Willowdean Dickson (nicknamed Dumplin' by her former beauty queen mother) is a self-proclaimed fat girl. There's no reason to deny it or hide from it, it's who she is.  She's embraced her large size, choosing to accept it as part of her identity rather than being obsessed with changing it.  She doesn't attempt to camouflage or cover it, never shying away from swim suits or body-hugging attire. This all changes when she meets Bo.

Bo is a former jock with a chin that looks like it was chiseled from rock. He's gorgeous. Willowdean can't hide her feelings toward him...and Bo seems to feel the same. He doesn't have an aversion to her body shape or appearance.  Rather than giving her a boost of confidence, however, Willowdean finds herself questioning her self-identity and worth.  The fierceness in her seems to fade just a touch...and in a strange turn of events she enrolls in the Miss Teen Blue Bonnet Pageant, a contest that represents everything that Willowdean is against.

In enrolling in this contest, she's forced to endure the most brutal of challenges, and not only those required by the pageant judges. She's must reclaim that dwindling self-worth and identity, owning herself for who she really is, rather than what is expected of her by her mother, and the world.

This is one of those books that should be handed out in middle school and high school. It is a book that every young person, female and male alike, should read.  We all go through our battles with insecurity and self-identity.  Yet Willowdean takes it on a way that is remarkable…she doesn’t shy from it. She doesn’t avoid it. She treats it like any other challenge she’s been dealt, taking no prisoners.  Joining her on this journey are others suffering the same fate in life, those that aren’t model-perfect yet have a personality and soul that shines brighter than any form of outward beauty.

What makes this book truly remarkable? There are zero, zip, zilch attempts to change Willowdean’s appearance. No “hey, maybe you should cut down on the snacks” sort of thing. Instead? Willowdean’s philosophy is to “flaunt it if you’ve got it” and actually shuns any attempts to hide or change the way she looks.  Her biggest struggle is with her mother, obsessed with the beauty pageant and her own appearance.  It is Willowdean who helps her mother to her see that you don’t have to change the way you look, but be true to who you are, no matter what people will think.

Though there were a few plot points that I wish were a little clearer, I found Dumplin’ to be a truly rewarding read.  This is the type of books we should be putting in the hands of our nations’ teens: books that encourage teens to embrace who they really are, rather than attempt to live up to the standards/roles society forces upon them.  There isn’t an individual in the world that won’t find something to take away from this moving, inspiring read. It has that sort of power. Highly, highly recommended.