Kelly deVos
Author of Eat Your Heart Out
Works by Kelly deVos
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Day Zero by Kelly deVos is one of those review copies I never quite got around to reading last year. However, one of the benefits of not reading a book promptly is not having to wait for the sequel. Instead, you can read both the original and the sequel back to back. This was my approach to Day Zero and its sequel, Day One.
A funny thing happened when I finished one and started the other, however. It quickly became apparent that the version of Day Zero I read had some major changes made to it show more before final publication. My version of Day Zero revolved around Jinx and her stepsiblings, Tyrell and Makeeba Anderson, who just happened to be Black and from Atlanta. Let me tell you that when reading a political thriller, the entire context of the story changes a lot when two of the main characters are Black and from the south. As 2020 showed the world, their experiences dealing with the police are completely different than a white person’s experiences.
While not perfect and definitely in need of some sensitivity reader feedback, I liked the version of Day Zero I read. Ms. deVos uses Tyrell and Makeeba to address police brutality and systemic racism before the world acknowledged it. Even better, she acknowledges that the Anderson siblings come from wealth but that wealth does not protect them from racial prejudice. The story has a completely different feel when Tyrell and Makeeba Anderson from Atlanta become Toby and MacKenna Novak from Denver. Suddenly, the politics of the story, which is the entire plot, are much less inclusive and incomplete.
The thing is, I rather liked the politics in my version of Day Zero. It is all too easy to envision 45 doing something as extreme as declaring a national emergency and calling the military to step into police roles. Even better, the opposition addresses what could happen if we fully adopted socialism while addressing racial barriers and cultural roadblocks long established by the founders of the country. It makes for a prescient story, a year ahead of the rest of the world. Except, that is not the route Ms. deVos and her editors ultimately chose.
As I did not read the final version of Day Zero, I can’t say whether I liked it. I can extrapolate, however, based on my reaction to Day One, which is not favorable. The story itself loses a lot of timeliness and gravitas when Makeeba goes from being a strong, politically aware Black young woman to MacKenna, a rather selfish, impetuous white girl of privilege.
Plus, Jinx is not nearly as commanding and forceful in the sequel as she was in the first book. In Day One, she lets others dictate her actions rather than taking the initiative. This is not the Jinx we get to know in the first book, and there again, the story suffers as a result.
As a result, much of Day One becomes an exercise in suspension of disbelief as the story takes one outlandish turn after another. By the time someone we thought dead in the first novel makes an appearance, the whole thing has become so ridiculous as to be disappointing.
Again, I have no idea if I would feel similarly about Day Zero in its end form, but I do imagine my feelings would be less positive than they were simply because having key characters to help draw attention to systemic racism in a political thriller is a massive gamechanger to the story. I have never had a review copy change SO much from the published novel, and the changes made are, in my opinion, a poor choice. show less
A funny thing happened when I finished one and started the other, however. It quickly became apparent that the version of Day Zero I read had some major changes made to it show more before final publication. My version of Day Zero revolved around Jinx and her stepsiblings, Tyrell and Makeeba Anderson, who just happened to be Black and from Atlanta. Let me tell you that when reading a political thriller, the entire context of the story changes a lot when two of the main characters are Black and from the south. As 2020 showed the world, their experiences dealing with the police are completely different than a white person’s experiences.
While not perfect and definitely in need of some sensitivity reader feedback, I liked the version of Day Zero I read. Ms. deVos uses Tyrell and Makeeba to address police brutality and systemic racism before the world acknowledged it. Even better, she acknowledges that the Anderson siblings come from wealth but that wealth does not protect them from racial prejudice. The story has a completely different feel when Tyrell and Makeeba Anderson from Atlanta become Toby and MacKenna Novak from Denver. Suddenly, the politics of the story, which is the entire plot, are much less inclusive and incomplete.
The thing is, I rather liked the politics in my version of Day Zero. It is all too easy to envision 45 doing something as extreme as declaring a national emergency and calling the military to step into police roles. Even better, the opposition addresses what could happen if we fully adopted socialism while addressing racial barriers and cultural roadblocks long established by the founders of the country. It makes for a prescient story, a year ahead of the rest of the world. Except, that is not the route Ms. deVos and her editors ultimately chose.
As I did not read the final version of Day Zero, I can’t say whether I liked it. I can extrapolate, however, based on my reaction to Day One, which is not favorable. The story itself loses a lot of timeliness and gravitas when Makeeba goes from being a strong, politically aware Black young woman to MacKenna, a rather selfish, impetuous white girl of privilege.
