How Not to Be Popular

by Jennifer Ziegler

Book Overview

Maggie Dempsey is tired of moving all over the country. Her parents are second-generation hippies who uproot her every year or so to move to a new city. When Maggie was younger, she thought it was fun and adventurous. Now that she's a teenager, she hates it. When she moved after her freshman year, she left behind good friends, a great school, and a real feeling of belonging. When she moved her sophomore year, she left behind a boyfriend, too. Now...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0440240247
• ISBN13: 9780440240242
• Release Date: March 2010
• Publisher: Random House Children's Books
• Length: 352 Pages
• Weight: 0.65 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.6" x 8.2"
• Age Range: 12 years and up
• Grade Range: Grade 7 and higher

Customer Reviews

Wonderful change of pace

If there's one thing I hate, it's a YA book that exploits all the stereotypes and cliches about high school and its inhabitants. That's why I found this book so incredibly refreshing. It tells a lovely, funny, serious story about a girl who is determined not to fit in because she figures it's not worth it. The main character, the love interest, the New Age-y, all-about-love parents, the typical popular and unpopular crowds - I loved reading about them all, and there's no better compliment I can give. I like books which show where the high school stereotypes come from, and also show how they're different at the same time. Maggie's complex, layered journey to self-discovery was gripping and just plain cool. I only checked it out at the library, but I would love to own it one day. Fans of Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli will love this book, too.

One Of The Best This Year!

Maggie Dempsey has always lived her life as a free spirit with her parents. They move from place to place and are proud hippies. Maggie has had enough when her parents tear her away from her great boyfriend and her friends, when they leave Portland to move to Austin. Maggie decides that the only way for her to not get hurt again is to try not to fit in or make any friends. Easy? Well, not so much. Maggie goes out of her way to make bad fashion choices and say all the wrong things. Trying her hardest to make it difficult for people to like her, Maggie can hardly believe it when the popular guy at school is harassing her and she found a girl, Penny, who sits at lunch with her and makes all kinds of conversation. Then Maggie remembers, for college, she must get a letter of recommendation from a teacher. What better way than to join a club? Penny announces to her at lunch one day that she's in Helping Hands, it's a club that does community service projects and fundraisers. That's perfect for Maggie, a club filled with do-gooders that will not pay attention to her, and she gladly joins. What she's not prepared for is the possible friendships and heartache that could be on the way. Okay, I have to say that I LOVED THIS BOOK. No joke, and with that said on with my review. This is the funniest and most entertaining book that I've read all year. I had to put the book down a couple of times, because I was laughing so hard, that I couldn't see the pages. Maggie tries so hard not to be popular, but sometimes , because she is trying so hard, that it just draws more attention to her. But, Maggie just has her best interest at heart, or so she thinks. She doesn't want to be hurt again, and who can blame her? This is a must read for everyone so, put it on your list to buy, I can promise that you won't be disappointed! [...]

The Compulsive Reader's Reviews

Maggie Dempsey has lived her life all over the country...a few months here and a few months there. And she is sick of it. It is during her family's latest move from Portland to Austin that she comes up with the perfect plan. At her new school, she won't make friends, she won't join any clubs...she won't invest herself in Austin, so when it comes time to leave, it won't hurt at all. At least, that's what she thinks. Hilarious, upbeat, and full of confidence, Maggie is one knock out of a narrator. Ziegler cleverly draws the reader in at the beginning of each chapter with hints for being unpopular, such as "Only popular people join popular clubs. And...it always helps to be seen lugging around foliage." Maggie keeps the reader in excited anticipation at what she'll do next as her plan backfires and every uncool action slowly becomes a beacon for all that's cool and real in her conforming high school, giving us a whole new perspective on what popularity really consists of. Full of wry humor, outrageous clothes, crazy antics, and misunderstandings, How NOT to be Popular is the best fun you'll have all summer.

Fun and Fabulous

Maggie Dempsey is a pro at fitting in. That's because she never stays in one place for more than eight months. And that's because her parents are all about "going somewhere." They don't see it as "leaving," unlike Maggie, who's had to leave behind a best friend and a boyfriend in Portland, Oregon. Maggie is tired of being hurt, so she comes up with Operation Avoid Friends: she's going to be unpopular. This is harder than it sounds. Maggie has to come up with ridiculous schemes in order to seem like a complete freak that no one should hang out with. But the hottest guy at the school won't leave her alone. Maggie is starting to form friendships with members of the Helping Hands club. And people start to copy her elaborate and crazy costumes that she wears to school. It's almost seems that Maggie is...popular. I thought that How Not to be Popular was one of the best and most refreshing books I've read in a while. Maggie's character is laugh-out-loud hilarious, and so are her parents. I thoroughly enjoyed reading Maggie's story and her struggles between wanting to have the easy way out and being herself. The plot was easy to follow and fun to read, although some parts of the story were more emotional. I highly recommend this book for teens, and I hope Jennifer Ziegler writes more fabulous novels like this one.

Courtesy of Teens Read Too

A lot of young adult books deal with regular teenagers trying to fit in. HOW NOT TO BE POPULAR, however, is the exact opposite. Maggie Dempsey can't ever remember being rooted down in one place. Her mother and father are constantly moving, dragging Maggie along with them. But she's getting sick of it. She's emotionally drained from leaving her good friends over and over again. So when she packs up and moves to Austin, she has a plan. She's going to become a social pariah. She'll throw together outrageous outfits and talk to all the wrong people. What's the point of making friends and getting hurt again if she's going to be leaving in three months anyways? But things aren't as easy as she thought they would be. I loved this book. I was right next to Maggie the entire time, rooting for her as she tried to find herself and feeling her pain as she realized her mistakes. I wish I had read this a few years ago; it teaches a lesson that all teenagers should learn and know. Being you is one of the most important rules to follow. HOW NOT TO BE POPULAR is definitely one of the most interesting books I've read this year. Complete with comical situations and moral lessons, it's one I won't be forgetting anytime soon. Reviewed by: Chelsea Swiggett