Pumpkin, A Review

georgeapp137

Jun 27

This year prom's a drag.

Dumplin' book review. Dumplin' film review. Puddin' review.

From Julie Murphy, Pumpkin follows Waylon Brewer, A fat, gay kid from Clover Cty who has big dreams of getting out and becoming a star. Twin to Clementine, The pair do everything together and had planned on attending the same university in Austin but after Waylon discovers Clem has her own plans he falls apart and begins to seriously rethink his future. Uncertain on what comes next and just wanting to finish high school in peace, Waylon is shocked to discover he has been nominated as prom queen alongside Clem's girlfriend Hannah who has been nominated for King.

Initially the pair try and get their names taken out of the ballot but Hannah then decides to roll with it and leave high school on a bang, campaigning for a win in the hopes of inspiring queer kids everywhere. Waylon also decides to run, getting paired with Tucker Watson, a classmate he has a long history with. Together Waylon and Tucker begin to bond and through campaigning Waylon begins to come out of his shell and realise that not everybody in Clover City is out to get him. As prom grows closer as do Waylon and Tucker, giving him a rare glimpse of optimism for his future. Can Waylon and Hannah actually pull this off and be named prom royalty or will thinhs go wrong yet again, leaving Waylon just where he started?

I really loved reading Pumpkin. Waylon and Clem's introduction and the prom storyline made for a great read and I loved the developing romance between Waylon and Tucker as well as Waylon's growing confidence as the story progressed. Pumpkin really was a book about being yourself in the best possible way and I loved every minute. The prom storyline and how everything was wrapped up made for a great finish, both as a standalone novel and the trilogy overall. One big last dance felt like the perfect way to finish everything off and I loved how we got to say goodbye to all of the characters both old and new. The finale was just one big, gay masterpiece.

Like with all of Murphy's books I always feel so seen through the characters and I think this is especially true with Waylon. His inner monoluge and thoughts and feelings, fears about being accepted and worry about how he'd been percieved by others all resonated so much with me and I feel like this book would have been an absolute Godsent in High School. Waylon's own feelings on being gay and his interactions with the people around him really stuck with me and i think i've definitely shared a lot of Waylon's fears at one point or another on my life. Murphy just has this way of creating such authentic feeling characters and I think that regardless of your gender, sexuality or even race there's always an aspect of her books you can relate to.

I've really enjoyed reading the Dumplin' trilogy over the past few years and getting to know these characters across the shared storylines. I always think it's interesting getting sequels from a different character's perspective (eg Love Simon vs Leah on the Offbeat) because it means we get multiple viewpoints of multiple characters, meaning by the end of the trilogy you get a complete picture on who everyone is. Across the three Dumplin' books we've followed Willowdean, Millie, Hannah, Waylon and more and I feel like I've really come to know and love these characters, flaws and all.

Overall I really loved Pumpkin, it was a great story and a perfect end to the Dumplin' trilogy. Waylon was a great new character and I loved his journey to becoming Prom Queen. Murphy also creates such compelling characters and I liked getting to say goodbye to everyone one last time. A really great book and a really great series, Pumpkin was the perfect finish to a wonderful gay masterpiece.

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