Let’s talk about the beauty of bodies, shall we?
There are a lot of forces actively working to make people resent the natural shapes and sizes of their bodies, especially the bodies of women. Diet culture, toxic beauty standards, and the medical profession have long worked to make people believe their health and their identity is defined by their weight.
But say it with us: no one should be defined by the way they look or a number on a scale.
While the body positivity movement was started with good intentions of empowering all people to embrace their natural bodies, its overly positive rhetoric doesn’t take into account the anti-fat biases (and resulting trauma) that individuals are being subjected to in day-to-day life. The messages of always feeling strong and loving one’s body no matter what can become a new sort of pressure, rather than solace.
This has led to the more recent rise of the body neutrality movement. Popularized by celebrities like Lizzo, body neutrality focuses more on what your body can do right now, rather than fixating on what needs to be done. It’s about finding peace and being present with one’s body in the moment and removes the guilt of having to love your body 100% of the time.
Moving forward, the hope is creating a society where fat people feel capable and strong and loved in every room they enter. But it’s also true that, despite milestones towards these movements we’ve seen over the past decade, fat people still aren’t being represented enough on television, in movies, in fashion, and beyond. And when they are, they’re being stereotyped into the roles of “funny” best friend or the soon-to-be subject of a major life transformation. This is where we want to begin rewriting the narrative.
In this roundup of 15 books centering fat characters, the storylines are nuanced, emotional, and complex without these characters compromising themselves to fit a certain narrative. As Julie Murphy says, “All bodies are good bodies. Forever. Including fat bodies.”
17 Books With Fat Main Characters
YOUR WORTH IS NOT DEFINED BY YOUR BODY TYPE
1. Faith by Julie Murphy
📚 Don’t miss the sequel: Faith: Greater Heights
This is the first novel in a two-part origin story of Faith, a pioneering, plus-size superhero from Valiant Entertainment comics!
Faith Herbert is a pretty regular teenager just trying to get herself through the last year of high school. She hangs out with her two best friends, volunteers at the local animal shelter and is obsessed with the long-running teen drama The Grove. Oh, and she can fly.
When The Grove begins filming in her hometown, Faith’s fandom fueled daydreams of meeting the cast aren’t enough to distract her from the fact that animals, and then people, have begun vanishing from her neighborhood. Only Faith seems to connect the dots to a new designer drug infiltrating her high school. But the more she investigates, the more the lives of her loved ones begin to be put in danger, forcing Faith into the position of confronting her hidden past and mastering her newfound gifts in order to save the people and the neighborhood she loves.
2. Dumplin’ by Julie Murphy
📚 This is the first book in: the Dumplin’ verse
Self-proclaimed fat girl Willowdean Dickson (nicknamed “Dumplin’” by her former beauty queen mom) has always been at home in her own skin. With her best friend Ellen by her side, things for Will have always worked out, that is until she starts working at Harpy’s, the local fast-food joint. There she meets hot former jock Bo who surprisingly seems to be just as attracted to her as she is to him. But instead of finding new heights of self-assurance in their relationship, Will begins to doubt herself. To take back her confidence, she decides to do the most horrifying thing she can imagine: Enter the Miss Clover City Beauty pageant.
Along with several other unlikely candidates, Will embraces the contest to prove the point that she deserves to be there as much as any girl. Along the way she’ll shock the hell out of Clover City—but maybe herself most of all.
3. Then Everything Happens at Once by M-E Girard
From the Lambda Award-winning author of Girl Mans Up comes an empowering, sex-positive coming-of-age story about a teen exploring first love and desire, as her rocky relationship with her own body and a pandemic threaten to sabotage everything. Perfect for fans of Fat Chance, Charlie Vega and Cool for the Summer.
Baylee has never been kissed but she wants to do way more than that. She’s had a huge crush on her gorgeous best friend and neighbor Freddie for years, but since she doesn’t look like his usual type, the judgmental voice in her head tells her he’ll never see her as more than a friend. It feels like she’ll spend the rest of high school fantasizing on the sidelines while everyone else dates and hooks up.
Then Baylee meets Alex online and she starts to fall for this sweet, funny barista who likes her just as she is. It’s new, electric, and all-consuming to be around Alex. But when Freddie makes a move on Baylee and a virus shuts the world down, Baylee finds herself torn.
