Point of View

Dumplin' is told from the first person point of view of 16 year old Willowdean Dickson, a plus-size girl living in Podunk Texas town, Clover City. Willowdean likes to introduce herself as "Cashier, Dolly Parton enthusiast, and resident fat girl" (8). She knows that she is fat and chooses to use the word "fat" without the negative connotations that it usually carries. Will is a supporter of being proud of your body at any size and is good at exuding confidence until she begins a summer fling with Private School Bo. When she calls Callie a "twiggy bitch," she realizes that she is being hypocritical and immediately apologizes (49). She reminds herself, "Fat. Skinny. Short. Tall. It doesn't matter" (33). However, Will cannot always live up to her own words. Her world undergoes a complete change when she decides to enter the Miss Teen Blue Bonnet pageant to honor...