"Measure Worth Beyond Girth."
Inspired by their many memorable encounters with BBPeople during 20 years of size activism, Becky Fox and Bill Sherman have fashioned a broad world of romance and intrigue, where characters pursue lives in every size of large, partnered by ardent admirers, conniving foes and nurturing friends.

The cast is varied and memorable. Teacher, sous chef, doctor, letch. Mystic, ingénue, vixen, head case. Leaders and laggards. Heroes and villains. Innocents. All allied as members of RADFAm, a size acceptance organization with a chapter centered in their sprawling Midwest metropolis, these folks cope with juggling family, career, and romance, while trying to conduct successful lives despite societal stigma and diet harangues. The frothy twists will delight readers, and each character will become a familiar friend or "frenemy."

And so, to all fans of Ugly Betty, Tales of the City, Soapdish and everything sudsy, it's the full-bodied Measure by Measure.

Buy Us At:

Pearlsong Press | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Powell's Books | More of Me to Love

Interviews:

Pearlsong Conversations: On June 10, 2009, we were both interviewed by publisher Peggy Elam about Measure by Measure. On July 8th and August 12th, we partook in a roundtable discussion with other Pearlsong authors about creating fat-friendly fiction. All three of these discussions are available as MP3s on Pearlsong's site.

BlogTalk Radio We were interviewed on June 24, 2009, by Blogcritics publisher Eric Olsen as part of BC's weekly webcast interview series. (First half of the hour-long interview is with a roots rock band; we show up for the second half-hour.)

Eastern Arizona Courier: Our area paper did a piece (complete with goofy photo) on these two local writers.

The Times (formerly: The Ottawa Times): Becky did an extensive email interview on growing up fat in Northern Illinois, size acceptance, and (or course) the book with her hometown area paper.

WGLT Datebook: A brief radio interview between Becky and arts reporter, Laura Kennedy, done for an NPR station from our old Central Illinois stomping grounds.

Sites That Measure Up:

Pearlsong Press:
An independent publisher dedicated to the idea of Health at Every Size, Peggy Elam's Pearlsong publishes novels, poetry and non-fiction dedicated to the radical idea of size diversity.

Dimensions Online:
An earlier version of Measure by Measure ran in serialized form on this fat positive website. Without it as a regular venue, we might never have finished the novel.

Healthy Weight Network:
Frances M. Berg's website is an invaluable resource for up-to-date articles and research for living healthy at every size. Check out the entry about the five myths about "obesity" currently being promulgated in the health care debate.

National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance:
We've been supporters of this fat-acceptance group for years - even tried our hand at running our own size acceptance chapter in Central Illinois, an experience that led to several moments in the book. But let us make this perfectly clear: RADFAm is not NAAFA.

Letter to Our First Lady:

In anticipation of NAAFA's fortieth convention, Becky recently mailed a missive to First Lady Michelle Obama. Here's a copy of that letter.

Reviews:

From Robin Kavanagh's review in Blogcritics:

"Measure by Measure is a lengthy, but engaging story that lives up to its promise of being a soap opera in prose. But instead of depicting the sordid lives and dramas of the 'pretty people,' it centers on a group that promotes size acceptance and the love lives of a handful of plus-size men and women, as well as the 'normal-sized' people who love them. . .

"I do have to say, though, that reading Measure by Measure introduced me to a whole subculture that I hadn’t even been aware of and gave me a new appreciation for size acceptance. BBW’s (big beautiful women) and FA’s (fat admirers) really do exist and have their own groups, Web sites, and publications. You can be overweight and beautiful to yourself and others - two things I used to think were mutually exclusive. . .

"The new shows, More to Love and Drop Dead Diva are also helping with my view of beauty in larger women. Seeing how other women who are around my age or even younger are being shown as beautiful and desirable, and also having their stories of hardship also shared, make me feel like I have more realistic images to base my own subconscious images off of.

"I think that’s why I liked Measure by Measure so much. It’s real in its honesty about relationships and being fat, and gives those of us who have been there a nod in mainstream media."

Other Pearlsong Authors:

Judy Bagshaw: Author of At Long Last Love and other romances featuring BBW heroines.

Pat Ballard: Queen of the Rubenesque Romance. If you came here, looking for BBRomance, chances are you're already familiar with her work. But you're not, just click on the link!

Ellen Frankel: Ellen may have taken the title to our sequel with her non-fiction memoir Beyond Measure, but her personal story of "short stature and inner growth" takes a much needed look at yet another form of size-ism.

Charlie Lovett: Author of the dark fantasy diet satire, The Program.

Lynne Murray: We had one of our characters reading one of Murray's entertaining Josephine Fuller mysteries in the book. Her full-figured sleuth is a wonderful creation. We're looking forward to her upcoming romance novel, Bride of the Living Dead. Love that title!

Mary Saracino: Author of the magical realist historical The Singing of Swans, "A Novel About the Divine Feminine."

Linda Wisniewski: Author of the non-fiction memoir, Off Kilter: A Woman's Journey to Peace with Scoliosis, Her Mother, & Her Polish Heritage.

Measure by Measure on Facebook

As sold in Misty Shores' Isle of View!

GoddesStone Soap | Fat Grafix!

 (Coming Soon!)