Wednesday, June 19, 2019

Puddin'

Murphy, Julie. Puddin'. 2018. 428p. ISBN 978-0-06-241838-8. Available at FIC MUR on the library shelves


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Millie is a fat girl. She knows she's fat, and everybody else constantly remind her of that fact. Even her mother keeps pushing her to discover the lovely girl that is present inside her fat body. Millie, however, knows that this is who she is. The real her is fat, but she's okay with that because it's not how she defines herself. After participating in the Miss Clover City beauty pageant with Willowdean Dickson (Dumplin'), Millie feels empowered to drop fat camp and instead pursue her dream of becoming a newscaster by spending the summer at a prestigious journalism camp.

Callie Reyes is a Shamrock through and through. The Shamrocks are Clover High School's best sports team. The dance team is better than the football team, yet the school is building a training facility to support the football program, while the dance team does without much funding and has to fundraise simply to make it to State every year. Callie's mother was a member of the Shamrocks, and she's happy her daughter joined in her footsteps.

As an athletic and pretty girl, Callie has the best boyfriend, the best life, and looks forward to becoming the team captain during her senior year next year. When the Shamrocks lose the financial support of a local gym, Callie and the rest of the team vandalizes it one night and cause a lot of damage. Recognized on the video footage by Millie, who works at her uncle's gym, Callie is confronted by the sheriff and given a choice. She can perform community service by working in the gym until she has paid off the repairs, or she can be arrested and charges can be pressed. Callie agrees to work at the gym, and comes into contact with fat Millie.

Bitter at her so called friends for letting her take the fall, Callie is suspended from the team, loses her boyfriend, and finds herself alone. Millie is worried that Callie will discover she's the one who turned her in, but is thrilled that Callie and her are working together. Spending time together, the girls soon discover that they are more alike than they thought, and that appearances often hide self-doubt, but that friends can help you reach for your dreams!

A companion novel to Dumplin', Millie and Callie's intertwined lives show that you should never judge someone simply based on how they look.


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