JKP acquires collection of eating disorder stories

Jessica Kingsley Publishers (JKP) has acquired a collection of eating disorder stories entitled Eating Disorders Don’t Discriminate, edited by Dr Chukwuemeka "Chuks" Nwuba and TikToker Bailey Spinn. There are entries from the likes of pro-dancer Dianne Buswell, content creator Megan Jayne Crabbe, and former international rugby union referee Nigel Owens.

Senior commissioning editor Jane Evans acquired world all-language rights directly from the editors, with publication scheduled for 21st February 2024.

The publisher says the book offers a “unique insight into what life with an eating disorder looks like, to help validate those suffering in silence". Timed for Eating Disorder Awareness Weeks in the UK and US, the book will “demonstrate the power of recovery, and act as a vital source of hope for the estimated 16% of the UK population who screen positive for an eating disorder”.

Co-editor Nwuba, a London-based speciality doctor in eating disorders, describes the book as being “born out of a need to educate, and to highlight the indiscriminate nature of an eating disorder; that it knows no boundaries and exists across intersectional lines of gender, race and class”. Seeking to positively influence the TikTok generation, co-editor Bailey Spinn highlights how eating disorders can be influenced by societal trends.

Addressing anorexia, bulimia and binge-eating disorder, as well as lesser-known eating disorders such as other specified feeding and eating disorder (OSFED) and avoidant restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID), the book “dives deep into a range of stories and experiences”.

The publisher says: “The emotional and, at times, hilarious stories are also interspersed by poignant interludes from loved ones. Powerful insights from Chuks, and other expert figures including Professor Cynthia Bulik, help to contextualise the stories while triggering material such as BMIs are avoided to encourage readers to feel safe when reading each account.”

Evans said: “So much of the existing literature on eating disorders focuses on a very narrow range of experiences. This book challenges stereotypes and widely held beliefs about the experience of eating disorders, who exactly they impact and what recovery might look like.”