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Light: A Mother and Daughter Memoir of Anorexia
Up to one in ten will die from anorexia. But Nancy Levine and her daughter Rachel didn't know this when the disease slowly-then all too quickly-took root.
While studying abroad, Rachel begins a new passion: running along the golden beaches of the coastal Australian town Surfer's Paradise. Each day she feels stronger and can run further. She also gives up the typical college junk food diet of sweets, pizza, and french fries. Tanned and muscular, her family thinks she looks healthy and fabulous. They don't notice that running and her "healthy diet" are slowly controlling her life.
Light is a story of obsession and OCD, family history and stigma, and Rachel's battle with life-threatening anorexia. Once called the "sickest of the sick," Rachel fought to recover, with her mother and family by her side. Narrated by Nancy with excerpts and journal entries from Rachel before, during, and after treatment, this memoir explores how the deadly inner voice of an eating disorder is heard, treated, and finally silenced. Blending tough scenes with humorous ones, this unique and brave book celebrates hope and lasting recovery.
While studying abroad, Rachel begins a new passion: running along the golden beaches of the coastal Australian town Surfer's Paradise. Each day she feels stronger and can run further. She also gives up the typical college junk food diet of sweets, pizza, and french fries. Tanned and muscular, her family thinks she looks healthy and fabulous. They don't notice that running and her "healthy diet" are slowly controlling her life.
Light is a story of obsession and OCD, family history and stigma, and Rachel's battle with life-threatening anorexia. Once called the "sickest of the sick," Rachel fought to recover, with her mother and family by her side. Narrated by Nancy with excerpts and journal entries from Rachel before, during, and after treatment, this memoir explores how the deadly inner voice of an eating disorder is heard, treated, and finally silenced. Blending tough scenes with humorous ones, this unique and brave book celebrates hope and lasting recovery.
204 pages, Paperback
Published August 26, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
August 25, 2025
When Levine's daughter Rachel went off to college, Levine and her husband breathed a sigh of relief—they'd managed to raise both their kids in a way they could be proud of, and their kids were now out in the world. Their hardest parenting days were over—they thought. When Rachel came back from her study abroad trip thinner, they didn't worry...but when her weight dropped, and dropped some more, they did. And for some reason, none of their suggestions to help her gain weight seemed to be helping.
Light takes Levine and her family through Rachel's illness, including—eventually—a protracted stay at a residential treatment centre. This is Levine's story, not Rachel's, though Levine draws on Rachel's experience and journals as well. And it's an interesting telling: Levine describes really having no idea, when Rachel's anorexia/orthorexia started, how to deal with it or what to say; a lot of their early attempts at interventions were useless because Levine and her husband figured that Rachel could just be talked out of her eating disorder. Later, Levine started to get a sense of the impact of problematic family dynamics (not in a "this caused it" kind of way, to be clear, but in a "this makes for a more difficult environment in which to get well"). I struggled to read about some of those dynamics, to be honest; I grew up in a very healthy-eating household (e.g., to date I have had soda maybe half a dozen times in my life), but my parents never placed value judgements on body size or different eating habits, and...well, from my perspective, some of the comments Levine describes from a certain family member in particular are divorce material. It gets more complicated than that, as we eventually see that there are much broader family cycles at play, but, well. Some of it was tough to read.
This is a 3.5-star read for me, and while I eventually decided to round up, I almost rounded down because there are way too many numbers in here—it maybe makes sense when you consider that Levine is a nurse who is probably used to using all kinds of numbers as a way to evaluate health and paint a clinical picture, but she also describes, in the book, being told by other health professionals that they consciously avoided numbers (weight, calories; also, more generally, specifics about food intake) in treatment because they could be triggering. It makes those numbers an odd choice to include in the book, and while I think this could be a valuable read for people in Levine's position (i.e., parents struggling to help a child with an eating disorder, especially an adult child), I wouldn't recommend it to anyone for whom numbers can be difficult.
So—some reservations, but an interesting story told well. I think it's worth noting that Levine and her husband were (as she notes) in an extremely privileged position to be able to support their daughter financially through her treatment; it was not a small expense for them, but it would have been far, far out of reach for many (perhaps most). What must it feel like to have to tell a child that they cannot get sick again, because more treatment would be out of financial reach? A reminder of the many flaws of the US health care system.
