Narrator Erin Mallon's raspy timbre adds an edge to the humorous sarcasm of Millie Michalchuk, a returning character from Julie Murphy's debut novel, DUMPLIN’. Millie's view of herself as a fat girl diminishes her hopes for her future as a newscaster. But things change when she unexpectedly becomes friends with a popular girl named Callie. There’s history between the two. Callie is the one girl Millie was able to identify of those who vandalized her uncle's gym. Kyla Garcia's portrayal of Callie also has shades of cynicism. Garcia captures Callie’s initial tones of superiority and then adds notes of vulnerability when her arrest leads to disgrace. Both narrators provide believable renditions of how the girls' grudging acceptance of each other grows into mutual respect and support. S.W. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2018, Portland, Maine

★ 02/19/2018
Clover City High School in Texas has a clear social hierarchy: football on top, dance team members next, then everyone else. Junior Millie Michalchuk, who also appeared in Murphy’s Dumplin’, may be a lifer at fat camp, but that doesn’t mean she buys into how the world sees her. Callie Reyes dates a football player and is on course to become dance team captain. The girls’ paths rarely cross. Then the dance team loses its funder, a gym owned by Millie’s uncle, and its members break in and trash the business. When a sulky Callie starts working at the gym, Millie models not just friendship and forgiveness, but also tough-love examples of how to treat people. Through the girls’ alternating perspectives, Murphy develops their aspirations and struggles: Millie isn’t sure how to pursue her dream of being a TV anchor; Mexican-American Callie experiences stereotyping and yearns for friends, not frenemies. Murphy convincingly and satisfyingly portrays how their one-step-forward-two-steps-back bonding process helps them go for what they want rather than what others think is possible. Ages 13–up. Agent: John M. Cusick, Folio Literary Management. (May)

This companion to the very popular Dumplin’ introduces more memorable characters for whom readers can’t help but cheer.” — School Library Journal

“Julie Murphy has created the platonic love story of a lifetime. I am wildly in love with Puddin’.” — Becky Albertalli, award-winning author of Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda

“Murphy’s plot brims with unlikely friendships, irresistible romance, fabulous fat acceptance, and a kick-ass ending. Buoying.” — Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

“Murphy’s energetic writing style makes for compulsive readability.” — Booklist

“Texans and non-Texans alike will appreciate getting to know two strong-minded Lone Star girls.” — Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books

“A wonderful story of young romance, body acceptance, and unlikely friendships.” — Voice of Youth Advocates (VOYA)

Praise for RAMONA BLUE: “An exquisite, thoughtful exploration of the ties that bind and the fluidity of relationships, sexuality, and life.” — Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

Praise for RAMONA BLUE: “Julie Murphy knows a thing or two about navigating the worlds of girls on the brink of self-discovery.” — Booklist (starred review)

Praise for RAMONA BLUE: “A must-have work that will resonate with teens” — School Library Journal

Praise for RAMONA BLUE: “Julie Murphy delivers a fresh and glorious love story that addresses all the complexities of one’s heart. Ramona Blue’s discovery of limitless love is total beauty.” — Adam Silvera, New York Times bestselling author of More Happy Than Not

Praise for RAMONA BLUE: “Ramona Blue is Julie Murphy’s best book yet. It’s hilarious, it’s heartfelt, and it’s so, so real. I just wish I’d had this book to read during my own teen years!” — Robin Talley, New York Times bestselling author of Lies We Tell Ourselves

Praise for RAMONA BLUE: “Murphy creates a place that feels deeply real…a great setting for a coming-of-age story, as Ramona realizes that she’s capable of more than she imagined and that some categories are more fluid than she’d thought.” — Publishers Weekly

Praise for RAMONA BLUE: “Satisfying” — The Horn Book

Praise for DUMPLIN’: “Will’s singular voice compels readers to think about all that goes into building-and destroying-self-esteem...Splendid” — Booklist (starred review)

Praise for DUMPLIN’: “Murphy...successfully makes every piece of the story—Dolly Parton superfans, first love, best-friend problems, an unlikely group of pageant entrants, female solidarity, self-acceptance, and Willowdean’s complicated relationship with the mother...-count, weaving them together to create a harmonious, humorous, and thought-provoking whole.” — Publishers Weekly (starred review)

