<i>Plus</i> (review)
2009; Johns Hopkins University Press; Volume: 62; Issue: 8 Linguagem: Inglês
10.1353/bcc.0.0855
ISSN1558-6766
Autores ResumoReviewed by: Plus Karen Coats Chambers, Veronica . Plus. Razorbill, 2009 [288p]. Paper ed. ISBN 978-1-59514-165-1 $8.99 Reviewed from galleys Ad Gr. 7-10 Having skipped a grade to start her premed degree at Columbia, brainy Bee finds that classes aren't as hard as her break-up with the cute upperclassman she'd fallen in love with during her first weeks of school. Bee copes with her grief by eating everything in sight and soon adds twenty or so pounds to her large frame, where-upon she attracts the attention of an agent looking for a plus-sized model for a Prada ad. Bee's friend Chela convinces her to go to the audition and lo, a plus-sized star is born. One job leads to another, and soon Bee is well on her way to becoming a supermodel. As her day rate rises, her schoolwork and her friendship with Chela and Kevin, a hot rapper that she tutors in math, take a back seat, and she has to sort out her priorities while contending with sabotage from an unstable competitor. This is glossy and superficial, and there's nothing credible about Bee's smooth rise to superstardom. Plus-sized readers may nonetheless happily suspend their disbelief for a chance to dream about seeing someone their size (well, size 12, anyway) in an ad in Times Square and featured on a Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition cover. After that, the six-figure bank account, the gig hosting the MTV Teen Choice Awards, and the on-air kiss from Kevin, whose music has made him a star in his own right, are all icing on a sometimes gooey, wish-fulfilling fantasy cake. Bee's insights, while not all that original, are nonetheless affirming, and the usual messages about putting friends first and learning to love yourself are happily delivered in snappy, readable prose. Readers looking for a full-figured protagonist making her life work without a snarky outlook or a chip on her shoulder will enjoy Bee's success story. [End Page 316] Copyright © 2009 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois
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