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3.58 AVERAGE
3.58 AVERAGE
I’ve seen the “movie” so many times at this point that I felt it was only fair to read the book.
Now. The book and movie ARE COMPLETELY DIFFERENT. Which was very annoying as I thought I was gonna be reading closer to the storyline of the movie.
Book: the book was really good even though it was different and I loved Wesley and Bianca’s relationship throughout. My only thing is was all the sex between them necessary? Like thats 90% of what they did. It didn’t even seem like they talked a lot or anything
Now. The book and movie ARE COMPLETELY DIFFERENT. Which was very annoying as I thought I was gonna be reading closer to the storyline of the movie.
Book: the book was really good even though it was different and I loved Wesley and Bianca’s relationship throughout. My only thing is was all the sex between them necessary? Like thats 90% of what they did. It didn’t even seem like they talked a lot or anything
This review can also be seen on The Book Belles.
When I first started this book, I was expecting a quick, but heavy-handed message of “love yourself the way you are!”. I’m glad that wasn’t the case! While it definitely does tell you to “love yourself the way you are”, it does it in a totally different way.
Honestly, at first it’ll be annoying, because the protagonist is hard to like. Bianca is judgmental, arrogant, and pretty mean. It’s very difficult to relate to her at first. But as the book progresses, Bianca starts gaining perspective and developing as a character. By the end of the book, I really could see myself being friends with her. I was so proud of the girl she had become by the end of the book!
I was so happy to see that Bianca had awesome friends, too. Her friendship with these girls was so healthy and strong. They never insulted each other or brought each other down. Their friendship wasn’t catty or mean. They had a genuine and strong female friendship that is sometimes so absent from YA books.
I tried SO HARD to hate the love interest. I really did. I mean, Wesley called Bianca fat and ugly the first time they talked… that’s supposed to be a total turnoff. But as we got to know him more, he became this completely different guy. He had struggles and insecurities as well, not to mention that he knew how to deal with Bianca. He knew what to say to make her understand. Their romance was adorable in the way that they learned from each other and became better people from each other.
This book actually tackles so many amazing things at once. It also talks about Bianca’s family situation (and totally breaks your heart at one time), it tackles slut shaming, and shows us that, we all have insecurities and imperfections but that doesn’t mean it’s bad.
Overall, this book is an entertaining read that shows you that everyone has insecurities and we should love ourselves the way we are. It gives us an unlikable character, and transforms it into a hilarious, genuine, and mature one. Not to mention it also gives us an adorable romance and incredibly strong female friendships. I totally recommend this book!
My Amazon Review.
An eARC of this book was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review
When I first started this book, I was expecting a quick, but heavy-handed message of “love yourself the way you are!”. I’m glad that wasn’t the case! While it definitely does tell you to “love yourself the way you are”, it does it in a totally different way.
Honestly, at first it’ll be annoying, because the protagonist is hard to like. Bianca is judgmental, arrogant, and pretty mean. It’s very difficult to relate to her at first. But as the book progresses, Bianca starts gaining perspective and developing as a character. By the end of the book, I really could see myself being friends with her. I was so proud of the girl she had become by the end of the book!
“Calling her a slut or what was just like calling someone the Duff. It was insulting and hurtful, and it was one of those titles that just fed off from an inner fear every girl must have from time to time.”
I was so happy to see that Bianca had awesome friends, too. Her friendship with these girls was so healthy and strong. They never insulted each other or brought each other down. Their friendship wasn’t catty or mean. They had a genuine and strong female friendship that is sometimes so absent from YA books.
I tried SO HARD to hate the love interest. I really did. I mean, Wesley called Bianca fat and ugly the first time they talked… that’s supposed to be a total turnoff. But as we got to know him more, he became this completely different guy. He had struggles and insecurities as well, not to mention that he knew how to deal with Bianca. He knew what to say to make her understand. Their romance was adorable in the way that they learned from each other and became better people from each other.
