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Women Under Scrutiny: An Anthology of Truths, Essays, Poems, Stories and Art
"When I was a child, my mother hid everything sweet and delicious in the large soup pot she kept on top of the tallest cabinet in the kitchen. Thus, my sister and I, at the tender ages of perhaps five and eight, learned to be mountain climbers. Only recently did I consider that maybe Mom was hiding the cookies from herself as well as us."
Women Under Scrutiny is an honest, intimate examination of the relationships we have with our bodies, hair, and faces, how we’ve been treated by the world based on our appearance—and how we have treated others. The women who created the serious, humorous, and courageous work in this anthology—women ages seventeen to seventy-six—represent an array of cultures and religions from across the United States. They are an extraordinary group of women who all share one thing: the ability to tell the truth.
Women Under Scrutiny grew out of Randy Susan Meyers’ new novel, Waisted, the story of two women who torture themselves and are brutalized by others around weight issues, who get caught in the war against women, disguised as a war against fat.
“Meyers exquisitely explores body image, family, and marriage in this surprisingly deep novel. . . she dips into major issues of race, culture, obsession, and sisterhood. Taking on the timely topic of how a woman is perceived in today’s society, she twists it into how far women will go to be what society deems right, and at what cost—a marriage, a family obligation, a personal goal?”
—Booklist (about Waisted: A Novel)
Randy Susan Meyers is a Brooklyn-Boston mix who believes that happiness requires family, friends, books, and an occasional New York bagel. Two of Meyers’ previous novels were chosen as “Must Read Books” by the Massachusetts Center for the Book, writing, “The clear and distinctive voice of Randy Susan Meyers will have you enraptured and wanting more.” She lives in Boston with her husband and teaches at Grub Street Writer’s Center.
All profits from Women Under Scrutiny will be donated to Rosie's Place in Boston.
Women Under Scrutiny is an honest, intimate examination of the relationships we have with our bodies, hair, and faces, how we’ve been treated by the world based on our appearance—and how we have treated others. The women who created the serious, humorous, and courageous work in this anthology—women ages seventeen to seventy-six—represent an array of cultures and religions from across the United States. They are an extraordinary group of women who all share one thing: the ability to tell the truth.
Women Under Scrutiny grew out of Randy Susan Meyers’ new novel, Waisted, the story of two women who torture themselves and are brutalized by others around weight issues, who get caught in the war against women, disguised as a war against fat.
“Meyers exquisitely explores body image, family, and marriage in this surprisingly deep novel. . . she dips into major issues of race, culture, obsession, and sisterhood. Taking on the timely topic of how a woman is perceived in today’s society, she twists it into how far women will go to be what society deems right, and at what cost—a marriage, a family obligation, a personal goal?”
—Booklist (about Waisted: A Novel)
Randy Susan Meyers is a Brooklyn-Boston mix who believes that happiness requires family, friends, books, and an occasional New York bagel. Two of Meyers’ previous novels were chosen as “Must Read Books” by the Massachusetts Center for the Book, writing, “The clear and distinctive voice of Randy Susan Meyers will have you enraptured and wanting more.” She lives in Boston with her husband and teaches at Grub Street Writer’s Center.
All profits from Women Under Scrutiny will be donated to Rosie's Place in Boston.
304 pages, Paperback
First published April 5, 2019
6 people are currently reading
68 people want to read
About the author
Randy Susan Meyers
19 books1,037 followersRandy Susan Meyers, an international bestselling author of five novels, has been recognized by the Massachusetts Council of the Book. They have chosen three of her books as Must-Read Books, praising her clear and distinctive voice that captivates readers and leaves them yearning for more.
Her sixth novel, THE MANY MOTHERS OF IVY PUDDINGSTONE, will be released on October 29, 2024.
Though her novels explore domestic drama, societal issues, and cultural nuances, informed by her years working with community and governmental agencies, she gained the most insight into family and other politics during her four years as a bartender in a small Boston neighborhood bar.
Meyers is a Brooklyn-Boston hybrid who believes happiness requires family, friends, books, and an occasional NY bagel. She lives in Boston with her husband and teaches at the Grub Street Writer's Center.
Her sixth novel, THE MANY MOTHERS OF IVY PUDDINGSTONE, will be released on October 29, 2024.
Though her novels explore domestic drama, societal issues, and cultural nuances, informed by her years working with community and governmental agencies, she gained the most insight into family and other politics during her four years as a bartender in a small Boston neighborhood bar.