Everything is happening at once, and she is left navigating the messy waters of love and desire. It helps that she’s observed her friends’ relationship drama, so she knows exactly what mistakes not to make . . . right?
This sophomore novel from M-E Girard centers a fat, confident girl going after what she wants and learning to love herself along the way.
4. No Filter and Other Lies by Crystal Maldonado
Golden-haired Max Monroe has it all: beauty, friends, and tons of followers. Her picture-perfect existence seems eminently enviable.
Except it’s all fake.
“Max” is actually Kat Sanchez, a quiet and sarcastic 17-year-old living in drab Bakersfield, California. Nothing glamorous about her existence–just bad house parties, a crap school year, and the awkwardness of dealing with best friend Hari’s unrequited love.
But while Kat’s life is far from perfect, she thrives as Max: doling out advice, sharing beautiful photos, networking with fans, even finding a real friend (or more?–Is Kat into girls!?) in a gorgeous Fat follower named Elena. But the closer Elena and “Max” get, the more Kat feels she has to keep up the façade. “Max” is the first time people have really listened to what Kat has to say–and after a lifetime of invisibility (including ice-cold indifference from her parents) can she really give that up?
But when one of Kat’s posts goes viral and gets back to the girl she’s been stealing photos from, her entire world–real and fake–comes crashing down around her. Can she escape the web of lies she’s woven without hurting the people she loves?
This insightful, provocative novel–hilarious and raw by turns–is the second book from Crystal Maldonado, author of smash-hit New England Book Award Winner Fat Chance, Charlie Vega. Brilliantly plotted, deeply sensitive, and rich in voice, No Filter and Other Lies deftly addresses FOMO, first love, one-sided love, frayed family ties, raced exclusion on social media, queer awakenings, and learning to live with–and love–yourself.
Because the most powerful lies are the lies we tell ourselves.
5. Out of Character by Jenna Miller
Dumplin’ meets Geekerella in debut author Jenna Miller’s queer, body-positive love story that explores online and offline relationships in all of their messiness.
If you asked seventeen-year-old Cass Williams to describe herself, she’d happily tell you she’s fat, queer, and obsessed with the Tide Wars books. What she won’t tell you—or anyone in her life—is that she’s part of an online Tide Wars roleplay community. Sure, it’s nerdy as hell, but when she’s behind the screen writing scenes as Captain Aresha, she doesn’t have to think about her mother who walked out or how unexpectedly stressful it is dating resident cool girl Taylor Cooper.
But secretly retreating to her online life is starting to catch up with Cass. For one, no one in her real life knows her secret roleplay addiction is the reason her grades have taken a big hit. Also? Cass has started catching feelings for Rowan Davies, her internet bestie . .. and Taylor might be catching on.
As Cass’s lies continue to build, so does her anxiety. Roleplaying used to be the one place she could escape to, but this double life and offline-online love triangle have only made things worse. Cass must decide what to do—be honest and risk losing her safe space or keep it a secret and put everything else on the line.
6. I’ll Be the One by Lyla Lee
Skye Shin has heard it all: Fat girls shouldn’t dance, wear bright clothes, or really ever call attention to themselves in any way. But Skye dreams of joining the glittering world of K-Pop, and to do that, she’s about to break all the rules society, the media, and her mother have set for girls like her.
When Skye nails her audition for an international television competition looking for the next K-Pop star, she’s immediately swept up in countless practices, shocking performances, the drama of reality TV, and her unexpected chemistry with fellow competitor Henry Cho. All this on top of navigating the shock of media scrutiny, and the highly fat-phobic beauty standards of the Korean pop entertainment industry. But Skye has her sights on becoming the world’s first plus-sized K-pop star, and that means winning the competition—without losing herself.
7. If It Makes You Happy by Claire Kann
Winnie is living her best fat girl life this summer as she heads to her favorite place on earth: her Granny’s diner, Goldeen’s, in the small town of Misty Haven. While there, Winnie works in her fabulous 50’s inspired uniform, twirling between tables, before clocking off for adventures with her family and ungirlfriend.
