New year, new me—and I imagine many of you, like me, have a goal to read more books this year! If you’re looking for some amazing novels to add to your TBR, look no further than Melissa Broder. Broder is an American author and poet with ten total publications; below, I’ve included three spoiler-free reviews of some of her most popular works.
Milk Fed
Content Warning: Body shaming, eating disorders, fatphobia, sexual content, and homophobia
Personal Rating: 3 Stars — Goodreads Rating: 3.56
“I decided that love is when you have food in your mouth that you know is not going to make you fat. Lust is when you have food in your mouth that is going to make you fat.” Milk Fed is the most popular of Broder’s novels, by far. According to Indigo, Milk Fed was “named a Best Book of the Year by Entertainment Weekly, Vogue, Time, Esquire, BookPage and more.”
Milk Fed recounts the story of 24-year-old Rachel, a woman who has struggled with a severe eating disorder for much of her young life, as taught by her mother. Soon after beginning a 90-day communication detox from her mom—as advised by her therapist—Rachel meets Miriam. Miriam is an orthodox Jewish woman who works at Rachel’s favourite frozen yogurt place, and becomes intent on feeding Rachel. As the two enter further into a relationship, Rachel’s obsession with Miriam grows.
There are many things I think that Milk Fed does very successfully. Specifically, the overarching metaphor of desire and hunger in all its forms: physical hunger, sexual desire, and religious longing. What had me put off this novel was certain aspects of Rachel and Miriam’s relationship. While it was very clearly an intentional choice to show the sickness that Rachel’s disordered eating causes, Rachel’s obsession and fetishization of Miriam’s “fatness” made me uncomfortable. While I appreciate Broder’s willingness to write about somewhat taboo or offensive topics, this piece just fell more flat when compared to her others.
Death Valley
Content Warning: Chronic illness/medical content, death, grief, sexual content, and hallucinations
Personal Rating: 4.5 Stars — Goodreads Rating: 3.45
“I came to the desert because I wanted to be alone. Now that I’m alone, it’s not what I want.” Death Valley is Broder’s most recent release, published in 2023. The story speaks of an unnamed protagonist who goes on a trip to the California desert to escape the tightening noose of death as her father is in the ICU and her husband has a chronic illness that seems to be worsening by the day. After being recommended a hike, the speaker finds a giant, mystical cactus that has an abrasion so large she thinks she may be able to squeeze herself inside.
Death Valley was an exceedingly good and quick read. I really loved the conversational tone of the novel and how the speaker’s reality begins to further and further warp as she enters the desert. As someone who also has a bit of fear surrounding death myself, it was very comforting to read the way this protagonist explores her own grief and existential dread. For anyone looking for a fiction read, Death Valley is the book I’d recommend!
So Sad Today
Content Warning: Graphic sexual content, mental illness, substance use, body image, addiction, vomiting, cheating, and death
Personal Rating: 5 Stars — Goodreads Rating: 3.80
“I feel bad about my struggle, because it is nothing compared to other people’s struggles and yet it still hurts.” So Sad Today is by far my favourite of Broder’s work…but it’s not for everyone. So Sad Today is a collection of personal essays that allowed Broder to explore her thoughts and feelings: the good, the bad, and the ugly. The title was inspired by her anonymous Twitter account of the same name that allowed her to express these same feelings. These essays dive deeper and speak to a wide range of themes, including love, relationships, sex, death, self-image, social media, and more.
What I most appreciate and what draws me to this collection is Broder’s radical honesty. In So Sad Today she speaks to many relatable, personal thoughts and feelings; many that people often feel too ashamed to speak on. Even when I do not relate—like when she details her vomit fetish—I think she reveals enough to evoke an understanding. I think that it is this type of honesty and complete unfear of taboo that leads to the immediate love-it or hate-it reactions people have to this novel. And me personally? I love it.
This collection also offers an interesting window into Broder’s fiction pieces, as you can see where elements of her life impact the characters and themes.
Whether you want to read a story about food, sex, and spirituality, a mystical desert journey, or short, personal poems and essays, Broder has something for everyone. Reading in 2026 doesn’t have to be hard; you just have to find the book that speaks to you! For more reading suggestions, check out the Her Campus at UVic article by yours truly, “My Five-Star Reads of 2025: Five Spoiler-Free Reviews”!