This book actually tackles so many amazing things at once. It also talks about Bianca’s family situation (and totally breaks your heart at one time), it tackles slut shaming, and shows us that, we all have insecurities and imperfections but that doesn’t mean it’s bad.
“That was something we all had in common. We were all sluts or bitches or prudes or Duffs.”
Overall, this book is an entertaining read that shows you that everyone has insecurities and we should love ourselves the way we are. It gives us an unlikable character, and transforms it into a hilarious, genuine, and mature one. Not to mention it also gives us an adorable romance and incredibly strong female friendships. I totally recommend this book!
My Amazon Review.
An eARC of this book was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review
Creo que si lo hubiera leído por el 2010, se llevaría las 5 estrellas. Es ligero, con una trama de adolescentes que la vemos en muchas películas de instituto, pero me entretuvo, y engancha… que lo haya terminado en un día es que si engancha
That was SO NICE! Awww. I'm endeared all around.
This read like every high school movie that came out between 1995 and 2005. It was a quick, entertaining read.
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Tropey but cute enough. Light hearted & had it's moments. Resonated with the DIFF moniker from high school for sure. Super predictable and kind of juvenile though. Quick & easy read.
Content Warnings
Minor: Alcoholism, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I thought it was so stupid when I started reading it, but it was fun to see how it different (vastly) from the movie
lower side if three stars, the book was quick simple and had a good character arc.
B our main character starts off with a lot of misguided perception of what feminism is and there is a bunch of girl hate and slut shaming, luckily she sees what she's doing by labelling people whores and sluts just because she has negative view on them.
I liked the love interest, I liked B enough to speed through her POV and while the girl hate annoyed me that's what I was like as a teen too.
I love that this was written by Kody when she was 17, I love that it has positive sex in teens and that the friendships seemed genuine.
B our main character starts off with a lot of misguided perception of what feminism is and there is a bunch of girl hate and slut shaming, luckily she sees what she's doing by labelling people whores and sluts just because she has negative view on them.
I liked the love interest, I liked B enough to speed through her POV and while the girl hate annoyed me that's what I was like as a teen too.
I love that this was written by Kody when she was 17, I love that it has positive sex in teens and that the friendships seemed genuine.
(As reviewed on Paper Riot.)
Actual rating: 3.5 stars
Kody Keplinger was eighteen years old when she wrote this book. I rest my case. I’m kidding about that last part, of course, but seriously? The fact that she was a teenager when writing The DUFF is amazing, since my biggest plus was that the portrayal of teenagers is incredibly realistically done. (Note: I didn’t know this until after I finished.) Keplinger manages to capture main character Bianca’s thoughts so accurately that it was like she could have been one of my classmates when I was in high school. I really like how open this book was as well, dealing with name calling (bullying), divorce and sex not as if they are taboos, but a part of high school and life. Which, of course, they are.
Part of the reason why I picked this book up was because I heard Bianca is no supermodel. For some reason, this is a rarity in YA. Reading about a character who is not drop-dread gorgeous is refreshing. I really, really liked reading about Bianca, who is smart, funny, sarcastic and confident. Sarcasm is my kind of humor, and Bianca has enough of that. While I couldn’t relate to Bianca’s relationship with her parents, I thought the divorce was very well written, and I understood how Bianca felt.
The relationship with her two best friends is one of my favorite things about this book, because while there’s drama, it’s also honest and real. The biggest issue is that Bianca’s friends do look like supermodels, and as “school manwhore” (Bianca’s words) Wesley Rush points out, this would make Bianca the DUFF. The Designated Ugly Fat Friend. I had never heard of the term DUFF before this book, but I do like that this story was based on reality in that way. I also think that a lot of teenagers (girls and boys) can relate to feeling like the DUFF in a group of friends. Hell, I feel like this all the time.
