• Is it age appropriate?

  About our ratings

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  Not age appropriate for kids under 12, age appropriate for kids over 14; suggested age 12.

• Is it any good?

  3.0

• Common Sense says

  Eating disorder recovery tale is raw and honest.

Why We Rated This for Ages 12–14

What to watch out for

• Messages:

  Janie describes her negative thinking and disordered eating behaviors. She says, "It's not a disease -- it's a diet strategy." She throws up in socks and tosses them out the window to avoid getting caught. She calls the two groups in the treatment center the "Starvers" and the "Barfers." A girl's father tells her, "You're getting a little chunky around the ass." Other residents call a gay boy "Tinkerbell" and "faggot." Janie's parents fight a lot.
• Violence:

  One girl dies from anorexia. A resident cuts herself with the end of a paper clip. Janie tries to kill herself by swallowing a bottle of sleeping pills. Janie's roommate reads a book about recovering from incest.
• Sex:

  Missy says she gained weight to keep her stepfather from "looking at me like he wants to jump me." A boy keeps trying to get his hands down Janie's pants the first time they start kissing. Janie swims with Matt wearing a bra and underwear. They have sex, described in some detail. Janie says she "didn't want to, but I did it anyway." It hurt and afterward, she felt "sad and empty and really lonely." A few days later, he flirts with Janie's cousin in front of her at a wedding. She realizes that "what had been so special to me was just another f--k to Matt."

• Language:

  Some cursing, including "crap," "pissed," "hell," "s--tless," "faggot," "f--king," "f--ked up," "bastard," "goddamn," "bitch," "s--thole," "asshole."
• Consumerism:

  Most of the book takes place at a treatment center where there is nothing to buy. A few brand-name mentions, such as iPod, Ben & Jerry's, and Abercrombie. Some magazine titles named in passing and a few designer names used to describe specific outfits and types of clothing.
• Drinking, drugs, & smoking:

  Janie drinks several beers to "loosen up" while fooling around with Matt. Their parents drink mimosas. Janie drinks five glasses of champagne at a wedding.

What Parents Need to Know

About Purge

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