Thanks to the author and publisher for providing a review copy through NetGalley.
Light takes Levine and her family through Rachel's illness, including—eventually—a protracted stay at a residential treatment centre. This is Levine's story, not Rachel's, though Levine draws on Rachel's experience and journals as well. And it's an interesting telling: Levine describes really having no idea, when Rachel's anorexia/orthorexia started, how to deal with it or what to say; a lot of their early attempts at interventions were useless because Levine and her husband figured that Rachel could just be talked out of her eating disorder. Later, Levine started to get a sense of the impact of problematic family dynamics (not in a "this caused it" kind of way, to be clear, but in a "this makes for a more difficult environment in which to get well"). I struggled to read about some of those dynamics, to be honest; I grew up in a very healthy-eating household (e.g., to date I have had soda maybe half a dozen times in my life), but my parents never placed value judgements on body size or different eating habits, and...well, from my perspective, some of the comments Levine describes from a certain family member in particular are divorce material. It gets more complicated than that, as we eventually see that there are much broader family cycles at play, but, well. Some of it was tough to read.
This is a 3.5-star read for me, and while I eventually decided to round up, I almost rounded down because there are way too many numbers in here—it maybe makes sense when you consider that Levine is a nurse who is probably used to using all kinds of numbers as a way to evaluate health and paint a clinical picture, but she also describes, in the book, being told by other health professionals that they consciously avoided numbers (weight, calories; also, more generally, specifics about food intake) in treatment because they could be triggering. It makes those numbers an odd choice to include in the book, and while I think this could be a valuable read for people in Levine's position (i.e., parents struggling to help a child with an eating disorder, especially an adult child), I wouldn't recommend it to anyone for whom numbers can be difficult.
So—some reservations, but an interesting story told well. I think it's worth noting that Levine and her husband were (as she notes) in an extremely privileged position to be able to support their daughter financially through her treatment; it was not a small expense for them, but it would have been far, far out of reach for many (perhaps most). What must it feel like to have to tell a child that they cannot get sick again, because more treatment would be out of financial reach? A reminder of the many flaws of the US health care system.
Thanks to the author and publisher for providing a review copy through NetGalley.
September 4, 2025
Firstly, thank you to NetGalley and the author for allowing me a copy of this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Trigger Warning: Eating Disorders
Rachel has been through a lot, she is incredibly brave and strong. Nancy and Rachel wrote this beautifully, and this story is very important - maybe not for people struggling with eating disorders in the exact moment, but for someone to know they aren’t alone.
Trigger Warning: Eating Disorders
Rachel has been through a lot, she is incredibly brave and strong. Nancy and Rachel wrote this beautifully, and this story is very important - maybe not for people struggling with eating disorders in the exact moment, but for someone to know they aren’t alone.
July 18, 2025
One family's brutally honest portrayal of anorexia and how it affects not only the sufferer, but also her surrounding friends, family, and co-workers. As Rachel sinks deeper into the pull of this disease, her anorexia voice tells her to ignore the advice of therapists, doctors, and loved ones. The voice is unrelenting and cruel.
With a supportive family, she finally (after many, many months in rehab) breaks free and starts to gain weight. But more importantly she begins to see herself as worthy of nourishment and food to stay alive.
Light: A Mother and Daughter Memoir of Anorexia is compelling and imparts information that anyone could gain insight from.
Thank you to LibraryThing Early Reviewers, Nancy Y Levine and Rootstock Publishing for this ARC.
With a supportive family, she finally (after many, many months in rehab) breaks free and starts to gain weight. But more importantly she begins to see herself as worthy of nourishment and food to stay alive.
Light: A Mother and Daughter Memoir of Anorexia is compelling and imparts information that anyone could gain insight from.
Thank you to LibraryThing Early Reviewers, Nancy Y Levine and Rootstock Publishing for this ARC.
August 22, 2025
CW: eating disorder
Light by Nancy Levine was an emotional and moving novel about a mother and daughter duo's struggle with anorexia. Their battle with Anorexia started while her daughter Rachel was studying aboard. The book chronicles Rachel's journey from illness to recovery, highlighting the challenges faced by both Rachel and her family. Nancy shares her feelings of powerlessness and desperation. it offers a message of hope and resilience, a testament of the enduring bond between a mother and daughter.
