All I Ever Wanted Was to Be Hot: Self image, beauty ideals and desirability

'I have always known that a woman’s greatest power is her looks. For most of my life, I just took it as the way things were, a fact not worth interrogating since it was so obviously true.' 

For her entire life, Lucinda’s mission was to look as hot as possible. She nipped, tucked, bleached, cut, plucked, plumped, shaved, lasered, tanned, crunched, squatted and starved. Then, she broke.

All I Ever Wanted Was To Be Hot is a funny, provocative retrospective on the last thirty years of Western beauty standards. From Victoria’s Secret to Extreme Makeover, Playboy Bunnies to the Australian media’s fascination with Lara Bingle, Lucinda unfurls the tentacles of a culture hellbent on making women feel like happiness is always just five kilos away.

With her offbeat humour and incisive cultural commentary, Lucinda tells the unfiltered story of someone overcoming an eating disorder and rebuilding, illuminating our enduring obsession with appearance by holding a bedazzled mirror up to her own beliefs.

A hilarious, insightful deep dive into self image, desirability, pop-culture and power.

'A book for the modern woman, laced with unflinching, glorious honesty.' Zara McDonald and Michelle Andrews, co-founders of Shameless Media

'A funny, real interrogation of Australia’s body image problem, and a call to arms to dismantle diet culture.' Chantelle Otten, author and sexologist

'A feminist manifesto, a younger millennial gospel, with unparalleled candour and self awareness. I inhaled this book – it's going to be big.' Jessie Stephens

'Brilliant, funny and brutally honest, this is a must-read for anyone trying to navigate through this incredibly complex, image-obsessed age.' Myf Warhurst

'If Tina Fey and David Sedaris had a child, it would be a book … this book.' Ryan Shelton

'My book of the year. Whip-smart. Hilarious. Honest ... Lucinda is a genius who captures and melds the deeply serious and deeply funny in a way few writers can.' Hannah Ferguson