Praise for DUMPLIN’: “I’m obsessed with this book. Wickedly funny, heartbreakingly real, full of characters to love and cheer for. DUMPLIN’ is such a star.” — Katie Cotugno, author of How to Love and 99 Days

Praise for DUMPLIN’: “Dumplin’ should be required reading for anyone who has ever felt even slightly uncomfortable in his or her skin. Julie Murphy’s star continues to shine with this groundbreaking, poignant story that will surely change lives.” — John Corey Whaley, award-winning author of Noggin and Where Things Come Back

Praise for DUMPLIN’: “[A] richly enjoyable novel...a clever and funny book to please lovers of thoughtful romance and secret pageant fans.” — Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books

Praise for DUMPLIN’: “Genuine, romantic, and with a dash of Texan charm, this is a novel that celebrates being who you are while also acknowledging that it’s incredibly difficult to do.” — The Horn Book

Praise for DUMPLIN’: “Portrays and challenges sterotypes about beauty pageants, size issues, and women’s concerns...Powerful.” — Voice of Youth Advocates (VOYA)

Praise for SIDE EFFECTS MAY VARY: “Honest and unflinching, this is a compelling story of one teen’s struggle with cancer, love, and living. A worthwhile addition.” — School Library Journal

Praise for SIDE EFFECTS MAY VARY: “Readers will turn the last page wanting to know where the next chapter leads.” — Kirkus Reviews

Praise for SIDE EFFECTS MAY VARY: “Alice and Harvey’s relationship is raw, honest, moving, and unapologetic in its depiction of their individual, and collective, pain.” — Booklist

Praise for SIDE EFFECTS MAY VARY: “Julie Murphy weaves together a tender and funny tale of love, friendship, heartache, and redemption. Side Effects May Vary explodes with brutal honesty, brilliant wit, and unflinching heart.” — John Corey Whaley, winner of the Michael L. Printz Award for Where Things Come Back

Praise for SIDE EFFECTS MAY VARY: “Julie Murphy’s Side Effects May Vary is a funny, heartfelt, honest look at the beauty and the risk of getting a second chance. An inspiring novel about all the things worth living for. I adored this debut!” — Siobhan Vivian, author of The List

Praise for SIDE EFFECTS MAY VARY: “A funny and touching novel about a strong-willed heroine who finds facing death simple, but facing life heart-wrenchingly complicated. A real original.” — Jennifer Echols, author of Going Too Far

Praise for SIDE EFFECTS MAY VARY: “A tale of unlikely romance, impossible obstacles, and mortality, this book is a must-read.” — Teen Vogue

Praise for SIDE EFFECTS MAY VARY: “It’s equal parts fun, cringe-worthy, and totally fearless!” — Seventeen

Praise for SIDE EFFECTS MAY VARY: “An unexpected twist on the typical cancer story.” — Voice of Youth Advocates (VOYA)

A wonderful story of young romance, body acceptance, and unlikely friendships.

Texans and non-Texans alike will appreciate getting to know two strong-minded Lone Star girls.

Praise for RAMONA BLUE: “Julie Murphy knows a thing or two about navigating the worlds of girls on the brink of self-discovery.

Julie Murphy has created the platonic love story of a lifetime. I am wildly in love with Puddin’.

Murphy’s energetic writing style makes for compulsive readability.

Praise for RAMONA BLUE: “Julie Murphy delivers a fresh and glorious love story that addresses all the complexities of one’s heart. Ramona Blue’s discovery of limitless love is total beauty.

Praise for SIDE EFFECTS MAY VARY: “A funny and touching novel about a strong-willed heroine who finds facing death simple, but facing life heart-wrenchingly complicated. A real original.

Praise for SIDE EFFECTS MAY VARY: “It’s equal parts fun, cringe-worthy, and totally fearless!

Praise for SIDE EFFECTS MAY VARY: “A tale of unlikely romance, impossible obstacles, and mortality, this book is a must-read.

