#4. Fearing the Black Body: The Racial Origins of Fat Phobia, by Sabrina Strings

Four of our experts endorsed this accessible academic title by the sociologist Sabrina Strings; the book “masterfully traces the history of fatphobia and its intersections with anti-Black racism,” said Alexis Conason, a clinical psychologist and certified specialist in eating disorders.

 

Dr. Strings makes a heavily cited case that modern society’s idolization of thinness is less rooted in medical science than in racist ideas born during the Enlightenment. “Spoiler alert: It’s not all about health,” Dr. Conason said.