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by Julie Murphy
Dubbed "Dumplin'" by her former beauty queen mom, Willowdean 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.
Instead of finding new heights of self-assurance in her relationship with Bo, Will starts to doubt herself. So she sets out to take back her confidence by doing the most horrifying thing she can imagine: entering the Miss Teen Blue Bonnet Pageant - along with several other unlikely candidates - to show the world that she deserves to be up there as much as any twiggy girl does. Along the way, she'll shock the hell out of Clover City - and maybe herself most of all.
"Starred Review. Murphy…successfully makes every piece of the story…count, weaving them together to create a harmonious, humorous, and thought-provoking whole." - Publishers Weekly
"Starred Review. Will's singular voice compels readers to think about all that goes into building - and destroying - self-esteem." - Booklist
"A joyous read that will be beloved by many teens who can relate to feeling uncertain in their own skins. Grade 9 and up." - School Library Journal
"In the end, it's more liberating than oppressive, with bits of humor and a jubilant pageant takeover by beauty rebels to crown this unusual book about a fat character. Ages 13-16." - Kirkus
"I'm obsessed with this book. Wickedly funny, heartbreakingly real, full of characters to love and cheer for. Dumplin' is such a star." - Katie Cotugno, author of How to Love and 99 Days
"Dumplin' should be required reading for anyone who has ever felt even slightly uncomfortable in his or her skin. Julie Murphy's star continues to shine with this groundbreaking, poignant story that will surely change lives." - John Corey Whaley, award-winning author of Noggin and Where Things Come Back
This information about Dumplin' was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Julie Murphy lives in North Texas with her husband who loves her, her dog who adores her, and her cats who tolerate her. When she's not writing or trying to catch stray animals, Julie can be found in a library smelling old books and manning the reference desk.
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