Praise for DUMPLIN’: “Dumplin’ should be required reading for anyone who has ever felt even slightly uncomfortable in his or her skin. Julie Murphy’s star continues to shine with this groundbreaking, poignant story that will surely change lives.

Praise for SIDE EFFECTS MAY VARY: “Julie Murphy’s Side Effects May Vary is a funny, heartfelt, honest look at the beauty and the risk of getting a second chance. An inspiring novel about all the things worth living for. I adored this debut!

Praise for RAMONA BLUE: “Ramona Blue is Julie Murphy’s best book yet. It’s hilarious, it’s heartfelt, and it’s so, so real. I just wish I’d had this book to read during my own teen years!

Praise for RAMONA BLUE: “Satisfying

Praise for DUMPLIN’: “I’m obsessed with this book. Wickedly funny, heartbreakingly real, full of characters to love and cheer for. DUMPLIN’ is such a star.

Murphy’s energetic writing style makes for compulsive readability.

Texans and non-Texans alike will appreciate getting to know two strong-minded Lone Star girls.

03/01/2018
Gr 9 Up—On the heels of her success in the Miss Clover City pageant, Millie Michalchuk is determined to pursue her dream of broadcast journalism and not let her weight define her life. Callie Reyes is the pretty and popular queen bee who is better at having useful frenemies than actual friends. When Callie's revenge prank spirals out of control, it destroys the image that she's cultivated for herself and leaves her working side by side with Millie. As the girls get to know each other beyond superficial impressions, their very different strengths push both girls toward what will make them truly happy. Full of humor and heart, fans of Dumplin' will not be disappointed by this book that builds nicely on the themes of self-confidence and self-acceptance without falling into lecture. This is a highly character-driven book and the authentically complex characters are up to the task. Not only is Murphy capable of taking both the popular and unpopular girl beyond tropes, but Millie is a starkly different character than Dumplin's Willowdean. Though very different, they believably find common ground fighting the superficial boxes teenagers often find themselves in and examining the defenses they've built to survive them. VERDICT This companion to the very popular Dumplin' introduces more memorable characters for whom readers can't help but cheer. A first purchase.—Elizabeth Saxton, Tiffin, OH

Narrator Erin Mallon's raspy timbre adds an edge to the humorous sarcasm of Millie Michalchuk, a returning character from Julie Murphy's debut novel, DUMPLIN’. Millie's view of herself as a fat girl diminishes her hopes for her future as a newscaster. But things change when she unexpectedly becomes friends with a popular girl named Callie. There’s history between the two. Callie is the one girl Millie was able to identify of those who vandalized her uncle's gym. Kyla Garcia's portrayal of Callie also has shades of cynicism. Garcia captures Callie’s initial tones of superiority and then adds notes of vulnerability when her arrest leads to disgrace. Both narrators provide believable renditions of how the girls' grudging acceptance of each other grows into mutual respect and support. S.W. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2018, Portland, Maine

★ 2018-03-05
Vandalism throws a teen of unflagging cheer into regular contact with her polar opposite in this novel told in alternating first-person chapters.Millie's decided to end her nine-year stint at weight-loss summer camp: She's fine being fat, which weight-loss camp hasn't changed anyway. Instead, she's applying—behind her parents' backs—to a broadcast journalism program. Meanwhile, she's bouncily organizing sleepovers with her friends and flirting with Malik, an attractive South Asian boy at school. But when Millie's aunt and uncle's gym is vandalized by the dance team after being forced by poor profits to withdraw its sponsorship, the only team member to get caught—and required to work alongside Millie at the gym—is Callie Reyes, whose prickly affect stands in contrast to Millie's sunny optimism. Callie is grappling with being biracial while living with her racially unaware white mother, stepfather, and half sister. Speaking little Spanish, she sometimes feels out of place with other Mexican-Americans yet frequently experiences casual racism from strangers and her exploitative boyfriend. And the supposed everlasting sisterhood of her fellow dance team members falls at the first hurdle. Millie's oblivious arrogance toward a friend who comes out as asexual and toward Callie over racial identity is handled far too perfunctorily, but Murphy's plot brims with unlikely friendships, irresistible romance, fabulous fat acceptance, and a kick-ass ending.Buoying. (Fiction. 13-16)