Puddin'

Murphy, Julie. Puddin' (Dumplin' #2). Balzer + Bray. 2018

Millie is determined not to go to fat camp this summer; instead, she wants to go to a journalism camp. She is working at her uncle's gym to help him out when the gym is vandalized, and the culprit is required to work at the gym to pay for the damages. Callie never expected to get in trouble, but now she's had her entire life taken away from her - her phone, her freedom, even her afternoons as she has to work at the dumpy gym she and her friends trashed. Millie and Callie are thrust together and have to learn to navigate around each other.

I really enjoyed this book. There are powerful messages in here about working toward getting what you want and dealing with the consequences of your choices. I really liked that Millie chose to befriend Callie and bring her into Millie's group of friends, even though Callie was pretty much the last person any of them would have chosen to befriend. My only small complaint with this book is the lack of Dolly Parton drag queens like there were in Dumplin'.

Recommended for: teens
Red Flags: bullying; moderate amounts of fat-shaming from one character's mother; minor amounts of violence (one teen smashes another teen's phone against the wall, intentionally breaking it, etc.)
Overall Rating: 5/5 stars

I received a complimentary copy of this book through Edelweiss for the purposes of review.