Plus, Jinx is not nearly as commanding and forceful in the sequel as she was in the first book. In Day One, she lets others dictate her actions rather than taking the initiative. This is not the Jinx we get to know in the first book, and there again, the story suffers as a result.
As a result, much of Day One becomes an exercise in suspension of disbelief as the story takes one outlandish turn after another. By the time someone we thought dead in the first novel makes an appearance, the whole thing has become so ridiculous as to be disappointing.
Again, I have no idea if I would feel similarly about Day Zero in its end form, but I do imagine my feelings would be less positive than they were simply because having key characters to help draw attention to systemic racism in a political thriller is a massive gamechanger to the story. I have never had a review copy change SO much from the published novel, and the changes made are, in my opinion, a poor choice. show less
Day Zero by Kelly deVos is one of those review copies I never quite got around to reading last year. However, one of the benefits of not reading a book promptly is not having to wait for the sequel. Instead, you can read both the original and the sequel back to back. This was my approach to Day Zero and its sequel, Day One.
A funny thing happened when I finished one and started the other, however. It quickly became apparent that the version of Day Zero I read had some major changes made to it show more before final publication. My version of Day Zero revolved around Jinx and her stepsiblings, Tyrell and Makeeba Anderson, who just happened to be Black and from Atlanta. Let me tell you that when reading a political thriller, the entire context of the story changes a lot when two of the main characters are Black and from the south. As 2020 showed the world, their experiences dealing with the police are completely different than a white person’s experiences.
While not perfect and definitely in need of some sensitivity reader feedback, I liked the version of Day Zero I read. Ms. deVos uses Tyrell and Makeeba to address police brutality and systemic racism before the world acknowledged it. Even better, she acknowledges that the Anderson siblings come from wealth but that wealth does not protect them from racial prejudice. The story has a completely different feel when Tyrell and Makeeba Anderson from Atlanta become Toby and MacKenna Novak from Denver. Suddenly, the politics of the story, which is the entire plot, are much less inclusive and incomplete.
The thing is, I rather liked the politics in my version of Day Zero. It is all too easy to envision 45 doing something as extreme as declaring a national emergency and calling the military to step into police roles. Even better, the opposition addresses what could happen if we fully adopted socialism while addressing racial barriers and cultural roadblocks long established by the founders of the country. It makes for a prescient story, a year ahead of the rest of the world. Except, that is not the route Ms. deVos and her editors ultimately chose.
As I did not read the final version of Day Zero, I can’t say whether I liked it. I can extrapolate, however, based on my reaction to Day One, which is not favorable. The story itself loses a lot of timeliness and gravitas when Makeeba goes from being a strong, politically aware Black young woman to MacKenna, a rather selfish, impetuous white girl of privilege.
Plus, Jinx is not nearly as commanding and forceful in the sequel as she was in the first book. In Day One, she lets others dictate her actions rather than taking the initiative. This is not the Jinx we get to know in the first book, and there again, the story suffers as a result.
As a result, much of Day One becomes an exercise in suspension of disbelief as the story takes one outlandish turn after another. By the time someone we thought dead in the first novel makes an appearance, the whole thing has become so ridiculous as to be disappointing.
Again, I have no idea if I would feel similarly about Day Zero in its end form, but I do imagine my feelings would be less positive than they were simply because having key characters to help draw attention to systemic racism in a political thriller is a massive gamechanger to the story. I have never had a review copy change SO much from the published novel, and the changes made are, in my opinion, a poor choice. show less
A funny thing happened when I finished one and started the other, however. It quickly became apparent that the version of Day Zero I read had some major changes made to it show more before final publication. My version of Day Zero revolved around Jinx and her stepsiblings, Tyrell and Makeeba Anderson, who just happened to be Black and from Atlanta. Let me tell you that when reading a political thriller, the entire context of the story changes a lot when two of the main characters are Black and from the south. As 2020 showed the world, their experiences dealing with the police are completely different than a white person’s experiences.
While not perfect and definitely in need of some sensitivity reader feedback, I liked the version of Day Zero I read. Ms. deVos uses Tyrell and Makeeba to address police brutality and systemic racism before the world acknowledged it. Even better, she acknowledges that the Anderson siblings come from wealth but that wealth does not protect them from racial prejudice. The story has a completely different feel when Tyrell and Makeeba Anderson from Atlanta become Toby and MacKenna Novak from Denver. Suddenly, the politics of the story, which is the entire plot, are much less inclusive and incomplete.
