Growing up as a blonde-haired, blue-eyed Muslim in Philadelphia, Halimah Marcus felt the sting of never fitting in. Until a summer of change. In riding horses, Halimah becomes empowered. In her friend Melissa, she finds a sense of belonging with a competitive edge. Desperate to transform, Halimah also discovers an avenue of rebellion against her parents’ stricture: anorexia.
Who Loves It Most is Halimah’s reflection on the fragile balance of body and spirit that teenage American girls are expected to master. For Halimah, that balance becomes a religion, a place where the body is an altar of both worship and sacrifice. Ultimately, she discovers, recovery lies not in what we deny ourselves but in what we embrace.