Skip to main content Skip to search Skip to search

Comics & Graphic Novels Literary

Food School

by (artist) Jade Armstrong

Publisher
Conundrum Press
Initial publish date
Apr 2024
Category
Literary, Gay & Lesbian, People with Disabilities
  • Paperback / softback

    ISBN
    9781772620962
    Publish Date
    Apr 2024
    List Price
    $15

Classroom Resources

Where to buy it

Description

A twenty-something college dropout enrolls in a full-time outpatient program for eating disorder recovery. As they change their relationship with food, their relationships with people change, too.
Olive's post-secondary education isn't what they'd planned. Instead of college, they spend five days a week, eight hours a day at what Olive calls "Food School": a full-time outpatient program for eating disorder recovery where they learn, talk, and cry about eating disorders as part of a survivor support group.
Intensely committed to recovery, Olive confronts the secretive, self-destructive, and sometimes tragically comedic nature of their illness, while struggling with the complexities of modern mental health care. With support and perspective from their roommate, a fellow patient, and their partner, Olive learns to open up about their abusive relationship with food and exercise - and finds ways to cope with the reality of living in a society that actively encourages disordered eating.
In this fictional slice of life comic, Jade Armstrong ( Scout Is Not a Band Kid ) explores the ways our relationships with food impact our connections with the people we love.

About the author

Contributor Notes

Jade Armstrong is a non-binary Canadian graphic novelist and member of the comics collective Hello Boyfriend. They like to write slice of life, humour, and YA comics. Candied ginger is their favourite snack..

Editorial Reviews

"The energetic and emotional drawings in Food School depict Olive's complex journey of healing from an eating disorder in a delightful but also devastating way.Food School is an excellent example of how comics can be used to both educate and entertain. It's a book I want to give to everyone to read." - Saicoink, author of Open Spaces, Closed Places
"Funny and informative, Jade effortlessly hits the sweet spot between silly and sincere to deliver a delightful treat despite its heavy topic. Grab a snack, a drink and definitely grab Food School!" - Hana Chatani, author of Give Her Back To Me
"Jade Armstrong is a slice-of-life master, finding the joy, beauty, and heartbreak in the way we tend to our one of our most intimate needs - nourishment, be it emotional or physical. Always funny, always real, I loved Food School so much." - Nadia Shammas, co-author of Squire
"Food School is funny, incisive and smart; a capsule of modern womanhood, and the sometimes complicated relationship we have with our bodies and food." - Lucie Byron, author of Thieves
"For folks who are already comics fans, Food School is a winner, with storytelling that's deftly timed in pared-back halftone. And as a tool for people who struggle with or want to learn more about ED, Food School offers a no-shame, judgment-free primer on the challenges of learning how to eat and feel better." --Emily Raine, Montreal Review of Books
"Food School is perfect." -- Comics Beat

Other titles by