Amazon Making Light of Being Heavy Category:  Humor Publisher: Northern Reprographics ISBN-10:  142763954X Type: Non-Fiction Pages: 90 Copyright: June 6, 2006 ISBN-13: 9781427639547 Making Light of Being Heavy is just what the title says - a comical view from a fat chick’s perspective on being fat in today’s society. These days everyone has a society-driven mindset and totally forget to laugh, especially at themselves.  This may be cliché but I truly believe that laughter is the best medicine and I think everybody should laugh every day.  Period.  Over the years as a person blessed with the fat gene, I have been in many situations where if could not find humor I probably would end up on the couch in a psychiatrist’s office.   This book may be considered politically incorrect regarding such a subject but it is based on reality.  This is a reality that many women have just like me but do not think they can (or should) at times just laugh about it.    My intention when I started writing this book was to hopefully give insight to  many who could never relate but at the same time perhaps provide a different perspective to women just like me.  It is a point of view that has given me the strength to live my life happily and project these feelings onto everyone I come in contact with.  I have a great sense of humor and a quit wit and guarantee you will be laughing (and thinking) with each chapter of Making Light of Being Heavy.     Excerpt According to recent statistics, did you know that the average American woman weighs 144 lb. and wears between a size 12 and 14? Nowadays there are more overweight people in America then average weight people which in reality would make overweight people average. So if this is the case, why isn’t society conforming to the differences? For whatever reason any person is overweight is irrelevant whether it be medically, hereditary, or even self induced. The fact still remains that people are overweight and will continue to be overweight so businesses should start to accommodate because they may be losing a big part of their business to their narrow-mindedness. Restaurants for example. In general I cannot fit into the booths in restaurants unless the table between the seats is moveable in which case I can push it closer to the other side where my son may be sitting or a skinny friend, etc. Otherwise, I must resort to tables with chairs in order to be comfortable. Going to new places is always a little nerve wracking especially when I walk in and see that the tables have those plastic patio chairs that are always so sturdy and easy to get in and out of. You know what I mean. You may be lucky enough to be able to squeeze into the chair and make it through your meal uncomfortably without it collapsing and then get out of it without it being stuck to your ass in which case you have made a mental note to never go to that restaurant again because the stress involved with all the fat disaster possibilities is way too overwhelming for your heart to take and they don’t provide table-side defibrillator service.

Making Light of Being Heavy - Review by Great Books and Fresh Coffee
So I picked up MLoBH not knowing what to expect. I should add a disclaimer that I am not the target audience of this book and so some of the things may not have spoken to me the way they should have.

I've battled a bit with my weight in the past, but never to the extent of what some women have had to. That being said, I can understand having self image problems, and I was truly interested in Kandy's light-hearted spin to such a heavy(no pun intended) subject.

At 90 pages, this book was a great afternoon read for me. I read through it in one sitting, and really was surprised by it. The book probably wasn't meant for me. I found myself flipping through the first few pages trying to get into it because it seemed a bit complain-ey and I wanted to get to the funn-y (haha, see what I did there?).

After the intro, though, it really did pick up. Kandy has a way of showing you her world, or the world of a "fat person" (I'm using quotes to avoid sounding rude. Kandy, along with one of my favorite comedians George Carlin, are both against the term "obese"). She does this without being whiny or too 'Poor Me'. In fact for the most part she's honest and in your face, which is quite refreshing.

There is a bit where she talks about catalogues from her childhood along with exercise moves that are commonly recommended for overweight individuals that definitely had me grinning. Also a paragraph toward the end about common misconceptions about overweight individuals is pretty much golden.


Verdict - B. I wasn't astounded by the writing, and there were certainly a few parts that could have been different. That being said, it's refreshing to see someone so comfortable in their own skin to put something like this out there. Kudos to Kandy for not only writing a book, but writing one that so many women can relate to - and it may even boost their self-esteem a bit in the making. It's not a self help book, a diet book, or even a commentary on life as an obese individual. What it is is a book reminding you that you are who you no matter what shape or size, and you need to be happy with just that.


Book Review: MAKING LIGHT OF BEING HEAVY - by Dorothy Thompson
Kandy Siahaya is like a breath of fresh air. When Tracee Gleichner asked me to review this book, I knew I was in for a treat. Kandy opens up our eyes to the fact that heavy people are people, too, and if you can’t laugh at the situation, you’re going down the wrong path.

“I love life and I love to eat” is one of the frank comments she makes about her experiences being overweight and wouldn’t we all love to be able to say that if we’re fighting the battle of the bulge?

Kandy tried the Scarsdale diet in high school and lost 17 pounds, but still, she didn’t see it as a realistic way to eat on an every day diet. “On an every day basis,” she says, “people do have to have a Big Mac.”

Come on, people, you know she’s right! At least a few fries?

What I loved about this book is Kandy’s sense of humor. She touched on things such as:

-Getting a ticket for wearing no seat belt because she couldn’t fit into one
-Fitting into booths at restaurants
-Fitting into plastic chairs at special events
-How public restrooms, plane bathrooms and cruise ship bathrooms can be so heavy people unfriendly
-Getting stuck in those little turnstiles they have at amusement parks

Kandy has accepted her fate – she’s overweight and still loves life. “I would rather know that I have lived happily,” she says, “rather than lived on edge constantly trying to be politically correct just because. If you mess up one day, just start over the next and keep moving.”

Kandy debunks such myths as:

-If fat people really wanted to lose fat, they could.
-All fat people are overeaters.

My favorite?

It is not healthy to be fat.

Wowzers. Bottom line? You are what you are if you are happy. As Kandy says in her final chapter, “Once we let go of unrealistic expectations and just get fixated on being happy things will fall into place.”

Although Making Light of Being Heavy is a humorous take on being overweight, it is also a serious look at the misconceptions people have about people who are overweight and helps to clear them up. This isn’t a rant book; this is a book that is a fact of life for overweight people everywhere. I’m so glad there’s a book like this out there and so proud that Kandy has the chutzpa to come out and tell us like it really is.