The thing is, I rather liked the politics in my version of Day Zero. It is all too easy to envision 45 doing something as extreme as declaring a national emergency and calling the military to step into police roles. Even better, the opposition addresses what could happen if we fully adopted socialism while addressing racial barriers and cultural roadblocks long established by the founders of the country. It makes for a prescient story, a year ahead of the rest of the world. Except, that is not the route Ms. deVos and her editors ultimately chose.
As I did not read the final version of Day Zero, I can’t say whether I liked it. I can extrapolate, however, based on my reaction to Day One, which is not favorable. The story itself loses a lot of timeliness and gravitas when Makeeba goes from being a strong, politically aware Black young woman to MacKenna, a rather selfish, impetuous white girl of privilege.
Plus, Jinx is not nearly as commanding and forceful in the sequel as she was in the first book. In Day One, she lets others dictate her actions rather than taking the initiative. This is not the Jinx we get to know in the first book, and there again, the story suffers as a result.
As a result, much of Day One becomes an exercise in suspension of disbelief as the story takes one outlandish turn after another. By the time someone we thought dead in the first novel makes an appearance, the whole thing has become so ridiculous as to be disappointing.
Again, I have no idea if I would feel similarly about Day Zero in its end form, but I do imagine my feelings would be less positive than they were simply because having key characters to help draw attention to systemic racism in a political thriller is a massive gamechanger to the story. I have never had a review copy change SO much from the published novel, and the changes made are, in my opinion, a poor choice. show less
Finally, after a series of more or less duds, a book I liked! A YA, no less! This isn’t an all-out love, but it was really good and fun and different, and it takes the body positivity stuff in books like Dumplin’ and Puddin’ a step further. Fat people not dieting and loving their fat bodies is great, but there are fat people who do successfully lose weight and it’s nice to see them represented in fiction too.
Note: I’m one of the latter, so that was especially encouraging to see show more personally. I never quite felt represented by Dumplin’, age notwithstanding. Also note that I’m not 100% up on current body positivity language, so if my word choices in this review offend you, I’m sincerely sorry. Please know I don’t mean to and if I knew how to word more goodly, I would.
Cookie loses weight for very understandable reasons: she wants the perfect life thin people seem to get. A lot of the book’s an examination of what happens when she gets it and whether that life’s actually perfect or right for her. There’s also a fair bit about self-image and judging people by appearances and how fatphobia can still hurt once you’re thin, and having “before” and “after” timelines only helps with the nuance of all of that. There’s stuff here that I don’t remember Dumplin’ or Puddin’ even touching on.
Cookie’s also sympathetic without being clean-cut or particularly likeable, which I don’t see often, especially in YA. She’s selfish and angry and impulsive and stubborn and twisted in on herself, which is all deeply believable and again, understandable. I cheered for her at all the moments when her stubbornness and anger and drive won things for her and when she stood up for herself and told people off, but at the same time, she gets so dead set on ideas and narratives and desires that you just know aren’t going to go well for her.
Case in point: she gets an amazing internship opportunity, one-on-one with a famous male designer, and decides to sleep with him even though she knows he doesn’t treat women well. (Note that she’s nineteen so this is inappropriate, there’s a big age gap, he should have said no, but it’s not an underage thing. And that everyone but the two of them give it a side-eye.)
There’s also a thread in the book about Cookie learning to appreciate wider context, learning facts that change her opinions, negotiating the adult world as a Very Angry Person who lashes out and burns bridges, and balancing “be the bigger person” and playing nice with not taking shit when it counts. Cue me again cheering at her anger. Cookie is not short on guts, that’s for sure.
So yeah, there’s a lot of nuance and strong characters and good messages and things to think about. (I haven’t even mentioned the teenage love interest, the mean girl, the Latina fashion teacher, the best friend who couldn’t lose weight and decided to love her body after all, half the stuff that goes down “before”, all the fashion knowledge.) This is definitely one of those contemporary YA books that does the “life is messy” thing right. There aren’t a whole lot of easy answers or people who are right all the time.
Like I said, I liked this a lot but I don’t love it enough to, say, jump on the next Kelly deVos novel out the gate. I definitely rec it if you’re into body positivity, YA with realistic characters and complexity, awesome YA heroines, or want something that balances fun and serious excellently.
Warnings: Fatphobia, fat-shaming, Western beauty standards, internalised versions of same, and realistic anxieties about being fat in public. White men who get whatever by being rich and marginally attractive. Mentor/intern relationship, mutually consensual but still skeevy (and controlling). Neglectful and narcissistic parents. Repeated mentions of poverty.
