āFatā is usually the first insult a girl throws at another girl when she wants to hurt her. I mean, is āfatā really the worst thing a human being can be? Is āfatā worse than āvindictiveā, ājealousā, āshallowā, āvainā, āboringā or ācruelā? Not to me; but then, you might retort, what do I know about the pressure to be skinny? Iām not in the business of being judged on my looks, what with being a writer and earning my living by using my brainā¦ I went to the British Book Awards that evening. After the award ceremony I bumped into a woman I hadnāt seen for nearly three years. The first thing she said to me? āYouāve lost a lot of weight since the last time I saw you!ā āWell,ā I said, slightly nonplussed, āthe last time you saw me Iād just had a baby.ā What I felt like saying was, āIāve produced my third child and my sixth novel since I last saw you. Arenāt either of those things more important, more interesting, than my size?ā But no ā my waist looked smaller! Forget the kid and the book: finally, something to celebrate! Iād rather they were independent, interesting, idealistic, kind, opinionated, original, funny ā a thousand things, before āthinā. And frankly, Iād rather they didnāt give a gust of stinking chihuahua flatulence whether the woman standing next to them has fleshier knees than they do. Let my girls be Hermiones, rather than Pansy Parkinsons.
J.K. RowlingĀ - So wise.
