Dear Opl

E ARC from Edelweiss Above the TreelineOpl her mother wants her to lose weight, so trimming 25% of the letters from her name is a start is angry at her mother for harping about her weight, as well as for being so busy with her library job and the new bookstore she is trying to start When her mother suggests that Opl start a blog, she does, only to find that her best friend tells so many people that eventually there are almost 4,000 followers to the blog in just two months Opl is sad that her fat [...]

Dear Opl is an ambitious novel narrated by angry thirteen year old Opal who is struggling Dad has left, Mom is overworked, younger brother Ollie wears women s costumes every single day, super creative ones G pa has moved in to help and is slowly crafting his place in the household What Opl describes is a family in pain Dad did not leave, he died Opal s snarky humor and compulsive chocolate habit is her way of stuffing grief and loss out of sight and out of mind Ollie s dress up is not gender ben [...]

A great slice of life tale for MG and beyond It s been a while since I ve devoured a book as sweet and sticky as Dear Opl Shelley Sackier s breakout novel is charming and sophisticated, written to be both entertaining and educational Opal is thirteen years old, and life simply isn t going well for her Her father has passed away from cancer, her younger brother is dressing up in girls clothing, and her mother is simply absent With nothing but sugar to offer sweetness in her life, Opal fills the h [...]

I received this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review Opal is a preteen girl struggling with her weight She starts spelling her name Opl to shrink her name since she cannot seem to shrink her body Opal uses food to mask her feelings Her father died and her mother is busy trying to start a new business Her mother is concerned with Opal s weight, but in all the wrong ways She buys her diet foods, and skinny jeans, leaves her not so encouraging notes in the pantry, and encourages her [...]

Dear Opl is such a delightful book Opal is 13 and her life has not been super, as of late She is dealing with the death of her father, a mother who is not on the scene and so much , so she turns to sweets It doesn t matter the type of candy, she turns to it This, of course, means that she gains weight What happens next will help any middle school age teen see options to dealing with difficulty issues.The characters in this book are so colorful and are made to appeal to the audience I could see m [...]

This is a cute story about 13 year old Opal, who eats too much sweets while mourning her father who passed away two years ago When she is told that she is pre diabetic and will have to change her diet, she is forced to change her eating habits Inspired by her mother s suggestion to start a blog, Opal becomes Dear Opl , and blogs about her experiences in going to Yoga classes and changing her diet with the help of her G pa and a British foodie who has a blog and cook books about healthy eating He [...]

Funny, sweet, and touching are the three words I d use to describe this gem From reconciling friendships to dealing with grief, to learning how to cook Opal deals with the hardships of life with humor and an interest in learning On the surface she appears to be self absorbed, but we find a different story when she strikes up a relationship with a man that needs work Definitely recommend to everyone

I didn t expect to like this book as much as I did I think it s completely common for parents to not realize how bad packaged food is for their kids Just because the packaging says its nutritious doesn t mean it is Opals voice is fantastic, she s hilarious and really doesn t want to change but finally realizes it will make her feel betterd it does So good

sitename karmaforlifechick karmaforlifechick spotExcerpt from Dear OplFirst blog entry My name is Opl, I m thirteen years old, and this is my blog My mom wants it to be a food journal A log of chow But I can t see that being a good idea at all Then it would just be a catalogue of crimes My grandfather says I should use it to write about things that make me angry He says it ll be interesting than listing everything I eat It s true Anything would be interesting than that And because I know my mo [...]

Oh man, I had so many problems with this book that I m honestly having trouble deciding where to start I can t recall a time in recent memory when I ve had a visceral reaction to a book than I did to this one I ll start with the obvious, I guess, which was the poor character development For starters, there is no way that the child narrating this novel was 13 Nine or ten, maybe, but not 13 I was stunned to find out that Ms Sackier actually has children, and that those children are close in age t [...]

Given as an e ARC via Netgalley See the review on my blog here forthebookish dear opl by Dear Opl completely knocked my socks off The book is, as Shelley Sackier describes, a humorous look at grief, obesity, and diabetes It really is exactly that I was pleasantly surprised at Opl s witty, sarcastic humor on some heavy topics The book addressed many things, yet kept me laughing out loud There were two things that bothered me about the book, so I ll start with those, so that we can end on a good n [...]

I hope you ll learn to be an open book All your insides is what truly matters That s where the stories wait In the underneath Opal misses her father terribly, not that she would tall anyone Not only was he a wonderful man, but when he was around, his mother was very different Now, the only thing that her mother seems to see about Opal is that she needs to lose weight Does she even care how Opal feels That s how I felt easy to break on the outside, heavy and dark on the inside Does she understand [...]

Dear Opl is one of those books that s been sitting on my Kindle for ages Absolutely ages I don t know what possessed me to finally read it the fact I am once again on a weight loss journey that often than not resembles a roller coaster Because I wanted a real book about what it s like to be fat, without magically losing weight Whatever it was, I decided to give Dear Opl a read, and I just completely related to Opl like I haven t related to a character in a while It s a bit odd to me that I rela [...]

Opal is 13, with several challenges in her life her father went away two years ago, she can t wear skinny jeans, her brother is forever dressing up in women s clothes and her grandfather has moved in, making a crowded space even so Add to that, Opal s favorite snack, chocolate, may just be the next forbidden item as she just got back from the doctor s office with a warning about being pre diabetic, and a list of foods and changes she needs to make Life just isn t fair.Deeper in, we see Opal dea [...]

I enjoyed reading this easy, light story of eighth grader Opal Her father died two years previously and she struggles with her weight and looks Sweets are her comfort food which greatly concerns her mother When Opal visits her doctor she finds she is pre diabetic Now she has to follow a strict diet and start yoga classes Opl and her G pa spend time together trying out new recipes Opl decides that since her mother wants her to literally take up less space she decides to shorten her name by 25%, t [...]

Having read books where the protagonist was anorexic, it made a change that Opl was a binge eater The struggles she faces are at times heartbreaking, including her mother s notes She is forced into finding a new way to express herself which helps her regain a smidge of control over her life Blogging is freeing Opl sometimes oversteps the mark I totally agreed with her best friend on one issue, but making mistakes is part of growing up It was interesting seeing how Opl s family and friends are af [...]

I almost abandoned this book I m glad I didn t Opal speaks with an honest voice that not only reflects a teen s way of thinking, but also pushes the reader s consciousness about their own actions I won t include spoilers, but I m thinking specifically about Rudy as well as how we try to motivate our kids The story is packed with a lot of great information and solid suggestions about our choices Humor helps keep it from being a downer.Pros Teens struggling with self esteem, health issues, and or [...]

Thanks to netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.What I liked This book does a good job of addressing emotional eating and diabetes and how food can affect you Opal is witty and angsty and a pretty typical teen Shelley Sackier does a good job of addressing grief and confused feelings I liked how Opal changes in the end and discovers that thinking about others instead of herself, makes her happy.What I didn t like I find it unlikely that Opal would wr [...]

As someone who has struggled with my weight all my life, starting at around the same time as Opal, I found her transformation not particularly realistic I realize that her weight gain had to do with what was happening in her family than with genetics, but the solution didn t ring true for me I also didn t like the idea of her being told to air her personal problems on a blog It goes against most of the Internet safety we teach middle schoolers today I enjoyed her snarky commentary throughout, h [...]

A wonderfully crafted, hysterical book about 13 year old Opl, struggling with the loss of her father, eating and body image and her at times distant mother.Dear Opl grabbed my attention from the very start The book is filled with lovable, relate able characters including G Pa, six year old Ollie, best friend Summer and a homeless vet Dear Opl felt very realistic and true to life The voice of Opl felt very much like a 13 year old Especially good for middle school and young teen readers.

I didn t really like this The main characters wasn t very realistic She didn t talk like a middle schooler and she sure didn t write like one Her blog writing was way too mature for someone who didn t know what uncooked rice looks like The message of the book was good, but poorly executed It could be that I m not the target audience, but I read enough YA to think that s not the case.

A beautifully crafted, funny book about 13 year old Opl, struggling with the loss of her father, eating and body image and her at times distant mother.The book is filled with lovable, relate able characters including G Pa, six year old Ollie, best friend Summer and a homeless vet.Especially good for middle school and young teen readers.

Wanted to like this book Seriously, really, really wanted But the heroine turned out not likeable most of the time, and the whole fat shaming angle with her mother and the forced diets felt like something being stuffed down your throat, and then Opl having to sneak her food and treats not enjoyable reading Didn t make for a good read for me, unfortunately.

One of my guilty pleasures is YA books, because sometimes you simply want to reminisce being young again This was a relatable story for a YA audience, and was a delightful easy read for an adult Opal is a witty teenager who has experienced than her fair share of grief, and turns to food for comfort This story could be any young girl battling life as she grows up I really enjoyed this

Very interesting middle grade book about body image and fat issues I m glad it exists, but not sure I enjoyed it, the answers are too easy and the main character too knowing I did love the character of G Pa though.

I thought this book was hysterical Opal and all the others fit like puzzle pieces in this story Opal, her blog posts and G pa had me laughing at times I really enjoyed this story.I got this for free in a drawing from Giveaway.

Delightful a s entertaining book I read it in one sitting Kept my interest from the first page to the last.

Review coming shortly

Such a fun book I couldn t put it down eager to find out what Opl would do next A fun read for all ages.