Meyers is a Brooklyn-Boston hybrid who believes happiness requires family, friends, books, and an occasional NY bagel. She lives in Boston with her husband and teaches at the Grub Street Writer's Center.
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
June 16, 2019
An entertaining, witty, poignant, true, and down right laughable collection of ways women look and think about their body, and relationships. Its an age old story that somehow we wish we looked different, prettier, or younger. I enjoyed all of these stories, poems, and essays. One in particular that I loved was Head to Toe by Barbara Khan. I loved her ability to describe herself with humor and to look for the benefits of reaching an age with dignity and gratitude. Her dialogue with parts of her body show appreciation and her feeling of being comfortable in her own skin. I love the affirmations she shares and how she has learned how to just BE ...
December 19, 2021
3.5⭐
As with all anthologies and short story collections, there were both hits and misses. I love the raw honesty here and really admire the women for sharing their experiences. I also enjoyed the mix of formats from poems and essays to stories and portraits.
This is a really important read that explores that crazy and impossible standards that women are held to, how we are always judged based on your appearances, how our worth and value is often associated with our weight and the number on the scale, and how every little choice we make about our own bodies and lives tend to come under scrutiny.
Some of the submissions that really stuck with me are:
✨ #36 by Frances Danger: "I never said I wasn't beautiful. I said I was fat. You're the one who thinks the two are mutually exclusive, otherwise you wouldn't have equated the lack of one with the other."
✨ #53 by Pamela Johnston: "Two kids before you've even finished your dissertation. You're either really brave or completely crazy."
✨ #63 by Densie Webb: "If I could go back and undo the cancer, undo the surgeries and everything that comes with having cancer, I'd gladly give back my bigger B cups for my previously healthy bitty boobs any day of the week.
✨ #64 by Seedy Wilkins: "My added weight not only became a shield, t gave me a false sense of security. I felt invisible when I was heavier, and in being invisible, I felt safer. If they can't see you, they can't hurt you. There was also a part of me that believed if someone tried to hurt me, I could stop them because I was bigger, heavier. If nothing else, I could sit on them. My weight made me miserable, but it also protected me."
The only one that really irked me was #8.
A great read for women of all ages. The fact that the contributors range in age, sexuality and ethnicity but yet have common struggles and experiences really speaks volumes!
I received an e-ARC of this book via Netgalley.
As with all anthologies and short story collections, there were both hits and misses. I love the raw honesty here and really admire the women for sharing their experiences. I also enjoyed the mix of formats from poems and essays to stories and portraits.
This is a really important read that explores that crazy and impossible standards that women are held to, how we are always judged based on your appearances, how our worth and value is often associated with our weight and the number on the scale, and how every little choice we make about our own bodies and lives tend to come under scrutiny.
Some of the submissions that really stuck with me are:
✨ #36 by Frances Danger: "I never said I wasn't beautiful. I said I was fat. You're the one who thinks the two are mutually exclusive, otherwise you wouldn't have equated the lack of one with the other."
✨ #53 by Pamela Johnston: "Two kids before you've even finished your dissertation. You're either really brave or completely crazy."
✨ #63 by Densie Webb: "If I could go back and undo the cancer, undo the surgeries and everything that comes with having cancer, I'd gladly give back my bigger B cups for my previously healthy bitty boobs any day of the week.
✨ #64 by Seedy Wilkins: "My added weight not only became a shield, t gave me a false sense of security. I felt invisible when I was heavier, and in being invisible, I felt safer. If they can't see you, they can't hurt you. There was also a part of me that believed if someone tried to hurt me, I could stop them because I was bigger, heavier. If nothing else, I could sit on them. My weight made me miserable, but it also protected me."
The only one that really irked me was #8.
A great read for women of all ages. The fact that the contributors range in age, sexuality and ethnicity but yet have common struggles and experiences really speaks volumes!
I received an e-ARC of this book via Netgalley.
May 25, 2020
I’d say that my enjoyment of this book was at the 3-star level, but this is one that I’ll give 5 stars to, just because it exists. It’s 65 essays by 65 different women, all about body image. Most of these essays are not uplifting, but it’s incredibly important stuff. I’m also really glad I’ve finished this book, because it was very intense reading and you can only read so much of that...
