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mariangmakiling's review
1.0
Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you the biggest benefit of working in a bookstore:
reading expensive but mediocre books like these on the job and not having to waste money on them.
reading expensive but mediocre books like these on the job and not having to waste money on them.
jenbwright's review
5.0
Being the resident fat kid, not coming into her own skill until later in life, I kind of envy Willowdean I’m having the foresight to come into her own at such a young age. I feel like it’s a little unrealistic that she ended up with the hot basketball player, but she ended up with him for all of the right reasons-something most teenagers can’t see, so good for Bo. This is a great book for anyone struggling with self esteem and my favorite quote in the book says something like ‘You have a body. Put a swimsuit on it.’
vtlism's review
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
chuskeyreads's review
5.0
I love this book so much! The characters, the Southernisms, Dolly Parton fandom - it's the complete package. Many times I found myself smiling and raucously laughing to the point of garnering some strange looks from people nearby.
They serve us barbecue. I think that maybe lunch is some secret component of our final score because there is no higher achievement for a southern woman than the ability to eat barbecue and walk way stain free.<\i>
Willowdean is a snarky, self-proclaimed fat girl, and proud of it, until she meets Bo, a hunky, private-schooled jock who has a thing for cherry suckers and, possibly, Willowdean. She's been teased before, but it doesn't seem to bother her until Bo.
The reality is that even the most confident of folks have self-doubt. While the message is a good one -
Fat. Skinny. Short. Tall. It doesn’t matter.<\i>
Sometimes, it does matter to those who feel less than perfect. It's up to us to realize that our appearance isn't our only defining quality. Even though Willowdean is comfortable with her own body image, she is still compelled to 'rescue' others from being ridiculed (Millie) as though they can't handle it. This trait of playing protector seems to mirror Willowdean's own fear of ridicule.
I get that. In fact, I've been the fat girl but with none of her confidence. I think the message - love who you are - is one that will resonate with my kiddos and many others.
They serve us barbecue. I think that maybe lunch is some secret component of our final score because there is no higher achievement for a southern woman than the ability to eat barbecue and walk way stain free.<\i>
Willowdean is a snarky, self-proclaimed fat girl, and proud of it, until she meets Bo, a hunky, private-schooled jock who has a thing for cherry suckers and, possibly, Willowdean. She's been teased before, but it doesn't seem to bother her until Bo.
The reality is that even the most confident of folks have self-doubt. While the message is a good one -
Fat. Skinny. Short. Tall. It doesn’t matter.<\i>
Sometimes, it does matter to those who feel less than perfect. It's up to us to realize that our appearance isn't our only defining quality. Even though Willowdean is comfortable with her own body image, she is still compelled to 'rescue' others from being ridiculed (Millie) as though they can't handle it. This trait of playing protector seems to mirror Willowdean's own fear of ridicule.
I get that. In fact, I've been the fat girl but with none of her confidence. I think the message - love who you are - is one that will resonate with my kiddos and many others.
book_concierge's review
4.0
3.5*** (rounded up)
From the book jacket: Self-proclaimed fat girl Willowdean Dickson (dubbed “Dumplin’” by her former beauty queen mom) has always been at home in her own skin. Her thoughts on having the ultimate bikini body? Put a bikini on your body. With her all-American-beauty best friend, Ellen, by her side, things have always worked … until Will takes a job at Harpy’s, the local fast-food joint. There she meets Private School Bo, a hot former jock. Will isn’t surprised to find herself attracted to Bo. But she is surprised when he seems to like her back.
My reactions:
I grew up in Texas and am very familiar with the small-town beauty pageant hysteria. I hadn’t read the jacket blurb, nor seen the NetFlix (?) show, but the cover captured my attention.
I really liked the story arc about Will’s efforts regarding the pageant and how she inspires other girls who don’t fit the standard “beauty-queen” stereotype to step up as well. I also really liked the exploration of the mother-daughter relationship, and the friendships … and all the hiccups that are bound to happen in any such relationships.
I was somewhat less happy with the “romance” aspect, especially in the way Will treated Mitch. Still, I think Murphy did a good job of showing consequences of one’s actions. And I guess we were all once self-centered teenagers who bought into the romance hype of fiction and movies. Heck, I still buy into that HEA stuff … who doesn’t want a feel-good ending?!
Eileen Stevens does a great job of performing the audio book. She was believable as a teenager and as an adult.
From the book jacket: Self-proclaimed fat girl Willowdean Dickson (dubbed “Dumplin’” by her former beauty queen mom) has always been at home in her own skin. Her thoughts on having the ultimate bikini body? Put a bikini on your body. With her all-American-beauty best friend, Ellen, by her side, things have always worked … until Will takes a job at Harpy’s, the local fast-food joint. There she meets Private School Bo, a hot former jock. Will isn’t surprised to find herself attracted to Bo. But she is surprised when he seems to like her back.
My reactions:
I grew up in Texas and am very familiar with the small-town beauty pageant hysteria. I hadn’t read the jacket blurb, nor seen the NetFlix (?) show, but the cover captured my attention.
I really liked the story arc about Will’s efforts regarding the pageant and how she inspires other girls who don’t fit the standard “beauty-queen” stereotype to step up as well. I also really liked the exploration of the mother-daughter relationship, and the friendships … and all the hiccups that are bound to happen in any such relationships.
I was somewhat less happy with the “romance” aspect, especially in the way Will treated Mitch. Still, I think Murphy did a good job of showing consequences of one’s actions. And I guess we were all once self-centered teenagers who bought into the romance hype of fiction and movies. Heck, I still buy into that HEA stuff … who doesn’t want a feel-good ending?!
Eileen Stevens does a great job of performing the audio book. She was believable as a teenager and as an adult.
mariugonza's review
1.0
I'm completely disappointed, this book ended up being something completely different to what I was expecting. The story is pretty mediocre, and Willowdean as a character is completely awful. She is portrayed as a confident girl, proud of who she is, but once you start getting deeper in the story and manage to know her better, you see she is not more than a bunch of hypocrisy, insecurity and selfishness. She doesn't have almost nothing that could make her special for me.
Also, this book has a lot of references that I as a young Hispanic person, find hard and almost impossible to understand. Whether references to country music or American culture, jokes and comments that, for me, are out of place in the context and a lot of things of this style. I don't know if I'm the only one to pass to this process of confusion while reading (I didn't have an idea of who was Dolly Parton before reading this, and I had to Google it 😅)
Finally, I want to say that I was expecting this book as an empowerment story that could get rip off all the stereotypes, but it actually seems like it increases them. In addition, the whole thing of the pageant, is less than... I don't know... sixty pages? The thing is that the entire plot revolves around a love triangle between Bo, and Mitch, and it ends without any solution to it.
Dumplin' lacks of everything that makes a good book in my opinion.
Also, this book has a lot of references that I as a young Hispanic person, find hard and almost impossible to understand. Whether references to country music or American culture, jokes and comments that, for me, are out of place in the context and a lot of things of this style. I don't know if I'm the only one to pass to this process of confusion while reading (I didn't have an idea of who was Dolly Parton before reading this, and I had to Google it 😅)
Finally, I want to say that I was expecting this book as an empowerment story that could get rip off all the stereotypes, but it actually seems like it increases them. In addition, the whole thing of the pageant, is less than... I don't know... sixty pages? The thing is that the entire plot revolves around a love triangle between Bo, and Mitch, and it ends without any solution to it.
Dumplin' lacks of everything that makes a good book in my opinion.
kholtfit's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
emkreads's review
5.0
This was so good. This was so dang good! I can't believe I hadn't read that sooner