45 Pounds (More or Less)
By Barbara Schultz,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Painful, relatable look at teen's family and diet struggles.

A Lot or a Little?
What you will—and won't—find in this book.
Where to Read
Community Reviews
There aren't any parent reviews yet. Be the first to review this title.
What's the Story?
When 45 POUNDS (MORE OR LESS) opens, overweight teenager Ann Galardi is enduring the pain of clothes shopping with her ultra-thin mom, to be followed by lunch at the mall food court. It's a snapshot of Ann's roller-coaster relationship with her family, food, weight, and body image. She seems stuck in a cycle of self-loathing and self-medicating with food. But when her Aunt Jackie announces in June that she and her longtime partner, Chris, will be married in August, and she wants Ann to be a bridesmaid, Ann promises herself that she'll lose 45 pounds and fit into a great dress by the time of the wedding. This marks the beginning of a journey in which Ann gets her first job, loses a friend, gains a friend, gets a crush, starts an infomercial diet plan, learns to dance, and deeply explores issues concerning her parents' divorce and the ways her relationships to food and family are intertwined.
Is It Any Good?
45 Pounds (More or Less) is not an easy read. Ann suffers numerous indignities (both real and imagined); she's in a lot of pain, and it's hard to witness her sadness and humiliation. However, her story is compelling and entertaining, and there's a lot of goodness to be found in her world. She's a very relatable character, and any teens who have struggled with weight or body image will learn a lot from this character.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about dieting and body image. What, if anything, did you learn about these from 45 Pounds (More of Less)?
What does Ann learn as a consumer when she buys a diet system that she sees on an infomercial? What finally changes her relationship to dieting and food?
Thinking about Ann's experience, next time you watch a TV show geared toward kids or teens, think about what the commercials say about food, weight, and body image.
Book Details
- Author: K.A. Barson
- Genre: Body Awareness
- Topics: Brothers and Sisters, Friendship, Great Girl Role Models
- Book type: Fiction
- Publisher: Viking Juvenile
- Publication date: July 11, 2013
- Publisher's recommended age(s): 12 - 17
- Number of pages: 256
- Available on: Nook, Hardback, iBooks, Kindle
- Last updated: July 12, 2017
Did we miss something on diversity?
Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.
Suggest an Update
Where to Read
Our Editors Recommend
Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.
See how we rate