“Willpower is a fable that thin people tell.” Stephanie English, p120
“Bulimia, insecurity, and damages made me, but strength, recovery, and kicking butt define me.” Gabrielle Condren, p209
“Willpower is a fable that thin people tell.” Stephanie English, p120
“Bulimia, insecurity, and damages made me, but strength, recovery, and kicking butt define me.” Gabrielle Condren, p209
April 26, 2019
My heart goes out to the women for being so honest and letting themselves be so vulnerable with the reader. That's very difficult to expose oneself like that but it's also being real.
May 2, 2019
This anthology contains a wide variety of stories that honestly examine large and small personal traumas as well as the lessons the writers drew from them (for better or worse). While all the entries are heartfelt and authentic, their quality and impact varies substantially from piece to piece, with the strongest ones being so good ("Slipping. Sliding. All but Vanished," for example) that many of the others feel a bit like filler in comparison.
The book presents a laudably wide range of voices in terms of age, sexuality, ethnicity, and the stories are generally good individually. Even so, the anthology as a whole seems needlessly duplicative at times, following stories that crackle with emotion and poignancy with less compelling stories that revisit the same ground.
While I am clearly not the target demographic for the book, I did like it, and am impressed with the honestly and authenticity of the writing throughout.
The book presents a laudably wide range of voices in terms of age, sexuality, ethnicity, and the stories are generally good individually. Even so, the anthology as a whole seems needlessly duplicative at times, following stories that crackle with emotion and poignancy with less compelling stories that revisit the same ground.
While I am clearly not the target demographic for the book, I did like it, and am impressed with the honestly and authenticity of the writing throughout.
May 22, 2019
Scrunity is the key word in the title, Women Under Scrunity: An Anthology of Truths, essays, poems stories & art. Scrunity because women in America are not just looked at, they are dissected, they are closely examined. You can look in the dictionary for what all else scrunity means. In this volume women are subjected to all that, like a specimen under the microscope. That may be all well and good for a bug, or a leaf, but women are people and they remember. Women under Scrunity collects the memories of women who were held up to the light and looked at hard to see if they met the standard. As if all women were one thing.
Women in this volume relate their attempts to meet the standard of beauty, principally being slender, model thin, mannequin-like. As might be expected, in this volume the writers told stories mostly of failure, though not for their lack of trying. Catherine Gentry's essay, "Husky Jeans," shows her trying to squeeze into a pair of jeans like that worn by her classmates, but it wasn't happening. Finally, she was show the door to the room where the jeans for fat girls lived. Thank god, today the new store for big women, called Torrid, has been established.
Women relate being under their mothers and grandmothers, aunts, sisters and cousins' laser eyes. Of being told how limited their life opportunities would be if they failed to kowtow to the standard. And some told of how that became a self-fulfilling prophecy. Some, like myself in my brief essay, "We Need More Ruebens," talked about their fears for other, beloved women. The point is no woman is left unscathed by the brutality of expectations. If the woman herself is not being reshaped in the service of an ideal, then she is worried about another woman being thusly molded.
America is the land of the rugged individual, but more accurately, obviously, that should be read, rugged man.
Meyers' anthology is organized into six parts by theme. The parts include all genres of work. Of the sixty-five contributors, best of show was awarded to a few. These works lead a section and are outstanding. For instance, Sahar Abdullaziz's essay, "Slipping. Sliding. All But Vanished" is about a mature woman trying to come to terms with her body which she, of all people in the world, has had the least influence over. Abdullazis writes of her outside body as "a pretender, an imposter, a fake."
I grew up rail thin and even though that may not have always been the case through the decades, I tend to think of myself as that skinny girl. Perhaps that is the most disgusting part of the experiences shared in Women Under Scrunity. Many of the experiences happened before the writers were women; they were just girls. One was a baby in her mother's arms. And the idea that they were lacking was embossed on their memory like a bas relief sculpture. Deficiency became key to their being. In this volume the women talk about coming back from that. The idea that being girlishly slim was always in the background of these stories, and poems. That women are not human at all, but are Peter Pan type creatures (I won't grow up) and must try to maintain that stasis.
One thing I was curious about was how many women of color would be represented in this volume. I am one who understands that publishing can be somewhat exclusionary of writers based on their social and economic status. That unfortunately separates along color lines. But Women Under Scrunity includes a healthy representation of women of color. In fact, the first essay, "Worse Than Sticks and Stones?" is a winning entry by Kizzy Preston. Her photograph shows she is a cherubic African American woman.
