Soundtrack Saturday (43)

I love books. I love music. I love it when the two are paired up, so I thought I'd create a feature to highlight both of my loves.

Soundtrack Saturday is a meme created and hosted by me, right here on The Hardcover Lover! So what is Soundtrack Saturday? It's a feature about bookish playlists! Each Saturday, I choose a book and post a playlist based on it! But that's not all. You can participate, too! I'm inviting all interested book bloggers to participate in this meme! Each week, I'll be posting a linky at the bottom of my post so that you can share your Soundtrack Saturday playlist for other bloggers and blog readers to find.

As with all bookish memes, there are a few easy steps to follow to help you create your own perfect Soundtrack Saturday post:

• Choose a book that you've read or are currently reading - any book is fine as long as you can create a playlist for it
• Create a full (10+songs) or a mini (four songs) playlist for the book of your choosing
•  For more detailed instructions on the different types of soundtracks and how to make them, please visit the meme's homepage.
• Please credit me somewhere in your post. It can be as simple as "Soundtrack Saturday is a weekly meme that was created by Erin at The Hardcover Lover."
• Leave a comment on my blog post if you enjoy the feature
• Add your name to the link-up tool at the bottom of the post

A Letter to the Author: Dear Julie Murphy

Wow! Julie, you are a rock star to me. There's really no other way to put it. I can't even begin to describe all the emotions that I'm feeling right now, but I needed to put them into words.

By now, I've read your two books - Side Effects May Vary and Dumplin', and I've got to say that I'm in love with how you write. Your characters are realistic, flawed, and true. That's something that I love seeing when I read a YA book. It just makes the whole book feel whole, and you're nailing it.

ARC Review: Dumplin'

Title: Dumplin'

Author: Julie Murphy

Publisher: Balzer + Bray

Publication Date: September 15, 2015

Source: Books for Trade from Ashley

Self-proclaimed fat girl Willowdean Dickson (dubbed “Dumplin’” by her former beauty queen mom) has always been at home in her own skin. Her thoughts on having the ultimate bikini body? Put a bikini on your body. With her all-American beauty best friend, Ellen, by her side, things have always worked . . . until Will takes a job at Harpy’s, the local fast-food joint. There she meets Private School Bo, a hot former jock. Will isn’t surprised to find herself attracted to Bo. But she is surprised when he seems to like her back.

Instead of finding new heights of self-assurance in her relationship with Bo, Will starts to doubt herself. So she sets out to take back her confidence by doing the most horrifying thing she can imagine: entering the Miss Clover City beauty pageant—along with several other unlikely candidates—to show the world that she deserves to be up there as much as any twiggy girl does. Along the way, she’ll shock the hell out of Clover City—and maybe herself most of all.

With starry Texas nights, red candy suckers, Dolly Parton songs, and a wildly unforgettable heroine— Dumplin’ is guaranteed to steal your heart.

Waiting on Wednesday (25)

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly bookish meme created and hosted by Jill at her blog, Breaking the Spine. The meme helps blogger spotlight the upcoming releases that we are eagerly waiting on. Get it? I love participating in this meme because it allows me to share upcoming releases that I want to read in a more personal way.

Participating in the meme is a piece of cake! All you need to do is make a post about an upcoming release that you're waiting on, make sure you've linked back to Breaking the Spine, and then add your name to the link-up tool.

What I'm Waiting On...

Title: Dumplin'

Author: Julie Murphy

Publisher: Balzer + Bray

Expected Publication: September 15, 2015

Self-proclaimed fat girl Willowdean Dickson (dubbed “Dumplin’” by her former beauty queen mom) has always been at home in her own skin. Her thoughts on having the ultimate bikini body? Put a bikini on your body. With her all-American beauty best friend, Ellen, by her side, things have always worked . . . until Will takes a job at Harpy’s, the local fast-food joint. There she meets Private School Bo, a hot former jock. Will isn’t surprised to find herself attracted to Bo. But she is surprised when he seems to like her back.

Instead of finding new heights of self-assurance in her relationship with Bo, Will starts to doubt herself. So she sets out to take back her confidence by doing the most horrifying thing she can imagine: entering the Miss Clover City beauty pageant—along with several other unlikely candidates—to show the world that she deserves to be up there as much as any twiggy girl does. Along the way, she’ll shock the hell out of Clover City—and maybe herself most of all.

With starry Texas nights, red candy suckers, Dolly Parton songs, and a wildly unforgettable heroine— Dumplin’ is guaranteed to steal your heart.

Why I'm Waiting...

I'm not sure if many of my readers know this about me, but I'm also a self-proclaimed fat girl. I've battled with my weight for years, and certain health reasons make it so much harder to actually lose weight. I feel like YA lacks books about plus-size girls, so I am very excited to have the chance to read another one after having loved Kelsey Macke's Damsel Distressed. I can't wait to see how Julie Murphy portrays Willowdean, and I'm already one hundred percent positive that I'm going to love this one.

What Are You Waiting On...

Now I want to hear from you! What book or books are you waiting on? As always, feel free to let me know in the comments. You can also leave a link to your own Waiting on Wednesday posts! I'd love to check them out and add more books to my ever-growing TBR list!

Happy reading!

Review: Side Effects May Vary

Title: Side Effects May Vary

Author: Julie Murphy

Publisher: Balzer + Bray

Publication Date: March 18, 2014

Format: Hardcover, First Edition

Source: Purchased

What if you'd been living your life as if you were dying—only to find out that you had your whole future ahead of you?

When sixteen-year-old Alice is diagnosed with leukemia, her prognosis is grim. To maximize the time she does have, she vows to spend her final months righting wrongs—however she sees fit. She convinces her friend Harvey, who she knows has always had feelings for her, to help her with a crazy bucket list that's as much about revenge (humiliating her ex-boyfriend and getting back at her arch-nemesis) as it is about hope (doing something unexpectedly kind for a stranger). But just when Alice's scores are settled, she goes into remission.

Now Alice is forced to face the consequences of all that she's said and done, as well as her true feelings for Harvey. But has she caused irreparable damage to the people around her—and to the one person who matters most?

Julie Murphy's Side Effects May Vary is a fearless and moving tour de force about love, life, and facing your own mortality.