However, while I ended up adoring Wesley and Bianca together, I was really, realy angry at them at first. Or at Wesley, actually, for even considering calling anyone a DUFF. I know that this is a part of the book and that it happens and that it’s realistic, but it just made me rage at times. I wanted to step into this fictional world to yell at Wesley that this is NOT okay. I don’t know why, but it just really annoyed me. Thank goodness, he grows and learns that it is, in fact, not okay to say stuff like this. But still. It pissed me the hell off. Sorry for the ranty paragraph.
Written by a teenager and through the perspective of a witty, sarcastic, but also sensitive teenage girl, The DUFF is, quite logically, one of the most realistic YA contemps I’ve ever read. Though the message isn’t anything new, I do like how Keplinger worked it out. Same goes for the romance: it wasn’t anything unexpected, but after I got over my initial frustration, it was pretty adorable. The story had a Pretty in Pink vibe that I loved. But despite it’s realism, The DUFF didn’t really stand out to me. I would highly recommend it if you’re looking for a cute and quick contemp, but for me, it can’t compare to my 4 star rated books.
Actual rating: 3.5 stars
Kody Keplinger was eighteen years old when she wrote this book. I rest my case. I’m kidding about that last part, of course, but seriously? The fact that she was a teenager when writing The DUFF is amazing, since my biggest plus was that the portrayal of teenagers is incredibly realistically done. (Note: I didn’t know this until after I finished.) Keplinger manages to capture main character Bianca’s thoughts so accurately that it was like she could have been one of my classmates when I was in high school. I really like how open this book was as well, dealing with name calling (bullying), divorce and sex not as if they are taboos, but a part of high school and life. Which, of course, they are.
Part of the reason why I picked this book up was because I heard Bianca is no supermodel. For some reason, this is a rarity in YA. Reading about a character who is not drop-dread gorgeous is refreshing. I really, really liked reading about Bianca, who is smart, funny, sarcastic and confident. Sarcasm is my kind of humor, and Bianca has enough of that. While I couldn’t relate to Bianca’s relationship with her parents, I thought the divorce was very well written, and I understood how Bianca felt.
The relationship with her two best friends is one of my favorite things about this book, because while there’s drama, it’s also honest and real. The biggest issue is that Bianca’s friends do look like supermodels, and as “school manwhore” (Bianca’s words) Wesley Rush points out, this would make Bianca the DUFF. The Designated Ugly Fat Friend. I had never heard of the term DUFF before this book, but I do like that this story was based on reality in that way. I also think that a lot of teenagers (girls and boys) can relate to feeling like the DUFF in a group of friends. Hell, I feel like this all the time.
However, while I ended up adoring Wesley and Bianca together, I was really, realy angry at them at first. Or at Wesley, actually, for even considering calling anyone a DUFF. I know that this is a part of the book and that it happens and that it’s realistic, but it just made me rage at times. I wanted to step into this fictional world to yell at Wesley that this is NOT okay. I don’t know why, but it just really annoyed me. Thank goodness, he grows and learns that it is, in fact, not okay to say stuff like this. But still. It pissed me the hell off. Sorry for the ranty paragraph.
Written by a teenager and through the perspective of a witty, sarcastic, but also sensitive teenage girl, The DUFF is, quite logically, one of the most realistic YA contemps I’ve ever read. Though the message isn’t anything new, I do like how Keplinger worked it out. Same goes for the romance: it wasn’t anything unexpected, but after I got over my initial frustration, it was pretty adorable. The story had a Pretty in Pink vibe that I loved. But despite it’s realism, The DUFF didn’t really stand out to me. I would highly recommend it if you’re looking for a cute and quick contemp, but for me, it can’t compare to my 4 star rated books.
i skimmed through the book, but i re-read about 60% of it, so i'm counting it as read book :) mostly because i was supposed to be learning, not reading this book xP
i still see the flaws in the book in terms of plot and problem solving, but i still love the way kody keplinger deals with sex in this book, like it is the most normal thing in the world which it is... no matter what they try to make us believe all our lives.
i still see the flaws in the book in terms of plot and problem solving, but i still love the way kody keplinger deals with sex in this book, like it is the most normal thing in the world which it is... no matter what they try to make us believe all our lives.