Dairy Queen By Catherine Gilbert Murdock Views

General Goods

I never would have believed Catherine Gilbert Murdocktrs"s debut teen novel, Dairy Queen, about a 15-year-old Wisconsin farm girl whose family is steeped in football, would keep me up all night reading, but that is what happened. I refused to stop reading the perfect-pitched voice of her protagonist, D.J. (Dorrie) Schwenk.

Catherine Murdock grew up on a small farm in Connecticut, where she wisely avoided all sports involving hand-eye coordination. She now lives in suburban Philadelphia with her husband, two brilliant unicycling children, several cats, and a one-acre yard that she is slowly transforming into a wee but flourishing ecosystem. She is the author of several books, including the popular Dairy Queen series starring lovable heroine D. J. Schwenk, the fantasy novel Princess Ben, and Front and Center.

Our booksellers are raving about Dairy Queen, Catherine Gilbert Murdock's terrific debut novel for teens. This wryly written story features the unforgettable D. J. Schwenk, a football-loving 15-year-old who takes over the chores on her family's small Wisconsin dairy farm when her dad is sidelined by an injury. Like the rest of the tongue-tied Schwenks, D.J. is not much of a talker. Then she meets Brian, a snooty quarterback assigned to her for football training, and she finally learns to speak her mind. Murdock gives D.J. a pitch-perfect teenage voice: self-effacing and endearingly confused. With its unusual setting and a story line both hilarious and touching, Dairy Queen is as promising a YA debut as any we've seen.

Ip’ve heard Dairy Queen bounced around the kidlitosphere for about a year now, and never got around to reading it. When I saw the paperback edition at Borders, I decided to pick it up. I just finished reading it and very much enjoyed it! Catherine Gilbert Murdock has created a memorable character in DJ Schwenk and captures her perfectly in the conversational tone of the book. DJ speaks to the reader, in a casual and chatty manner, sometimes irritating you and other times making you want to just hug her.