Books › The Girls at 17 Swann Street
The Girls at 17 Swann Street
384 pages
A haunting, poetic exploration of perfectionism, illness, and the fragile but fierce bonds of women fighting for their lives.
What it feels like
Reading this novel feels like stepping into a deeply intimate, fragile space where every emotion is magnified and every small victory is hard-won. The narrative moves at a steady, reflective pace, wrapping the reader in a haunting atmosphere of anxiety, loneliness, and the relentless pursuit of perfection. Through poetic and poignant prose, the story captures the terrifying spiral of mental illness and the suffocating weight of failure. Yet, as the emotional arc shifts from isolation to communal endurance, a profound sense of hope emerges. It is a deeply psychological experience, perfect for readers who are drawn to earnest, character-driven stories about women finding the strength to reclaim their lives through the quiet, fierce solidarity of shared struggle.
- Mood
- haunting
- anxious
- fragile
- hopeful
- Tone
- poetic
- poignant
- intimate
- earnest
- Pace
- steady
- Themes
- the pursuit of perfection · struggling with mental illness · the weight of loneliness · female solidarity and support · the arduous path to recovery
- The writing
- The prose is poetic and intimate, capturing the haunting internal rhythms of anxiety and the delicate textures of a fractured mind.
- The arc
- The narrative moves from a place of deep isolation and spiraling anxiety into a fragile, hard-won space of communal support and endurance.
- Who it's for
- Readers who appreciate poignant, psychologically rich character studies about women finding strength through shared vulnerability.
Content notes
- anorexia nervosa
- depression
- severe weight loss
- food anxiety
- mental illness
About the book
Yara Zgheib's poetic and poignant debut novel is a haunting portrait of a young woman's struggle with anorexia on an intimate journey to reclaim her life. The chocolate went first, then the cheese, the fries, the ice cream. The bread was more difficult, but if she could just lose a little more weight, perhaps she would make the soloists' list. Perhaps if she were lighter, danced better, tried harder, she would be good enough. Perhaps if she just ran for one more mile, lost just one more pound. Anna Roux was a professional dancer who followed the man of her dreams from Paris to Missouri. There, alone with her biggest fears - imperfection, failure, loneliness - she spirals down anorexia and depression till she weighs a mere eighty-eight pounds. Forced to seek treatment, she is admitted as a patient at 17 Swann Street, a peach pink house where pale, fragile women with life-threatening eating disorders live. Women like Emm, the veteran; quiet Valerie; Julia, always hungry. Together, they must fight their diseases and face six meals a day. Every bite causes anxiety. Every flavor induces guilt. And every step Anna takes toward recovery will require strength, endurance, and the support of the girls at 17 Swann Street.--
Description from Open Library.
Books like The Girls at 17 Swann Street
See why they match
The best little girl in the worldSteven LevenkronA claustrophobic and urgent psychological portrait of a teenager's desperate quest for control.
WastedMarya HornbacherA visceral, unflinching descent into the claustrophobic grip of an eating disorder and the brutal fight to survive it.
The Golden CageHilde BruchA compassionate, groundbreaking exploration of the suffocating pressures of perfectionism and the devastating psychological toll of anorexia.
KessaSteven LevenkronAn earnest, psychologically grounded journey into the mind of a teenager navigating the difficult path of eating disorder recovery.
13 ways of looking at a fat girlMona AwadA brutally funny, wince-inducing exploration of the inescapable prison of body image and the hollow promise of transformation.
Look at MeJennifer EganAn eerie, symphonic exploration of identity and alienation in a world where surface and reality are indistinguishable.