International author Erin Zhurkin has published a new novel, Plus-Size in Paris, inspired by the body positivity movement to promote an idealistic image of “health at every size.”
The heroine, Abby Allerton, is a young, “plus-sized” social media influencer who lives a double life online running a pair of rival Instagram accounts. “Femme Fatale,” features a petite childhood friend as the face of the profile that advertises high-end brands. The other account, “Plus-Size Real,” is a platform for Allerton’s body-image activism.
Drama strikes when Allerton quickly finds herself jetting off to France under false pretenses. Organizers of a premier fashion show in Paris invite Femme Fatale to cover their event for the account’s wide audience. Allerton takes the ticket for the overseas gig despite Parisian executives expecting to host her friend, the face of the account. After years spent fantasizing about a trip to France, however, Allerton finds the French are far less destigmatized to overweight visitors than Americans are. While the book is called Plus-Size in Paris, it might as well have been titled Too Fat for France.
The book chronicles Allerton’s month-long journey in France — where obesity rates are less than half of what they are in the U.S. — as if she were a character in “The Devil Wears Prada” navigating an industry with traditionally strict body standards. Only this time, Andrea put on some weight, and instead of U2 scoring the soundtrack, songs by Lizzo and Meghan Trainor are repeatedly referenced as Allerton’s anthems.
