Living Large

Michael S. Berman, Laurence Shames
Hardcover, 304 Pages, Published 2006

A poignant, funny, and, above all, honest look at obesity from the inside out. Is it the goal of life to be thin? Or to be happy? In this inspiring story, those two elusive goals become one, as a fat man learns acceptance, loses the guilt, and gains the wisdom to manage his weight.You can hardly pick up a magazine or turn on the TV today without encountering a torrent of talk on weight. But all too rarely do we hear from overweight people themselves―especially men―about how life feels inside the body of a fat person. Mike Berman shares that story in this hopeful and uplifting memoir.A self-proclaimed “fat man” who is also a happy man―successful in his career, marriage, and friendships―Berman has earned his insight and peace of mind through decades of personal struggle. In Living Large, this well-known political activist and Washington lobbyist never shies away from the pain and daunting challenges of being seriously overweight. But Berman has an important message that he wants to be heard: Fatness is not a moral failing, but a disease; and once it is accepted as such, it can be successfully managed.Laurence Shames, author of Not Fade Away, has tackled this important story and captured Mike Berman’s voice as movingly as he did the late Peter Barton’s in that beloved, critically acclaimed memoir.