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.
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.
Kristi's take: I think everyone can relate to The DUFF, because it taps into those teenage feelings of not fitting in (regardless of whether you were "fat" or not). I also liked that it addressed the issue of teen sex in a realistic, but not glorified, way. There are teens out there having sex, and I know that some people think if teens don't read about sex, they won't do it. I'm not going to touch that one, so I'll just say that in my experience working with truckloads of teenagers, the most educated ones make the best decisions. Also, I should mention that this is a contemporary book with nary a paranormal creature in sight. For those of you who know how much I love me some zombie fae serial killers, you know what a high recommendation this is.
Anyone else read The DUFF? What did you think?
Admittedly, I am far from the intended demographic for this book. However, I still respectfully disagree: http://tommfranklin.blogspot.com/2010/10/snark-duff-and-earning-right-to.html
ReplyDelete-- Tom
Tom-I just read your post, and am glad you stopped by. I think you demonstrate how subjective reading books can be, which is why there are all kinds out there. However, I didn't find the sex in the book gratuitous. I've worked w/ so many teens who've used sex as an escape mechanism (like Bianca), that it felt very real to me. I can see where this book wouldn't be for everyone, but I loved it. :)
ReplyDeleteI've had this since BEA of last year, and I've been so excited to read it but I haven't picked it up yet.
ReplyDeleteGreat to see two different opinions! Thanks for sharing, Tom!