Violet By Design by Melissa Walker

Have you ever wondered what it’s like to grow up in the spotlight? In the realistic fiction book Violet by Design by Melissa Walker, the sequel to Violet on the Runway, the awkward main character Violet, has to. Ever since high school, Violet never fit in. People would always call her names like “giraffe girl” and make fun of her extremely thin figure. This all changes when Violet gets discovered by a renowned modeling agent while she was working at her part time job at the local movie theater. Now I know what you’re thinking…another one of those geeky-girl-turns-popular books. WRONG! Violet isn’t the only main character in this book. Some other characters include Veronica, Violet’s mentor and friend, Roger, Violet’s best friend that plays a major role in Violet’s life, and last but not least, Paulo, a fame obsessed designer who will do anything to be in the spotlight.(Including pretending to be Violet’s dreamy boyfriend.) Everything seems to be going perfect in Violet’s life so far. I mean think about it, she’s an international supermodel that gets to travel the world, she has the perfect boyfriend (or so she thinks), and best of all she gets to live out her dream. Nothing can go wrong in a world like this. Or can it?

This story is very different from any other story. For one, this book has many conflict twists all throughout the book. The author also creates a character that is so relatable. Violet shows that even a top supermodel can be insecure every once in a while. Also, the author makes sure that the conflict draws in the reader. One of the conflicts includes Violet using her blog to share a little bit too much about the modeling world. She blindly puts her eating habits out for the world to read about. After Violet flew to Brazil to do a bunch of fashion shows that would include a lot of A-list designers, she starts to gain a few pounds. In the hopes of thinning her out, Angela decides to put Violet on a major diet. Well, lets just say major is a definite under statement. Once Violet starts writing her emotions into her blog, she ends up revealing how she’s not allowed to be herself physically in the real modeling world. Violet is not just struggling outside, but inside too. She’s always been insecure with her body, and having people all around the world comment on how un-thin she is, makes it a little bit harder. One of the best parts of the book, in my opinion, is when Violet is writing on her blog, about her eating restrictions, because it shows her standing up for what she believes in. This is also the theme of the story. As long as you stand up for what you believe in, anything is possible.

There were many literary devices used. Paulo is a foil character because he challenges Violet by trying to take away her fame. He uses Violet by pretending he is her boyfriend so that all the tabloids would have his face on the cover. The author also uses characterization in this story very well. The way the writer develops the main character is amazing because Violet is the kind of character that everyone can relate too. After all, everyone has their geeky moments, unfortunately for Violet, there very often.

As for my overall opinion the book is definitely a ten-out-of-ten kind of book. I think that this ook has a really strong message all throughout the book. Also, by making Violet so relatable to the audience, the reader is left wanting to know what’s next. The author tries to create the illusion of “Expecting the unexpected” all throughout the book. This is one of those books that is definitely worth driving late to Barnes and Noble for!