Dumplin

Despite their differences, Ellen Dryver has been Will’s best friend since the summer before first grade when they sang along together to Dolly Parton’s “Dumb Blonde” playing on the stereo. According to Will, Ellen has “this impossible goofy yet sexy paradox going on that only seems to exist in romantic comedies. She’s always been at home in her own skin” (2). While Willowdean is often aware that Ellen is thin and traditionally pretty, Ellen seems oblivious of it. Ellen doesn’t consider that Will might not want to work with her at Sweet 16 because the clothing store doesn’t sell anything above a size 12. To Ellen, differences in physical appearance don't factor into her perception of others. For example, Ellen is nonchalant about Tim, her boyfriend, being several inches shorter than her.

Ellen is optimistic. When Willowdean has a bad day, Ellen tells Will: “Okay, so this is the worst day ever, right? But the good news is that since this is the worst day ever, tomorrow can only be better” (137). Ellen is also stubborn, as seen when fighting with Willowdean throughout the book. Even when Will starts missing Ellen and makes small moves to rekindle their friendship, Ellen remains cold and distant. When Willowdean asks Tim to help with the best friends’ reconciliation, he comments that no one can change Ellen’s mind. Although Ellen recoiled from Will's attempts to reconnect, she demonstrates the power of true friendship when she pairs with Will at the pageant.

Bo is Willowdean’s crush from Harpy’s Burgers & Dogs. He talks about what a jerk he was before he met Willowdean, but he obviously adores Will and tells her how attractive he finds her several times throughout the novel. When they first start getting to know each other, he leaves a red sucker in her locker to show his affection. The first time Bo and Willowdean hang out together outside of work, Bo invites Will to watch a meteor shower with him in the Harpy’s parking lot. He mentions that his mom died five years ago. Bo can understand Will’s grief about losing Lucy (and vice versa) because he still misses his mother.

Bo played basketball at his private school, but when he injured himself and then started acting up in class, he lost his scholarship. Bo transfers to Clover City High. He doesn’t tell Will this, and when she learns it from Bo’s stepmother, Will assumes that Bo didn’t tell her because he didn’t want anyone to see them together in school. Bo apologizes profusely and even changes his seat in fifth period World History so that he can sit by Will. Through her interactions with Bo, Will comes to realize that she has been wrong in her assumptions about others. Bo challenges Will when she remarks that his family must be rich, unaware of his scholarship as well as of his family's poor neighborhood. At the end of the novel, he asks Will to be his girlfriend saying that he wants to “do it right this time” (284). Will comes to terms with her conflicted self-image through the consistent reaffirmation of Bo's affection.

Dolly Parton is an American country music singer. Willowdean loves Dolly Parton and her music just as much as her aunt Lucy loved Dolly Parton. Willowdean believes that all the good things in her life can be traced back to a Dolly Parton song. Will’s friendship with Ellen started when they were young because of Dolly Parton. (Will’s Aunt Lucy was friends with Ellen’s mother because of their shared love of the country music star.) Throughout the book, Dolly Parton’s music supports and inspires Will. It also helps keep alive the memory of Aunt Lucy. Will tells Bo that Dolly Parton is “sort of [her] guru” (246). Dolly Parton factors into Will's key relationship, the most evident being her connection to Aunt Lucy as well as to Ellen. However, when Bo sings “Jolene” for Will, he is intentionally drawing from her known adoration for Dolly Parton songs to foster a new connection with her. At the end of the novel, Will sings a Dolly Parton song at the pageant, using the power of the music to demonstrate her self-confidence. 

Mrs. Dixon is Willowdean’s mother. She works days in a nursing home but is best known around town for organizing the Miss Teen Blue Bonnet Pageant. Rosie Dixon won the pageant when she was a teenager, and every year, Mrs. Dixon wears the dress she wore when she won. When she thinks she might not be able to fit in it this year, she commits herself to fasting and nonstop Pilates classes. Willowdean and Mrs. Dixon live with each other. Prior to her death, Will’s aunt Lucy—Mrs. Dixon’s sister—lived with them.

Mrs. Dixon lived her whole life in Carson City. She calls Willowdean’s guy friends “gentlemen,” tells Willowdean that losing weight will make Will happy, and takes pride in her generations old iced tea recipe. When Will drinks iced tea with Bo’s stepmother, who makes the tea with a powered mix from a box, Willow thinks: “To my mom, powered iced tea is almost as bad as the possibility of being left behind in the wake of the rapture” (280). Although Mrs. Dixon is stuck in a traditionalist mindset of beauty, she comes to accept her unconventional and quirky daughter, despite their many personality differences. Will challenges her mother to see past social norms, and when Will comes to her mother's rescue at the pageant, Mrs. Dixon sees just how truly special her daughter is.

While Willowdean’s aunt Lucy passed away before the novel starts, she still plays a central role in the story. Although Lucy and Rosie are sisters, their relationship was strained due to their differences. This dynamic is repeated in Rosie's relationship with her daughter, Will. As a result, Will identifies more with her aunt, whom she regards as more of a mother than her own. Willowdean’s love for Dolly Parton came from Lucy, and Lucy gave Will a car, 1998 cherry-red Pontiac Grand Prix named “Jolene,” after the Dolly Parton song. The effects of Lucy's death ripples throughout the narrative as Will slowly comes to terms with the loss of her beloved aunt as well as what it means to be a plus-sized woman.

Mitch is a football player at Willowdean’s school, and she ends up sitting next to him during her second period class. Mitch asks Willowdean on a date, and they start to regularly hang out. Mitch’s father puts a lot of pressure on Mitch to be manly, and Mitch is scared to leave Clover City after high school because he doesn’t want to leave his mother alone with his father. Mitch admits to Willowdean that while he is the school’s star quarterback, he is not crazy about playing football. Mitch really likes Willowdean but is hurt when he finds out that while she’s been hanging out with him, she actually has feelings for Bo. Will views her relationship with Mitch as settling, and she uses Mitch as an emotional crutch when she doesn not feel good enough to be with Bo.

Millie Michalchuk is Willowdean’s classmate. Her parents are religious and strict. When Millie is first introduced, it is as the one girl at school who is fatter than Willowdean. Millie overhears Will talking about entering the Miss Teen Blue Bonnet Pageant and decides that she is going to enter the competition, too. She convinces her friends Amanda and Hannah to enter with her. Millie has to forge her mother’s name on the contest registration form because her parents won’t allow Millie to enter. Millie takes the competition and her preparation for it very seriously. Millie demonstrates to Will that plus-sized girls do not need to place limitations on themselves. Whereas Will initially views Millie as naïve and attempts to protect her from bullies like Patrick, Will comes to realize that Millie is a strong, capable person.

Amanda is Millie Michalchuk’s best friend. Her legs are uneven, and her classmates have always made fun of the clunky corrective shoes she has to wear. Amanda surprises everyone with her pageant competition talent. She performs with a soccer ball. She dribbles the ball, juggles it, and head butts it. Will watches Amanda and thinks that the performance, as well as Amanda, are “kind of amazing” (259). Amanda, like Millie, help Will breakdown her view of societal norms.

Hannah Perez signs up for the beauty pageant with Millie and Amanda. Hannah is Dominican and her teeth are crooked and too big for her mouth. Hannah’s school picture next to a horse goes viral because people at school call her a horse. She wears black clothes and combat boots. Hannah was in Willowdean’s third grade class and once slapped a marker out of Will’s hand and yelled at Will when Will took a marker that was sitting on the desk in front of Hannah. Hannah is sarcastic and will say mean things, which Willowdean calls her out on, asking her why she is mean to people. Hannah also surprises Will at the talent show auditions when she beautifully sings “Send in the Clowns.” Hannah and Willowdean eventually become friends, and Hannah even confides in Willowdean that she is a lesbian. Even if she had to tell a lie to convince her, it is Hannah who finally convinces Willowdean to compete in the talent pageant. Hannah's lie demonstrates her personal evolution, as she recognizes the significance the pageant has taken on for the eclectic group of girls.

Callie works with Ellen at Sweet 16. Willowdean doesn’t like Callie from the first time the two girls meet. Callie’s sister was a Miss Teen Blue Bonnet, so Callie is entering the competition, too. Callie tells Willowdean that Ellen is too good for Will and that Will has held her back for years. Willowdean also hears Callie say mean things about Will while Will is hiding in a dressing room in Sweet 16. Callie becomes close friends with Ellen throughout the novel, which makes Will jealous. As a character, Callie is the female equivalent to the male bully, Patrick Thomas. Although the bullies deride Will and cause her to question her own self-worth, their caustic interactions help Will to evolve and reconcile her self-image.

Tim is Ellen’s boyfriend and the first guy Ellen has sex with. Tim is very laid back. Willowdean says: “We could be in the midst of an alien invasion and Tim would be like, ‘Cool’” (3). Tim helps Ellen and Will reconcile their friendship toward the end of the book, adding that he “really hates that Callie girl” (217). Will admires the relationship between Ellen and Tim, one that is accepting and healthy, and hopes to achieve the same for herself. 

Patrick Thomas is a football player who is the school bully. He makes oinking noises when Millie walks by, gave Amanda the nickname “Frankenstein” because of her shoes, neighs like a horse whenever he sees Hannah, and calls Willowdean “Dumplin’” after hearing Willowdean’s mother call Will by that nickname. Patrick Thomas is Mitch’s best friend, and when Willowdean asks Mitch why, Mitch says that it’s because they have been friends for so long, he still thinks of Patrick as the little kid he played with as a child.

Callie tells Ellen and Willowdean that Bekah is the one to beat in this year’s Miss Teen Blue Bonnet Pageant. Bekah has long, golden hair and a great body. She is a great baton twirler. Baton twirling is not only Bekah’s pageant talent, but it is also how she asks Bo to the Sadie Hawkins dance. Bekah and Bo date, which makes Will jealous. Willowdean says that Bekah is “one of those pretty girls you try so hard to hate. But she’s nice and kind of talented” (38).