7.5/10 show less
Note: I’m one of the latter, so that was especially encouraging to see show more personally. I never quite felt represented by Dumplin’, age notwithstanding. Also note that I’m not 100% up on current body positivity language, so if my word choices in this review offend you, I’m sincerely sorry. Please know I don’t mean to and if I knew how to word more goodly, I would.
Cookie loses weight for very understandable reasons: she wants the perfect life thin people seem to get. A lot of the book’s an examination of what happens when she gets it and whether that life’s actually perfect or right for her. There’s also a fair bit about self-image and judging people by appearances and how fatphobia can still hurt once you’re thin, and having “before” and “after” timelines only helps with the nuance of all of that. There’s stuff here that I don’t remember Dumplin’ or Puddin’ even touching on.
Cookie’s also sympathetic without being clean-cut or particularly likeable, which I don’t see often, especially in YA. She’s selfish and angry and impulsive and stubborn and twisted in on herself, which is all deeply believable and again, understandable. I cheered for her at all the moments when her stubbornness and anger and drive won things for her and when she stood up for herself and told people off, but at the same time, she gets so dead set on ideas and narratives and desires that you just know aren’t going to go well for her.
Case in point: she gets an amazing internship opportunity, one-on-one with a famous male designer, and decides to sleep with him even though she knows he doesn’t treat women well. (Note that she’s nineteen so this is inappropriate, there’s a big age gap, he should have said no, but it’s not an underage thing. And that everyone but the two of them give it a side-eye.)
There’s also a thread in the book about Cookie learning to appreciate wider context, learning facts that change her opinions, negotiating the adult world as a Very Angry Person who lashes out and burns bridges, and balancing “be the bigger person” and playing nice with not taking shit when it counts. Cue me again cheering at her anger. Cookie is not short on guts, that’s for sure.
So yeah, there’s a lot of nuance and strong characters and good messages and things to think about. (I haven’t even mentioned the teenage love interest, the mean girl, the Latina fashion teacher, the best friend who couldn’t lose weight and decided to love her body after all, half the stuff that goes down “before”, all the fashion knowledge.) This is definitely one of those contemporary YA books that does the “life is messy” thing right. There aren’t a whole lot of easy answers or people who are right all the time.
Like I said, I liked this a lot but I don’t love it enough to, say, jump on the next Kelly deVos novel out the gate. I definitely rec it if you’re into body positivity, YA with realistic characters and complexity, awesome YA heroines, or want something that balances fun and serious excellently.
Warnings: Fatphobia, fat-shaming, Western beauty standards, internalised versions of same, and realistic anxieties about being fat in public. White men who get whatever by being rich and marginally attractive. Mentor/intern relationship, mutually consensual but still skeevy (and controlling). Neglectful and narcissistic parents. Repeated mentions of poverty.
7.5/10 show less
I fell in love with this book from the prologue, where the author explains this is not a Cinderella story of getting thin, but that the first chapter was based on a true experience of how she was treated on a flight based on weight. Which really strikes home in a visceral way.
But I digress. Kelly DeVos has SUCH a great writing voice. Cookie is fun, upbeat, sardonic at times, and such a great narrator. Told in dual timelines, this book examines her journey as a blogger and budding fashion show more designer, her experiences with others in the industry, and also how she is treated differently at various points in her life because of her weight. Tommy, I fell in love with from the very first time he appeared on page, and alternated between wanting to slap at times and hug for being so real and incredibly imperfect. You can’t help but cheer for him and Cookie’s friendship as it goes through those turbulent growing up times, and appreciate Cookie’s strength as she insists on who she is and who she will be valued as. LOVED this one.
Please excuse typos/name misspellings. Entered on screen reader. show less
But I digress. Kelly DeVos has SUCH a great writing voice. Cookie is fun, upbeat, sardonic at times, and such a great narrator. Told in dual timelines, this book examines her journey as a blogger and budding fashion show more designer, her experiences with others in the industry, and also how she is treated differently at various points in her life because of her weight. Tommy, I fell in love with from the very first time he appeared on page, and alternated between wanting to slap at times and hug for being so real and incredibly imperfect. You can’t help but cheer for him and Cookie’s friendship as it goes through those turbulent growing up times, and appreciate Cookie’s strength as she insists on who she is and who she will be valued as. LOVED this one.
Please excuse typos/name misspellings. Entered on screen reader. show less
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