Your story about anorexia really hit home for me. I have been recovering from the battle for three years now. It was comforting to see that people do recover from this awful disease and there is life ahead. Thank you for this article. It has helped me tremendously. Recovery can happen if you let it.
Kelley Jordan, Waterbury, Conn.
I was touched by your article. I suffered from anorexia and bulimia for six years and am happy to say that I am in recovery. Magazines such as PEOPLE, however, serve to perpetuate eating disorders by featuring emaciated celebrities as ideals. Articles like this one help, but a frank look at our society's skewed idolization of thinness can only occur when the mainstream media examines its coverage.
Heidi Bruggink, Cambridge, Mass.
The single most troubling element of your cover story was the photo of Jenny Lauren at the height of her battle with the disorder. It wasn't the protruding hipbones that disturbed me, but rather the fact that the image was not shocking. It was frighteningly similar to the images of women portrayed in film, television and fashion. It's hard to admit that you're sick when the world around you is constantly telling you that you're fine.
Jennifer Peace, Toronto, Ont.
I realize that your magazine is about people, but must we constantly have to hear the sobs, whines and lamentations of those, big or small, who cannot get their lives together? Give me a break. There are many more interesting people, events and topics to report versus these tired, worn-out themes. Let's step out of the shallow end of the pool and search for something deeper.
Jenny Kasten, Dallas, Texas
Your magazine brought positive attention to an illness that is often looked upon negatively.
Kendra K. Harden, Goffstown, N.H.
Ari Fleischer
At the risk of sounding like a bunch of Jewish grandmothers, my husband and I think that our best friend would be perfect for Ari Fleischer. She is pretty, smart, an Ivy League-educated lawyer and, best of all, a Yankees fan.
Dayna Stein, Bowie, Md.
Unlike the President, Ari Fleischer can use a complex sentence without a TelePrompTer. Regardless, Fleischer still comes across as an arrogant, condescending sycophant whose disdain for a free press oozes from his pores and flows out of his mouth. What he fails to understand is that the press is the only avenue most Americans have to ask the Administration a direct question.
Jan S. Richter, Little Rock, Ark.
Marianne Barber
I want to thank you for the article "Fare Warning." I, too, have a child allergic to peanuts and other nuts. My son is 4 years old and attends a public preschool program. The teacher posted allergy warning signs all over the classroom. Food allergies are something to take seriously.
Leesa Burrill, Grandville, Mich.
Nancy Turner
I have never written to a magazine before but was compelled to do so after reading your article about the children in West Columbia, S.C., who are raising money to buy a fire truck for the FDNY. I read that they had chosen Ladder Company 101 in Brooklyn. My brother-in-law Thomas Kennedy was one of the seven from Ladder 101 who died on Sept. 11. I'd like to thank these children for taking time to care.
Kathleen Cavallo, Commack, N.Y.
lyanla Vanzant
Let me get this straight. To help her daughter Nisa, lyanla Vanzant is now raising her daughter's 10-year-old son while at the same time Nisa is providing child care at her Philadelphia home. Having children of one's own is certainly not a prerequisite for being a child-care provider, but a sense of responsibility is a must. Nisa has dropped the ball on this one.
Pamela Soule, Kent, Ohio
Jan Brunstrom
Thank you for your article on this uplifting doctor. My son has had cerebral palsy since birth. I was told that he would never do anything but sit in a wheelchair for the rest of his life. It's true that Dr. Brunstrom would better understand how these children feel than a doctor who does not have this disorder. After reading this story, I am checking into how I can find this special woman so that she may examine my son.
Rita Berardinelli, Westlake, Ohio
Harry Potter
Ben Stiller and Cher got a chance to attend the Harry Potter premiere in London with author J.K. Rowling and didn't even bother to read the book first. What a wasted opportunity and an insult to Rowling. It's like meeting Mozart and saying that you just didn't think it was important to hear the music beforehand.
Kim Gullo, Corona del Mar, Calif.
Saved by the Bell Reunion
The hookups, the meltdowns, the memoires
The case reveals what was really going on what they think of each other now!
