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.
From me:
I love this book. I have loved it since I read the title - how could you not? First, I have to give major cool points to Kody Keplinger for being in COLLEGE and having two books published (Shut Out comes out in September). I was just happy to have my laundry done when I was in college. The writing is great - Bianca and friends sound like real high schoolers, which is always a huge selling point for me.
Not only did the characters sound real, they sounded hysterical. This was really, really funny most of the time. I wish that I could come up with lines that made readers break into laughter. While it is super funny, Bianca is dealing with some really big (un-funny) issues, but feels that she shouldn't burden her friends with her problems. So, she decides to use Wesley Rush to ease her pain, which is maybe not the best way to solve one's problems, but she seems to have a lot of fun, so... Anyway, I'm happy that Wesley is a broken kid, as well - again, it shows readers that "cool" kids have problems, too.
I think that this book, while being hysterical, teaches us a very important lesson - everyone is the duff. It drives me nuts at school when I hear kids, girls especially, comparing themselves to other kids (girls). But it's not just middle/high school girls! Adults do it too! I'm super guilty of this crime! This book has helped me to realize that everyone sees flaws in themselves and that we should embrace those flaws because they are what make us, us. And, if our friends or boyfriends/girlfriends can't get past our flaws, then we need to find better people to be around. A very "teacher" thing to say, but I can't help it- blame Kody Keplinger. And read The DUFF.