It’s set to be the best summer before college ever until Winnie finds out she’s been named Misty Haven’s Summer Queen, a long-standing matchmaking tradition she wants absolutely no part in. As Winnie is forced to take center stage in photoshoots and a never-ending list of community royal engagements, she discovers she’s deathly afraid of all of it—the spotlight, the obligations, and mostly, the way her Misty Haven Summer King wears his heart, humor, and honesty on his sleeve.
This coming-of-age novel celebrates the learnings and complexities of embracing one’s cultural and sexual identities, and the courage to pursue your own path—regardless of what others might think.
8. Love is a Revolution by Renée Watson
When Nala Robertson reluctantly agrees to attend an open mic night for her friend’s birthday, she falls instantly in love with Tye Brown, the MC. He’s perfect, an activist in the neighborhood, and in order to impress him, Nala tells just a few small lies to get his attention.
But as the two begin spending more time together, growing closer and falling harder for one another, Nala will learn just how hard it is to keep up her facade. A love story centering the message plus-size girls are beautiful, Love is a Revolution is not only a celebration of romantic love, but more importantly, the radical powers of self-love.
9. There’s Something About Sweetie by Sandhya Menon
📚 This is the part of: the Dimple and Rishi series
This hilarious, heartwarming companion novel to When Dimple Met Rishi follows Ashish and Sweetie, two Indian-American adults with something to prove.
When Ashish is suddenly dumped by his ex-girlfriend, his parents insist they’ve found him the perfect date. They set it all up, even writing a dating contract ahead of time, for the couple to follow. Sweetie is a formidable athlete who can out-run most people in California. But all her parents can see in her is her fatness, believing it’s her kiss of death when it comes to finding a husband. So she decides to kick off the Sassy Sweetie Project where she’ll show the world and herself what she’s really made of.
Ashish and Sweetie are both set on proving their parents wrong but with each date, find an unexpected magic growing between them. This just leaves one question: Can they find their true selves without losing each other?
10. The (Other) F Word: A Celebration of the Fat and Fierce, edited by Angie Manfredi
Chubby. Curvy. Fluffy. Plus-size. Thick. Fat. The time has come for fat people to tell their own stories.
The (Other) F Word combines the voices of Renée Watson, Julie Murphy, Jes Baker, Samantha Irby, Bruce Sturgell, and more in this relatable and personal guide to conversations around body image and fat acceptance. A collection of art, poetry, essays, and fashion tips, this book is meant for people of all sizes who desire to be seen and heard in a culture consumed by a narrow definition of beauty.
Combining the talents of renowned fat YA and middle-grade authors, as well as fat influencers and creators, The (Other) F Word offers teen readers and activists of all ages a tool for navigating our world with confidence and courage.
11. Fat Chance, Charlie Vega by Crystal Maldonado
Charlie Vega is a lot of things: Smart. Funny. Artistic. Ambitious. Fat. It’s the last one people have a lot to say about and despite Charlie’s desire for a good relationship with her body, she’s constantly met with her mom’s scrutiny to be smaller, be whiter, be quieter.
There is only one person who’s always in Charlie’s corner, her best friend Amelia. So when Charlie starts a tentative relationship with cute classmate Brian, the first worthwhile guy to notice her, everything is perfect—until she finds out he asked Amelia out first. Was she his second choice? Does he even like her? Because it’s time people did.
Fat Chance, Charlie Vega is a funny, sweet, and at moments painful coming-of-age story that tackles our relationships with our parents, our bodies, our cultures, and ourselves.
12. Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute by Talia Hibbert
Bradley Graeme is pretty much perfect. He’s a star football player, manages his OCD well (enough), and comes out on top in all his classes . . . except the ones he shares with his ex-best friend, Celine.
Celine Bangura is conspiracy-theory-obsessed. Social media followers eat up her takes on everything from UFOs to holiday overconsumption–yet, she’s still not cool enough for the popular kids’ table. Which is why Brad abandoned her for the in-crowd years ago. (At least, that’s how Celine sees it.)
These days, there’s nothing between them other than petty insults and academic rivalry. So when Celine signs up for a survival course in the woods, she’s surprised to find Brad right beside her.
