sun ，

loved it so much， i couldn't let it down， totally hooked on it ！！ loved it so much， i couldn't let it down， totally hooked on it ！！ 。。。more

Mikayla Reid ，

BRILLIANT。

Katie Goulet ，

I loved this book so much。 This is the story that I wish I could have read when I was in high school or even earlier。 It seems nuts to think that having a main character of a story be female and fat is still so radical in this day and age， but here we are。 I felt like I knew Emily well because she felt like a younger version of me。 I hope all young girls get to read this。

Mary Podrasky ，

I wanted to like this book， I really truly did。 The ghost of fat teen me is positively giddy to see that books with fat teenage characters are becoming more than one in a million。 However， 29+1 year old me could not get passed the writing style and overall tone and I only made it 40 pages in before I flipped to the end to see what happens。 Now I’m glad I didn’t keep reading because the end would have made me perturbed。 Dumplin （the gold standard when it comes to fat teen girl main characters， IM I wanted to like this book， I really truly did。 The ghost of fat teen me is positively giddy to see that books with fat teenage characters are becoming more than one in a million。 However， 29+1 year old me could not get passed the writing style and overall tone and I only made it 40 pages in before I flipped to the end to see what happens。 Now I’m glad I didn’t keep reading because the end would have made me perturbed。 Dumplin （the gold standard when it comes to fat teen girl main characters， IMO） this is not。 。。。more

Lisa Lucie ，

This was a very nice read！ Although I'm not in the targeted age range of "No Big Deal"， as a teenager， I often felt like Emily。 It was refreshing to have a confident teen character as the main character！I could particularly relate to Emily's relationship with her mother - like Emily's， mine also make passive aggressive comments about my weight- and I thought it was great to see the psychologixal impact words said to be helpful but that are harmful can have on a young woman。The story in itself is This was a very nice read！ Although I'm not in the targeted age range of "No Big Deal"， as a teenager， I often felt like Emily。 It was refreshing to have a confident teen character as the main character！I could particularly relate to Emily's relationship with her mother - like Emily's， mine also make passive aggressive comments about my weight- and I thought it was great to see the psychologixal impact words said to be helpful but that are harmful can have on a young woman。The story in itself is very basic but enjoyable （the side characters are also quite plain）Overall， reading "No Big Deal" made me revert to my 17 year old self， and， back then， I'd have appreciated reading this book even more！ 。。。more

⇢ RORY ，

O tej książce chodzą różne opinie。 Jednym się podoba， drugim wcale。 Ja należę do tych pierwszych。 Może i główna bohaterka była momentami irytująca i zamiast pewności siebie， posiadała kompleksy， ale uważam， że właśnie to czyniło ją prawdziwą。 Książka ma wartościowe przesłanie， pod którym podpisuję się obiema rękami。 Myślę， że każda młoda dziewczyna powinna to przeczytać， nie tylko taka， która jest plus-size。 Bardzo mi się podobało i gorąco polecam！

Scorched-Earth ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 🚨 SPOILERS AHEAD 🚨I would have enjoyed this novel as the bullied overweight teenager I used to be。 I've been through every kind of abuse imaginable， and then blamed for the abuse I suffered through by being told I was fat and deserved every single bad thing that ever happened to me。 So it's good that overweight people are starting to answer back to the abuse。 But I'll also say that eating junk food， not exercising， and getting overweight will only contribute to you becoming sick in your middle a 🚨 SPOILERS AHEAD 🚨I would have enjoyed this novel as the bullied overweight teenager I used to be。 I've been through every kind of abuse imaginable， and then blamed for the abuse I suffered through by being told I was fat and deserved every single bad thing that ever happened to me。 So it's good that overweight people are starting to answer back to the abuse。 But I'll also say that eating junk food， not exercising， and getting overweight will only contribute to you becoming sick in your middle and older years。 Then， when you're sick and overweight， you'll have no way to protect yourself from the hell that is other people。 I've grown strong from all the abuse。 （I could've just as easily died from it， instead of getting strong。 But I lived， not sure how。） The world isn't a good place。 It's populated by a large number of sociopaths， psychopaths， and garden-variety assholes。 Best to be stay fit and strong。 Best not to have to depend on others。 Also， I was really annoyed by the hypocrisy of wanting a fit guy while being seriously overweight yourself。 So only women get to be fat？！ Fat guys can be safely ignored as nobodies？！ Don't be a hypocrite。 If looks matter to you， they matter to everyone。 I gave this 5 stars， even though I can't agree with the "go ahead and eat junk food， it's okay to be unhealthily obese" message of this novel。 It's well written。 And it's true that you shouldn't put up with abuse。 So that's worth the 5 stars。 Btw， eating junk food and not exercising is self abuse。 So stop that， too。 Don't kill yourself with bad food and bad habits。 Only you can protect yourself。 Fat-enablers have convoluted agendas， too。 Don't fall for their hype and poisoned words。 Enablers are abusers。 🚨 SPOILERS in my Reading Timeline 🚨 。。。more

Laura Metcalfe ，

Read this in a day， reminded me so much of being a teenager。

˗ˏˋ maja ˎˊ˗ ，

Już chciałam narzekać， że to kolejna schematyczna młodzieżówka， której "unikatową" cechą jest jedynie główna bohaterka， ale wtedy wydarzyło się ono - zakończenie。3/5 ⭐ Już chciałam narzekać， że to kolejna schematyczna młodzieżówka， której "unikatową" cechą jest jedynie główna bohaterka， ale wtedy wydarzyło się ono - zakończenie。3/5 ⭐ 。。。more

Rebecca Paull-wills ，

Cute YA body positive story。 Not groundbreaking but a lovely read。

Laura ，

4，5⭐

San ，

2，5

Allyson ，

I have never related to a book character more。 I cried and I related to Emily so much it hurt！ Can't wait to dive in to the next book from this author！ I felt so seen <3 I have never related to a book character more。 I cried and I related to Emily so much it hurt！ Can't wait to dive in to the next book from this author！ I felt so seen <3 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=No Big Deal

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=No Big Deal&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,No Big Deal&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0