Synopsis
Seventeen-year-old
Bianca Piper is cynical and loyal, and she doesn’t think she’s the
prettiest of her friends by a long shot. She’s also way too smart to
fall for the charms of man-slut and slimy school hottie Wesley Rush. In
fact, Bianca hates him. And when he nicknames her “the Duff,” she throws
her Coke in his face.
But things aren’t so great at home right now, and Bianca is desperate for a distraction. She ends up kissing Wesley. Worse, she likes it. Eager for escape, Bianca throws herself into a closeted enemies-with-benefits relationship with him.
But things aren’t so great at home right now, and Bianca is desperate for a distraction. She ends up kissing Wesley. Worse, she likes it. Eager for escape, Bianca throws herself into a closeted enemies-with-benefits relationship with him.
Until it
all goes horribly awry. It turns out Wesley isn’t such a bad listener,
and his life is pretty screwed up, too. Suddenly Bianca realizes with
absolute horror that she’s falling for the guy she thought she hated
more than anyone.
-Goodreads.com
My Review
It wasn’t till after finishing the book that I realised it
was written by an 18 year old, but it honestly didn’t feel like it. A) Because
the writing reflected maturity, unlike other books written by young authors ie
Halo by Alexandra Adornetto (Which I personally hated). And B) because of the
number of times the F* Bomb was dropped.
The whole idea surrounding the book, is that in each group
of girls there is a Duff. While reading the book, you start to understand the
point of view the author is trying to get across. The book is not simply a ‘woe
is me’ story about a self-conscious girl and all her body issues, but rather a
story about the self consciousness that all woman posses at some point in
time... even the drop dead gorgeous ones. At some point in their life, everyone feels
like the duff. A designated ugly fat friend; the one who is not necessarily less
pretty but feels less pretty than the rest of her cohort. I know that I’ve
definitely felt like the duff of my group, but there have been times I know my
friends have felt the same way also.
As the book progresses I, along with the main character
Bianca, go from hating the word (purely because it makes me think of my ugly duckling
days) to accepting it, as a way of feeling rather than a way of being. I think
this is a great book for young girls (Despite the large scale amount of
swearing), as it deals with the insecurities that all of us have at some point
or another. The book was simple, yet heartfelt and I found myself getting very
attached to the characters which oozed personality.
My rating: 4/5
I've seen The Duff around for awhile, mainly displayed at bookstores. I don't know why, but I never really had much of an interest in picking it up. I think I was afraid it would be a shallow novel, but your review did a great job at making me rethink that.
ReplyDeleteI love how you incorporated the moral of the story into your reveal, and you did it wonderfully. I definitely agree that we've all felt like a "duff" in our lives, some more than others.
I'm a new follower! If you have the chance, I'd love it if you'd check out my book review blog and follow if you like what you see!
-Kelly at http://www.paper-fantasies.blogspot.com
Wow thank-you so much.
ReplyDeleteI agree, that I also had my apprehensions about the book, and actually started reading it having quite low expectations. That's probably why I enjoyed it so much, because it surprised me with its very real underlying message :)But then again everyone likes something different. I've talked to others who have read the book, who've said they found the characters annoying and shallow, where I found them thoughtful and endearing.lol.
Anyway Thanks for checking out my blog and leaving a comment!
I'll be sure to check yours out :)
Pleasure's all mine, Elle!
DeleteI know what you mean. Everyone brings different things from their past and personality to books when they read them, so one reader could have a completely opposite experience than another on the same book. The only way to know for sure how you'll feel about books is to read them. Read them all. My precioussssss.... O.O
I'll stop now. :p