Have you ever felt out of place in your own skin? Dumplin’ is all about a girl named Willowdean Dickson. She works at a fast food restaurant called Harpy’s. Working there, she meets Bo. Bo is a jock from private school. But, Bo soon transfers to Will’s school. When she starts falling for Bo, she is shocked to see him like her back. “Beautiful, he says. Fat, I think. But why can’t it be both at the same time?” Will makes the abrupt decision to enter her town's local beauty pageant, the “Teen Miss Blue Bonnet” pageant. Her mom, the director and former winner of the “Miss Teen Blue Bonnet” pageant, is shocked to find out that Will enters the pageant. The story takes you through Will’s point of view of her journey through the pageant and self confidence. The author urges readers to think beyond stereotypes and focus on what you think of yourself instead of what others think. Will has a best friend, El. I was surprised when they let the pageant come between their friendship. Will and El both entered the pageant for different reasons, raising a disagreement. They had been friends since they were 5 and they let their opinions come between them. The writing of the book had a lot of Southern “slang” which is expected knowing the book is based in Texas. It was fun but also challenging to figure out what all of their explanations meant. It was also fun to read it in my head with a southern accent. I learned many lessons from this book. I learned that my opinion about myself is more important than others. I learned that if I want something to change, then I have to do it myself. I have also learned to never assume you know what someone else is going through. This book has made me have more empathy for others. I have learned that just because someone is different, that doesn’t and shouldn’t define them. It also taught me to be more confident in and about myself. In the words of Willowdean Dickson, “Every body is a bikini body.” by Rachel M.
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AuthorSTenth grade students at Decorah High School share how they're reading outside of their own experiences and how it has changed them. Categories
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November 2022
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