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3.51 AVERAGE
3.51 AVERAGE
Auditioned this reissued YA classic for a column on bullying and weight discrimination, but discovered it's not really about bullying, more about promoting positive body image and building a diverse community of support for all sorts of individuals. Still relevant 40+ years after its publication (although the stigma of saying one lives in Brooklyn has long since faded).
i love that this is centered around human flaws, no one is perfect and everybody needs help sometimes. It does feel dated. It is however one of the few young adult titles that has adults/parents present.The adults are shown as being even more flawed than the kids and in cases downright cruel.
Loved M.E. Kerr as a kid. I felt like she understood what it's like to be a tween/young teen.
Tucker Woolf, "a male cat-lover who was also a lover of libraries," meets the title character after he is forced to adopt out his cat, Nader, because of his father's newly developed allergies. Dinky is a formidable new owner for Nader, her physical size certainly as intimidating as her raw wit, unflinching honesty (about anything other than herself), and fascination with the odd. When Dinky's cousin Natalia comes to stay with the Hocker family, Tucker finds himself using Nader as an excuse to visit the mysterious, beautiful girl. Of course, Dinky and Tucker's parents have a field day with Tucker's infatuation, something he has not yet verbalized to anyone, let alone Natalia or himself - and when Natalia agrees to go to a dance with him only if Dinky also has a date. So Tucker introduces her to P. John Knight, a wildly opinionated, right wing guy he doesn't really like - but P. John is fat, so Tucker figures the pairing will work out. Luckily for him, it does, but the dance does not go well for he and Natalia; afterward, Tucker's friendships begin to unravel.
This novel presents ordinary people and their ordinary issues in a heavily extraordinary way, detailing their intricacies and inadequacies with effortless diction. Originally published in 1972, the novel may still hold its own with teens who find it today.
Other notes (for class):
- overt foreshadowing of Dinky's psychological issues require inference, yet are still blatant
- Natalia's previous mental illness perhaps one of the first appearances in YA? - check
- constantly places religious characters (Mr. and Mrs. Hocker) in negative light
This novel presents ordinary people and their ordinary issues in a heavily extraordinary way, detailing their intricacies and inadequacies with effortless diction. Originally published in 1972, the novel may still hold its own with teens who find it today.
Other notes (for class):
- overt foreshadowing of Dinky's psychological issues require inference, yet are still blatant
- Natalia's previous mental illness perhaps one of the first appearances in YA? - check
- constantly places religious characters (Mr. and Mrs. Hocker) in negative light
Dinky Hocker is an overweight and outspoken girl. Her mom is so busy helping others, she fails to notice how much Dinky needs her.
The story is told by Tucker, a guy who loves libraries because there is always someone more awkward than him in that crowd. When he has to give away the stray cat he brought home, he meets Dinky and an interesting friendship begins. Tucker falls for Dinky's cousin, who is staying with the family after enduring many personal tragedies of her own. Dinky even spreads rumors about herself trying to get attention from her mom.
The story is told by Tucker, a guy who loves libraries because there is always someone more awkward than him in that crowd. When he has to give away the stray cat he brought home, he meets Dinky and an interesting friendship begins. Tucker falls for Dinky's cousin, who is staying with the family after enduring many personal tragedies of her own. Dinky even spreads rumors about herself trying to get attention from her mom.
I really enjoyed this one. I remember reading it in junior high but I was too young to get a lot of the references so it was more meaningful to me this time.
It's a good story about middle class white kids with middle class white kid problems. Overall they were endearing and likable with quirky, humorous personalities and I even though it was written so long ago so the kids weren't as cynical or sophisticated as most of today's YA characters are, they still held up pretty well.
I'd read it again and I recommend it if you read it when you were a preteen back in the day
It's a good story about middle class white kids with middle class white kid problems. Overall they were endearing and likable with quirky, humorous personalities and I even though it was written so long ago so the kids weren't as cynical or sophisticated as most of today's YA characters are, they still held up pretty well.
I'd read it again and I recommend it if you read it when you were a preteen back in the day
I picked this up just because it had a really weird name.
To be clear, it wasn't a bad book but it also wasn't astounding.
To be clear, it wasn't a bad book but it also wasn't astounding.
Huh. Another classic from the bizarre-NY-in-the-70s genre of kid and YA lit. I wonder if M.E. Kerr's other books are this odd on re-reading?
Dinky Hocker's distinctive voice drives this story of teen confusion and angst. When Dinky suffers some setbacks and blows to her self-esteem, the pain she feels is almost palpable even though she is not even aware of her own feelings and actions. While the other adolescent protagonists are generally optimistic and are able to develop, Dinky is much more cynical and this affects her ability to grow with the others.
The life of four New York teens. Two want to overcome their over eating habits, and two who have fallen in love. This isn't an action packed novel and it's pretty weird and hard to describe.