My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Okay, so this is just going to be a short review. I do this sometimes when I don’t really feel like reviewing a book but at the same time I want people to know what I feel about the book. Anyway, it’s going to be a bit hurtful but I just want to lay down several points about this book that makes this book just an okay read for me. So, be ready!
First of all no offense, but I couldn’t find a thing in this story that impress me even after I turned the last page. It’s not that this book was bloody awful or what. It’s okay but not an impressive read either. Around 29%, I truthfully thought that it would finally get interesting when Jake Gaither was mentioned. Considering the past story, I thought his appearance would make a great plot twist but it ended up to be just an insignificant fling. I personally thought that Bianca’s character was pretty likeable. I could see that lots of girls would easily relate to her (or to her sarcasm, in my case). I loved the ‘Bianca at home’ much more than the ‘Bianca at school’ or ‘Bianca outside the house’ for that matter. When she’s at home, being a daughter, the only child, and such, I saw her as this terrified girl yet always tried to overlook her fear by thinking some possible positive ends in every problem she was faced. It was natural and just how I pictured 17 years old when situated in such circumstance. But once she went out, it seemed that all those side of her completely disappeared and was replaced with this bold, ignorant, and irresponsible teenager kind. As much as I wanted to sympathize of her situation, it still just did not justify her to act like that.
As a romance book lover, I don’t think their ‘relationship’ (I wouldn’t call whatever between Bianca and Wesley a romance) was sweet or lovely. It started with a rather illogical reason on Bianca’s part and some lame teenager’s lust on Wesley’s part. In fact, I was interested more on Bianca’s family issues than their story.
As much as I wanted to give this book an even lower rating, the author managed to slip a good moral lesson through Bianca’s realization of being the Duff. Wait… Duff? What was that? Here, let me lead you to the light through Wesley’s explanation about what’s Duff. This Wesley guy thought that among a group of friends, scientists had proved that they always had a weak link, a Duff it was (the less attractive girl, I might assume, from the way he talked about it). He personally thought that the vantage of Duff’s for guys was group of girls attracted more to guys who willing to socialize with their Duffs (okay, I might put it in a wrong way or what but once I done with this paragraph, I just hated Wesley more. And cheers to Bianca’s reaction for that statement of him!). Anyway, I found the moral lesson from this book about social life was good. Duff wasn’t a bad thing. In fact, everyone believed they’re the Duff in their own circles and that’s normal.
‘I was the Duff. And that was a good thing. Because anyone who didn’t feel like the Duff must not have friends. Every girl feels unattractive sometimes. […] I should be proud to be the Duff. Proud to have great friends who in their minds, were my Duffs.’(Chapter XXVI, The DUFF)
Lots of people saying about the movie is not as good as the book (which is such a worrisome for me since my opinion about the book was…) but I think I’ll just watch it anyway in hope the movie will change my perspective about the story. Hopefully.
Love, read, and review,
Cynthia D.
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