Light by Nancy Levine was an emotional and moving novel about a mother and daughter duo's struggle with anorexia. Their battle with Anorexia started while her daughter Rachel was studying aboard. The book chronicles Rachel's journey from illness to recovery, highlighting the challenges faced by both Rachel and her family. Nancy shares her feelings of powerlessness and desperation. it offers a message of hope and resilience, a testament of the enduring bond between a mother and daughter.
July 23, 2025
It’s hard for most of us to imagine what it’s like to be a mother with a daughter who has a serious eating disorder: anorexia.
Nancy Levin struggled to get her adult daughter, Rachel, to eat (2005 to 2007). It should have been simple but it turned into a frustrated battle. Rachel had a good response for every plead her mother gave – “I know what’s best for me.” It was always about hope that better days were ahead with a huge amount of support and encouragement.
Nancy, a nurse for years, with her husband, a physician, were both knowledgeable about medical issues. Yet they weren’t able to help their daughter with her eating disorder. Rachel agreed with their continued rallying to go to a specialized treatment center.
This book left me with a lot of questions from Rachel’s point of view. I was curious what her weight was while she was being treated. What happened during the days while she was there? How in her own words was she was able to get better over this time period? Was she taking anxiety meds to help? I was pleased to learn that with this facility was able to get her back on track and she was discharged to go home.
This is helpful for readers looking for books related to anorexia mostly from a mother’s point of view. It’s well written and shows the emotional stress of trying to reach out with great frustration and lots of faith towards positive results. At the end, Rachel presents a summary of her health issues. There is also a reading list.
My thanks to Rootstock Publishing and LibraryThing for sending me an advanced copy of this book to read and review with an expected release date of August 26, 2025.
Nancy Levin struggled to get her adult daughter, Rachel, to eat (2005 to 2007). It should have been simple but it turned into a frustrated battle. Rachel had a good response for every plead her mother gave – “I know what’s best for me.” It was always about hope that better days were ahead with a huge amount of support and encouragement.
Nancy, a nurse for years, with her husband, a physician, were both knowledgeable about medical issues. Yet they weren’t able to help their daughter with her eating disorder. Rachel agreed with their continued rallying to go to a specialized treatment center.
This book left me with a lot of questions from Rachel’s point of view. I was curious what her weight was while she was being treated. What happened during the days while she was there? How in her own words was she was able to get better over this time period? Was she taking anxiety meds to help? I was pleased to learn that with this facility was able to get her back on track and she was discharged to go home.
This is helpful for readers looking for books related to anorexia mostly from a mother’s point of view. It’s well written and shows the emotional stress of trying to reach out with great frustration and lots of faith towards positive results. At the end, Rachel presents a summary of her health issues. There is also a reading list.
My thanks to Rootstock Publishing and LibraryThing for sending me an advanced copy of this book to read and review with an expected release date of August 26, 2025.
September 22, 2025
Nancy Levine has captured a parent’s worse nightmare in LIGHT: A Mother and Daughter Memoir of Anorexia. The terror of watching a child sliding toward death, and knowing treatment can stop the onward march if only the child would accept it is palpable. For anyone who knows someone with an eating disorder (or addiction) this book sheds light onto the psychological and medical paths that lead to hell and back. As medical professionals, Nancy and her husband are well aware of anorexia’s impact. When their twenty-one-year-old daughter, Rachel, becomes obsessed with running and limiting her caloric intake, the gradual slide from healthy and slender to thin and gaunt is visible, but they are lulled into hope by their daughter’s reasons for not cooking and eating, and her many assertions that she’ll eat more once the next obstacle is removed. Rachel’s journal entries show that the real obstacle is the inner voice that tells Rachel she is getting fat, that she has to do better, that she looks more and more beautiful as her body disappears. With facts, honesty, vulnerability and humor this book chronicles the nail-biting ambivalence of letting a child become an independent adult and convincing a now-adult child to follow the parental advice that will lead her away from a dangerous precipice.