I must admit that this is not fly through it book. Each piece in this anthology brings the writers world to the page. And the nature of the content calls for a pause between pieces. I felt the pain of the writers as they related how they lived their live under constant critique.Women Under Scrunity was compiled and includes commentary in each section from novelist Susan Randy Meyers. Her anthology is the companion volume to her new novel, Waisted, about two women who go to a fat camp and endure whatever they must in order to become the ideal. Those events seem to be preposterous, until one reads these true stories. In Woman Under Scrunity, Meyers has tapped the Oprah Winfrey magic of bringing all women into the tent to discuss the social-cultural experience of weight, size and shape of American women.
Women in this volume relate their attempts to meet the standard of beauty, principally being slender, model thin, mannequin-like. As might be expected, in this volume the writers told stories mostly of failure, though not for their lack of trying. Catherine Gentry's essay, "Husky Jeans," shows her trying to squeeze into a pair of jeans like that worn by her classmates, but it wasn't happening. Finally, she was show the door to the room where the jeans for fat girls lived. Thank god, today the new store for big women, called Torrid, has been established.
Women relate being under their mothers and grandmothers, aunts, sisters and cousins' laser eyes. Of being told how limited their life opportunities would be if they failed to kowtow to the standard. And some told of how that became a self-fulfilling prophecy. Some, like myself in my brief essay, "We Need More Ruebens," talked about their fears for other, beloved women. The point is no woman is left unscathed by the brutality of expectations. If the woman herself is not being reshaped in the service of an ideal, then she is worried about another woman being thusly molded.
America is the land of the rugged individual, but more accurately, obviously, that should be read, rugged man.
Meyers' anthology is organized into six parts by theme. The parts include all genres of work. Of the sixty-five contributors, best of show was awarded to a few. These works lead a section and are outstanding. For instance, Sahar Abdullaziz's essay, "Slipping. Sliding. All But Vanished" is about a mature woman trying to come to terms with her body which she, of all people in the world, has had the least influence over. Abdullazis writes of her outside body as "a pretender, an imposter, a fake."
I grew up rail thin and even though that may not have always been the case through the decades, I tend to think of myself as that skinny girl. Perhaps that is the most disgusting part of the experiences shared in Women Under Scrunity. Many of the experiences happened before the writers were women; they were just girls. One was a baby in her mother's arms. And the idea that they were lacking was embossed on their memory like a bas relief sculpture. Deficiency became key to their being. In this volume the women talk about coming back from that. The idea that being girlishly slim was always in the background of these stories, and poems. That women are not human at all, but are Peter Pan type creatures (I won't grow up) and must try to maintain that stasis.
One thing I was curious about was how many women of color would be represented in this volume. I am one who understands that publishing can be somewhat exclusionary of writers based on their social and economic status. That unfortunately separates along color lines. But Women Under Scrunity includes a healthy representation of women of color. In fact, the first essay, "Worse Than Sticks and Stones?" is a winning entry by Kizzy Preston. Her photograph shows she is a cherubic African American woman.
I must admit that this is not fly through it book. Each piece in this anthology brings the writers world to the page. And the nature of the content calls for a pause between pieces. I felt the pain of the writers as they related how they lived their live under constant critique.Women Under Scrunity was compiled and includes commentary in each section from novelist Susan Randy Meyers. Her anthology is the companion volume to her new novel, Waisted, about two women who go to a fat camp and endure whatever they must in order to become the ideal. Those events seem to be preposterous, until one reads these true stories. In Woman Under Scrunity, Meyers has tapped the Oprah Winfrey magic of bringing all women into the tent to discuss the social-cultural experience of weight, size and shape of American women.
June 17, 2025
The intent of this book is admirable, but it is abundantly obvious that most of the women featured are, let's say, less-than-seasoned writers.
April 6, 2020
*Thanks Netgally and the author for the gifted arc, all thoughts are completely my own *
I wasn't sure how to rate this book, not because it is bad, it's actually really harrowing the way some people's relationships with their bodies are.
This book brought me back to being a teenager, uncomfortable in their own body and thinking they were fat when they weren't.
Its hard to read about different women's stories about them being scrutinized over their bodies.
I would definitely recommend this book if you're into diet culture
I wasn't sure how to rate this book, not because it is bad, it's actually really harrowing the way some people's relationships with their bodies are.
This book brought me back to being a teenager, uncomfortable in their own body and thinking they were fat when they weren't.
