Fat Girls Dance

I was on a roll last month with fat positive books, culminating in Fat Girls Dance (publication date October 22, 2024) by Cathleen Meredith. Semi-autobiographical based on the FatGirlsDanceMovement on Instagram, and told from the perspectives of three fat women in New York City: Liv, Reese, and Faith, it’s an inspiring story that illustrates the idea that we can each do what we love, regardless of the size of our bodies.

Liv is a force of nature, a writer trying to make it, always with new ideas, whose roommate is Reese, who lives in Liv’s shadow. One day, at a dance class, Liv meets another fat woman dancing–Faith–who is has an office temp job while she auditions for dancing roles but is always turned away because of her size. She is a truly amazing dancer but also a bit of a diva.

Liv comes up with the idea for #FatGirlsDance, where the three of them and any other fat women who want to join them, will learn choreography for a weekly performance. It goes viral, both for the women who join them and post videos of themselves dancing, and for the women who join them in the studio for rehearsals and weekly performances. It’s life changing, and the women become found family for each other in ways they wouldn’t have anticipated.

Each of them is challenged in different ways–Reese comes out of her shell that she’s put around herself, trying to make herself smaller, but that puts a strain on her relationship with Liv, who has counted on her day in and day out. Liv tries to keep it all together, but Faith is so mean (she would say “realistic”) that Liv is afraid she will drive away their core group, and then who would be left?

Tensions rise when Liv enters them into a national dance competition that is supposed to be for amateur dance groups, but in reality it’s really only professional troupes that enter. Liv is a one-woman cheering section and is certain they will not embarrass themselves.

It’s an important book for all women, especially fat women, queer women, women of color, neurodiverse women, and those who hold any or all of those identities. I loved all of the characters, how they grew to understand themselves and learn that they could do hard things, physical things, things that they never imagined that they could do. It’s inspiring for all of us, and a reminder that if we love something, we should just do it!

When I went to look for the author’s website and subscribe to their newsletter, as I do for most books that I love, I was sad to see that the author passed away early in 2024. I’m grateful that the book is still be being published, as it is very needed.