Skeleton in the Closet: Eating Disordered Lives

By turns heart-wrenching and redemptive, photographer Liedtke's book features portraits of people who have struggled with eating disorders, paired with their personal statements. As Liedtke, who struggled with anorexia himself, points out: "Anorexia and bulimia are not about numbers or statistics, they are about specific people." His photographs%E2%80%94in vibrant, full color%E2%80%94are artful and humanizing, treating each subject in a unique and sensitive fashion. The accompanying text is often harrowing in its honest portrayal of a complex psychological condition: "Being able to see my issues," writes Danielle, pictured gazing out at the River Thames, "doesn't make them go away." Liedtke's book makes it clear that living with anorexia or bulimia is a daily struggle. Amanda, posing in a cemetery and pictured from a low angle that gives her a look of defiance and monumentality, muses: "A hospital gown is a symbol for sickness, but to me it's a symbol of restored life...that gown saved me from the grave."