Its hard to read about different women's stories about them being scrutinized over their bodies.
I would definitely recommend this book if you're into diet culture
January 21, 2020
It took me quite a while to process my thoughts about this book, and I’m not sure if it is because of the topical subject matter or the volume. It brought back many memories where people have passed seemingly innocuous comments about my own appearance and/or body.
The articles, poems, and artwork talk about society’s double standards when it comes to the appearance of women. Women have shared their stories about fat-shaming, bullying, body image issues, self-esteem issues, eating disorders, and mental health issues that arise from the unhealthy obsession with weight and/or body shape.
The pieces have been written by a diverse group of women, of all ages and with all sorts of backgrounds. While this makes the book representative of everyone’s voices, the quality of writing takes a hit at times. Without sounding dismissive of the pain behind women’s lived experiences, I want to say that the volume could have been slimmer because some articles/poems did not add anything fresh to the narrative.
Meyers adds her riveting commentary to the book, describing her own battles with body weight and how this anthology arose from the experience of writing her novel, Waisted.
Final thoughts: There’s a lot to process in these essays. They’re not all easy to read. Some are serious and tragic, whereas the others imbue humor into painful topics. You, as a reader, must have the courage to read these honest and brave accounts of women who have been targeted for their appearance and body shape.
The articles, poems, and artwork talk about society’s double standards when it comes to the appearance of women. Women have shared their stories about fat-shaming, bullying, body image issues, self-esteem issues, eating disorders, and mental health issues that arise from the unhealthy obsession with weight and/or body shape.
The pieces have been written by a diverse group of women, of all ages and with all sorts of backgrounds. While this makes the book representative of everyone’s voices, the quality of writing takes a hit at times. Without sounding dismissive of the pain behind women’s lived experiences, I want to say that the volume could have been slimmer because some articles/poems did not add anything fresh to the narrative.
Meyers adds her riveting commentary to the book, describing her own battles with body weight and how this anthology arose from the experience of writing her novel, Waisted.
Final thoughts: There’s a lot to process in these essays. They’re not all easy to read. Some are serious and tragic, whereas the others imbue humor into painful topics. You, as a reader, must have the courage to read these honest and brave accounts of women who have been targeted for their appearance and body shape.
February 16, 2020
It took me a bit of time to be able to process how I really felt about this book. It certainly wasn’t what I expected it to be. These short stories, poems and essays written by women are some of the most raw material I have read in a while. Each woman shares the unfiltered truth of how she feels about her body image, how the world’s standards can be an awful judge and there are stories of shame, guilt, mental illness and everything in between. Most of the book was hard to read in the sense that it was heartbreaking to realize what women go through whether it be in their own heads or some idea of perfection thrown at them by society. Kudos to all the women who were willing to share and be so transparent to help break some of the stereotypes and stigmas. Job well done.
March 27, 2020
Unfortunately, I was expecting more from this book than what I received. I felt like there was little range in the stories that were being told (predominantly about struggles with weight and body image) and little variety in the delivery or overall message of these stories. While I admire conciseness in writing, I felt like the shortness of many of the pieces in this book were only reflective of a lack of deeper material. Nonetheless, I applaud these women for their bravery and their willingness to share their truths!
December 14, 2019
DNFed at 45% after trying to overlook how problematic every essay is until I couldn't anymore. If anything, most of these women are just reinforcing the same scrutinity, judgement and prejudice we all go through.
April 3, 2020
I Enjoyed everything about this book there was nothing I didn't like about the book. I Like the setting,the writing style,the plot,the plot twists and the characters in the book were amazing.I would gladly reread it again.
June 9, 2020
Powerful, raw, unmediated and I believe that each of the women that participated in the writing of this book experienced something powerful not only as a cause for the writing but while also creating their art.
Of course, the book touches on sensitive topics but it is absolutely amazing and more people should be reading it.
Of course, the book touches on sensitive topics but it is absolutely amazing and more people should be reading it.
January 1, 2023
Unfortunately I was disappointed by this book. The vast majority of truths focus on weight and to be honest I was hoping for a lot more diversity. Women are scrutinised for an array of things outside of weight and to tell the truth I was getting tired of it being the focal point. It also says this book is meant to include artwork but I only saw 2 pieces of art?
Really interesting premise but sadly the execution wasn't for me.
Really interesting premise but sadly the execution wasn't for me.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews