‘Pudge and Prejudice’ is the 80s Young Adult Romance You Didn’t Know About

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STORY | Elyse Nebbitt is not an ordinary 15-year-old. Together with her large family – mom and dad, plus four sisters, Elyse moves to a new town where their new house isn’t exactly “cool.” But things quickly look up when Elyse’s beautiful and poised elder sister, Jayne, catches the eye of the equally cute and charming boy, Charlie Bingley. Though Charlie is of a different class than the Nebbitt sisters, he doesn’t seem to care, and instead seems perfectly content to spend all of his time with Jayne. The problem is Charlie’s best friend Billy Fitz.

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Arrogant and not really the kind of boy Elyse would spend time with, she understands he doesn’t like her and he knows she isn’t a fan of his either. But when need be, Elyse tolerates him for her sister Jayne’s sake. But things go from tolerable to worse when things go south, and Elyse must face the possibility that Billy isn’t as bad as she assumes.


PUDGE AND PREJUDICE BY A.K. PITTMAN | BOOK REVIEW


‘Pudge and Prejudice’ is the 80s YA Romance You Didn't Know About. A review of the 2021 release by A.K. Pittman. Text © Rissi JC

REVIEW | Penned by a seasoned historical fiction author, this marks her debut in the young adult market. Picking a re-telling of Pride and Prejudice to be the book she releases is a good one especially as it’s a fun little homage to Austen. I’m surprised that Pittman keeps most of the turning point moments and key characters intact as its more work, but then the “littles” of this family (which are Kitty and Mary) have very little to do with the plot which helps to streamline.

Other than this, most of the story is represented well. From Charlotte (Lottie) to Collin (Mr. Collins) to Gage (Wickham), the key players (plus shout-outs to other Austen heroes!) are here and it all, somehow, works. I say “somehow” because this isn’t set in our current contemporary times, but rather the 80s, which makes the story perhaps more interesting because who’d imagine these characters in the era of cassette tapes, scrunchies or station wagons? It’s just a funny thing to imagine. But again, it does work.

If you like Pride and Prejudice or just young adult fiction, consider picking up Pudge and Prejudice. It’s a sweet and fun read full of good times, and characters who we can (mostly) root on.

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‘Pudge and Prejudice’ is the 80s YA Romance You Didn't Know About. A review of the 2021 release by A.K. Pittman. Text © Rissi JC

ABOUT THE BOOK

Author: A.K. Pittman
Publisher: Wander, an imprint of Tyndale
Source: Publisher provided – thank you Tyndale!
Publication Date: 2021
Find the Book Elsewhere: Goodreads
Genre: Fiction; Contemporary (80s) Young Adult
Rating: 3.5 out of 5

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Content: there’s minor mentions to “sex” and the consequences of it. Characters dress inappropriately, and try to hide it from parents; they also sneak out of the house.

Sincere thanks to Tyndale for the kind complimentary copy of this novel in consideration of review; all opinions are my own.

About Rissi JC

amateur graphic designer. confirmed bookaholic. bubbl’r enthusiast. critical thinker. miswesterner. social media coordinator. writer.

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