Seventeen-year-old Bianca Piper is cynical and loyal, and she doesn't think she's the prettiest of her friends by a long shot. She's also way too smart to fall for the charms of man-slut and slimy school hottie Wesley Rush. In fact, Bianca hates him. And when he nicknames her "the Duff," she throws her Coke in his face.
But things aren't so great at home right now, and Bianca is desperate for a distraction. She ends up kissing Wesley. Worse, she likes it. Eager for escape, Bianca throws herself into a closeted enemies-with-benefits relationship with him.
Until it all goes horribly awry. It turns out Wesley isn't such a bad listener, and his life is pretty screwed up, too. Suddenly Bianca realizes with absolute horror that she’s falling for the guy she thought she hated more than anyone.
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Find The DUFF: Designated Ugly Fat Friend Kody Keplinger in PDF, EPUB, ebook, audiobook, print, or library editions.
Hamilton High
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Exploring honest high school dynamics, body image, and adolescent self-discovery gained widespread attention through the breakout young adult novel The DUFF: Designated Ugly Fat Friend. Author Kody Keplinger published the bestselling story after drafting it during her senior year of high school, establishing a career centered on authentic coming-of-age fiction across young adult and middle-grade literature.
Born on August 8, 1991, and raised in Owensboro, Kentucky, Keplinger began writing stories at age eleven before drafting her debut novel as a teenager. Her first book, The DUFF: Designated Ugly Fat Friend, became a New York Times and USA Today bestseller, earned a YALSA Top Ten Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Readers selection and a Romantic Times Top Pick award, and was adapted into a 2015 feature film starring Mae Whitman, Robbie Amell, Allison Janney, and Ken Jeong. After attending Ithaca College, Keplinger expanded her bibliography across young adult and middle-grade fiction with titles such as Shut Out, A Midsummer's Nightmare, The Swift Boys & Me, Lying Out Loud, Run, That's Not What Happened, and Lila & Hadley.
In addition to her fiction career, Keplinger co-founded Disability in KidLit, a platform dedicated to analyzing and promoting disability representation in children's and young adult literature. Born with Leber congenital amaurosis, Keplinger is legally blind and advocates for authentic representation of disabled characters in publishing. Based in New York City, she teaches creative writing courses at Gotham Writers Workshop, plays Dungeons & Dragons, and engages with readers online through discussions on fashion, body positivity, television, and personal updates.
Keplinger's writing features realistic teenage dialogue, humor, and sensitive treatments of complex emotional topics. Her young adult novels frequently explore high school social structures, self-image, mental health, grief, and interpersonal loyalty without oversimplifying adolescent experiences. In her middle-grade fiction, such as The Swift Boys & Me and Lila & Hadley, she focuses on themes of family disruption, friendship, and human-animal connections. Her storytelling also encompasses comic scripts, including the young adult graphic novel Poison Ivy: Thorns, illustrated by Sara Kipin for DC Comics.
