Review: Wallflower in Bloom by Claire Cook

Wallflower in Bloom by Claire Cook tells the story of Deirdre Griffin who is trapped in an unsatisfying life as assistant to her new age guru brother, Tag. She is completely eclipsed by his fame and even other members of their family overlook her as they scramble to meet Tag's needs. Things come to a head at one of Tag's events and Deirdre reaches a breaking point; she drowns her sorrows in vodka and makes a desperate social media plea to get voted on to Dancing With the Stars. With that, her life is transformed - the wallflower begins to bloom.

Deirdre Griffin is a very likeable character - she has a complicated relationship with her eccentric family made all the worse by the fact that their lives are intertwined in support of Tag. Deirdre lives in a converted sheep shed on Tag's property and her two sisters and parents all work for Tag in some way. Deirdre feels invisible within her family even though the work she does for Tag is integral to his success - they all take her for granted and she has reached her limit. When her on-again, off-again boyfriend comes to tell her his new girlfriend is pregnant and they are getting married, it puts Deirdre over the edge and convinces her something needs to change in her life.

Dancing with the Stars is looking for a replacement for a star that has to leave unexpectedly one season and they put the choice out to the people - the public is encouraged to nominate and then vote for who they next want on the show. In a drunken, emotional haze, Deirdre uses her social media savvy and her brother's fame to get herself voted on to the show. She ignores any regret she feels when she sobers up and heads to LA, cutting ties with her crazy family. While in LA, Deirdre is transformed physically and she works through her complicated relationship with her family.  

My Thoughts
 This is a fun, entertaining book with a likeable main character and a vivid cast of secondary characters. Like the author's Life's a Beach (my review), the dialogue in this novel is witty and I can see it translating to the screen very well. While it doesn't go very deep, the story is well developed and I did feel like I really got to know Deirdre. I think many of us can relate to feeling insecure and trapped in the background so you cheer for her success. Throw in the popular Dancing with the Stars and the result is a light, quick read with a lot of appeal.

I linked this post to the Weekend Bloggy Reading event at Serenity Now

I received an e-galley of this book from the publisher via netgalley

150 Pounds by Kate Rockland

In 150 Pounds, two successful bloggers on opposite ends of the scale face off. Alexis Allbright blogs at "Skinny Chick" and lives by a strict regimen of healthy food and workouts while Shoshana Weiner blogs at "Fat and Fabulous" where she encourages women to be happy at any size. They each personify what the other hates and there seems to be no common ground between them. As they each face major life changes, the beliefs to which they have clung do desperately are challenged and their eyes are opened to the other side of the argument.

 Alexis Allbright is a size zero health fanatic who works out diligently at the crack of dawn and carefully monitors her intake by logging each morsel on her iPhone. She writes at her blog "Skinny Chick" about healthy eating and maintaining your physique. She is righteous in her vilification of all things fat and has thousands of loyal followers. Shoshana has battled weight most of her life as has all members of her family. Although she is thinner than her highest weight, she is still overweight and blogs at "Fat and Fabulous".  She encourages her followers to love themselves at any size and eschews any mentions of diets. When Oprah invites the two successful bloggers onto her show, they face off and do battle over their opposing ideologies. Alexis lobs facts and figures about the dangers of poor eating and excess body fat while Shoshana argues for "fit at any size" and against the unattainable standards of size imposed on women by media.

This topic is all over the media today. There is increasing evidence that the food we eat and lifestyle we lead are at the root of many illnesses - this makes a compelling case for clean eating and maintaining an ideal weight. But at the same time holding up unrealistic body images as ideal and shaming the overweight causes it's own problems ; the "fat and fit" movement asserts that people can be healthy at any size. By putting Alexis and Shoshana at either side of this argument, Rockland brings the issue to life. 

Rockland has created two very real characters in Alexis and Shoshana.  In 150 Pounds, Alexis definitely seems the less sympathetic character mostly because she has such a sharp edge; Shoshana is warm, collects friends easily and gladly takes on those that demonize overweight women. Of course, neither is as one dimensional as their side of the argument or their blog would make it seem. The story in this novel is learning what makes each of these women tick, what drove them to the positions they hold so strongly and whether they have the capacity to change.

 The topic of body image certainly hit home for me and was part of the reason I enjoyed this story so much. In addition, it is set in NYC so many places were familiar and it was interesting to read about two successful bloggers. Beyond all that, it is a fun, light read befitting of its lovely cover!

What do you think about the controversy over "fit at any size"?