Forced to work as a team for the chance to win a grand prize, these two teens must trudge through not just mud and dirt but their messy past. And as this adventure brings them closer together, they begin to remember the good bits of their history. But has too much time passed . . . or just enough to spark a whole new kind of relationship?
13. Juliet Takes a Breath by Gabby Rivera
Juliet Milagros Palante is a self-proclaimed closeted Puerto Rican baby dyke from the Bronx. Except she’s not closeted anymore. Not after coming out to her family the night before she flies to Portland for her dream internship with feminist writer, and ultimate authority on feminism and women’s bodies, Harlowe Brisbane.
When Juliet’s coming out crashes and burns, she’s not sure her mom will ever speak to her again. But she has a plan—sort of. This internship is sure to have the answers to help her figure out this whole Puerto Rican lesbian thing. Except Harlowe’s white. And not from the Bronx. And she definitely doesn’t have all the answers…
In a summer bursting with queer brown dance parties, sexy flings with a motorcycle riding librarian, and intense explorations of race and identity, Juliet learns what it means to come out to the world, to her family, and to herself.
14. The Summer of Jordi Perez (and the Best Burger in Los Angeles) by Amy Spalding
Seventeen, fashion-obsessed and gay, Abby Ives has always been happy being the sidekick. While her friends and sister dive headfirst into the dating scene, Abby is content to focus on her plus-size style blog and ambitions of taking the fashion industry by storm. So when she lands a great internship at her favorite boutique, it seems like she’s finally taking her first step towards her dream career. But nothing this summer will go as planned. Not falling in love with Jordi Perez, Abby’s fellow intern and competitor for the paid internship at the end of the summer. Not her sudden friendship with Jax, a lacrosse playing bro-type who wants her to find L.A.’s best burgers. And certainly not her attempts to prove to her mother, the city’s celebrity health nut, that she’s perfectly content with who she is.
But just as Abby begins to feel like the leading character in her own life, Jordi’s photography surprisingly puts Abby in the spotlight, forcing her to decide if she can reconcile her positive yet private sense of self with the image others have of her.
15. Leah on the Offbeat by Becky Albertalli
📚 This is part of: the Simonverse
The sequel to Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda, Leah on the Offbeat follows Simon’s BFF Leah as she grapples with changing friendships, first love, and senior year angst.
As a drummer, Leah is usually right on beat, but when it comes to the changing dynamics in her life, she’s suddenly at a loss. She loves to draw but is too self-conscious to show it, and even though her mom knows she’s bisexual, she hasn’t mustered the courage to tell her friends, even Simon.
So Leah doesn’t really know what to do when her rock-solid friend group starts to fracture in unexpected ways due to the tensions of prom and college on the horizon. It’s always hard for Leah to strike the right note while the people she loves are fighting but especially when she realizes she might love one of them more than she ever intended.
16. The Upside of Unrequited by Becky Albertalli
📚 This is part of: the Simonverse
Seventeen-year-old Molly Peskin-Suso knows all about unrequited love. No matter how many times her twin sister Cassie tells her to just go for it, Molly can’t stomach the idea of rejection. So she’s careful. Fat girls always have to be careful.
But when a cute new girl enters Cassie’s orbit, turning Molly’s cynical twin into a lovesick mess, Molly is introduced to Cassie’s new girlfriend’s best friend, a cute hipster-boy who might just prevent Molly from dying of loneliness AND be her first kiss. There is only one problem: Molly’s coworker Reid. He’s a chubby Tolkien superfan with a season pass to Ren Faire, and there’s absolutely no way Molly could fall for him.
Right?
17. Every Body Shines: Sixteen Stories About Living Fabulously Fat, edited by Cassandra Newbould
An intersectional, feminist YA anthology from some of today’s most exciting voices across a span of genres, all celebrating body diversity and fat acceptance through short stories.
Fat girls and boys and nonbinary teens are: friends who lift each other up, heroes who rescue themselves, big bodies in space, intellects taking up space, and bodies looking and feeling beautiful. They express themselves through fashion, sports and other physical pursuits, through food, and music, and art. They are flirting and falling in love. They are loving to themselves and one another. With stories that feature fat main characters starring in a multitude of stories and genres, and written by authors who live these lives too, this is truly a unique collection that shows fat young people the representation they deserve.