When Rachel checks into a residential treatment center it takes nine months for her to control the inner voice with tools and actions learned through therapy. She carries those tools with her, fifteen years after recovery. Nancy Levine has written a suspenseful memoir chronicling her journey from denial, acceptance and action, and a family bond that is stronger than any disease. This book should be in every middle, high school and university library.
When Rachel checks into a residential treatment center it takes nine months for her to control the inner voice with tools and actions learned through therapy. She carries those tools with her, fifteen years after recovery. Nancy Levine has written a suspenseful memoir chronicling her journey from denial, acceptance and action, and a family bond that is stronger than any disease. This book should be in every middle, high school and university library.
September 15, 2025
The journey that Nancy Levine and her daughter, Rachel, take you on is harrowing but ultimately hopeful. It illustrates that this illness has a python-like grip on the patient and strangles its victims into submission. You will not be able to put this book down. There are no wasted words in this slim memoir, and in the end you will better understand not only what a patient suffering from anorexia feels, but what the family goes through trying to help their loved one. It was unfortunate that Rachel had to get to the point of almost dying to turn her life around. With the help of psychologists and the supportive team at the center she entered, Rachel learned and practiced strategies for overcoming this illness. It took eleven months of treatment and then psychological follow up to get her life back on track. Light is a very brave book, exposing family members with their own eating issues. In the end, they face their demons as well, and are part of the healing process for Rachel.
August 18, 2025
Science can describe anorexia, but only literature can make us feel what it's like to live with it--in this case, to be the parent of a child in the grip of a disease in which the self-destructive behavior seems willful but in fact can't be controlled without intense intervention. This compelling, searingly honest memoir details the Levine family's harrowing journey to defeat their daughter's deadly disease before it's too late. Along the way, we learn about the social triggers of anorexia, especially those facing young women trapped by our society's expectations that they will be thin and beautiful, and how seemingly trivial comments can have near-fatal consequences. Levine's prose is clear, straightforward, and unflinching--anorexia is an individual disease, but everyone in the victim's family circle must bear responsibility for finding a solution.
October 10, 2025
No one can truly knows what these diseases do, how much toll that they not only take on you and your body, but your family, your friends , your relationships. No one truly knows until you have been in that situation, and had to deal with the impacts as they happen. Everyone story is different, thats true, but there is a common denominator that all of them have together, and that is the emotions behind them.I loved reading this book and seeing it from the mothers point of view, it gave a realistic look at this disease and how it affects everything. I loved seeing the excerpts of the journal entries, and seeing how they changed through out the course of the book, it was another deep read for me but was well worth it, and I am thankful to have had the chance to read it!
November 4, 2025
Masterful Memoir
As an author myself, I know the challenges of making memoirs compelling. Too often, they fall into a simple exposition of the facts—but not this one. I’m familiar with the remarkable story-telling talents of Nancy Levine, this memoir’s primary author. Her ability to write beautifully is reflected in this long-awaited book. It’s worth reading not only for its insights and rewards of a family member conquering anorexia. Like any well-crafted literary fiction novel, the story draws us right in with the prologue’s pink roses and a pot-bellied pig. Don’t miss this wonderful work!
As an author myself, I know the challenges of making memoirs compelling. Too often, they fall into a simple exposition of the facts—but not this one. I’m familiar with the remarkable story-telling talents of Nancy Levine, this memoir’s primary author. Her ability to write beautifully is reflected in this long-awaited book. It’s worth reading not only for its insights and rewards of a family member conquering anorexia. Like any well-crafted literary fiction novel, the story draws us right in with the prologue’s pink roses and a pot-bellied pig. Don’t miss this wonderful work!
September 14, 2025
A brutally honest journey through surviving disordered eating. The story is told from Nancy’s perspective, sharing her fears and perceived failures as a mother. She is honest about the family dynamics and disordered eating in other family members that played a role in Rachel developing disordered eating. Reading the journal entries was heartbreaking. This book should be required reading for any in healthcare or working with athletes.
December 1, 2025
A stunning must read. Light is written with exquisite precision and a storytelling voice that keeps the reader hooked from start finish. More so, Light is an important read for all - whether or not you have experience with an eating disorder. This memoir reminds us that it sometimes does take a village for a loved one to heal.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews