A Hot Dog Suit and a Whole Lot of Heart

5 out of 5 stars

This was the book that confirmed it for me: Jennifer Dugan is an auto-listen author from here on out. Hot Dog Girl is full of all the coming-of-age chaos I crave in a YA rom-com, but it’s told with so much heart and humor that it stands out in the best way. Elouise (Lou) is determined to make her summer unforgettable, even if she has to do it while sweating inside a giant hot dog costume.

Dugan nails that magical-yet-messy period of growing up, where you’re figuring out who you are while the world around you feels like it’s constantly shifting. I especially loved the layers of emotion that come through Lou’s voice. I loved hearing/feeling her stubborn optimism, romantic misadventures, and her desperate fight to hold on to something she loves. It’s messy in the way real teen feelings are, and Dugan never shies away from that.

Brittany Pressley brings so much personality to this audiobook. Her performance perfectly matches the tone of the book—funny, a little frantic, but always sincere. She gets Lou in a way that makes every moment hit harder, funnier, or sweeter than it would on the page alone.

At its core, Hot Dog Girl is a story about love—romantic, platonic, and self-love—set against the backdrop of a failing amusement park. I loved the realistic friendships, the awkward crushes, the bittersweet goodbyes, and the joy that still manages to shine through. Dugan’s books always feel like a warm hug and a gentle reminder that it’s okay to be figuring things out.

Book Description:

A fresh and funny contemporary YA rom-com about teens working as costumed characters in a local amusement park.

Elouise (Lou) Parker is determined to have the absolute best, most impossibly epic summer of her life. There are just a few things standing in her way:

  • She’s landed a job at Magic Castle Playland…as a giant dancing hot dog.
  • Her crush, the dreamy diving pirate Nick, already has a girlfriend, who is literally the princess of the park. But Lou’s never liked anyone, guy or otherwise, this much before, and now, she wants a chance at her own happily ever after.
  • Her best friend, Seeley, the carousel operator, has always been up for anything, but she’s decidedly not on board when it comes to Lou’s quest to set her up with the perfect girl or Lou’s scheme to get close to Nick.
  • And it turns out that this will be their last summer at Magic Castle Playland – ever – unless she can find a way to stop it from closing.

Jennifer Dugan’s sparkling debut coming-of-age queer romance stars a princess, a pirate, a hot dog, and a carousel operator who find love – and themselves – in unexpected people and unforgettable places.

Hot Dog Girl by Jennifer Dugan
Narrator: Brittany Pressley
Length: 7 hrs and 29 mins
Published by Listening Library on April 29th 2019
Genres: LesFic/Sapphic Fiction, Coming of Age
Also by this author: Some Girls Do, Love at First Set, Playing For Keeps
Brian
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