In this special book event, local author Mallary Tenore Tarpley will discuss her new memoir, SLIP.
SLIP blends personal narrative and research to illuminate what Mallary calls "the middle place" between acute sickness and full recovery from an eating disorder. It's an apt term for so many of the gray spaces we find ourselves in throughout life, and it's an invitation to embrace imperfections on the journey toward wellness. In the middle place, slips happen but progress is always possible.
Mallary Tenore Tarpley is a journalism professor at the University of Texas at Austin and author of the memoir SLIP: Life in the Middle of Eating Disorder Recovery, which explores the under-discussed complexities of eating disorders and recovery from them.
Equal parts memoir and journalism, SLIP weaves together Mallary's own narrative with perspectives from clinicians, researchers, and others with lived experience. It explores “the middle place” of recovery, in between acute sickness and full recovery.
SLIP is the winner of the Association of American Publishers' 2026 PROSE Award for Excellence in Biological and Life Sciences. The Association also selected SLIP as a first-place winner in the Medicine Category and as a finalist in the Outstanding Work by a Trade Publisher Category. The book has been translated into Spanish, and the translation is available in the U.S., Spain, and Latin America. While working on the book, Mallary received a generous grant from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation to support her science-related reporting, specifically around the neurobiological and genetic aspects of eating disorders.
Prior to becoming a professor, Mallary was the associate director of UT Austin’s Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas; executive director the nonprofit Images & Voices of Hope; and managing editor at The Poynter Institute for Media Studies.
Mallary’s articles on eating disorders and mental health have been published in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times, and TIME Magazine, among many other publications.
Mallary frequently delivers talks about eating disorder recovery for organizations around the country. She also leads writing trainings for news outlets and organizations such as The Poynter Institute, the Society for Features Journalism, and the Writers’ League of Texas.
You can keep up with Mallary on Instagram and via her newsletter, Write at the Edge, which features weekly writing tips and best practices.
Cost: $25 Day Guests; Resort Guests Complimentary
Reserve: Online or call Spa Reservations to book your spot at 512-372-7380
Location: Lake Austin Spa Resort, 1705 Quinlan Park Rd, Austin, TX 78732
Join Us for Lunch or Dinner: Reserve at OpenTable