What do you think?
Rate this book
Fat Vampire: A Great Fall and Halloween Read for Teens
Doug Lee is undead quite by accident—attacked by a desperate vampire, he finds himself cursed with being fat and fifteen forever. When he has no luck finding some goth chick with a vampire fetish, he resorts to sucking the blood of cows under cover of the night. But it's just not the same. Then he meets the new Indian exchange student and falls for her—hard. Yeah, he wants to bite her, but he also wants to prove himself to her. But like the laws of life, love, and high school, the laws of vampire existence are complicated—it's not as easy as studying Dracula . Especially when the star of Vampire Hunters is hot on your trail in an attempt to boost ratings. . . . Searing, hilarious, and always unexpected, Fat Vampire is a satirical tour de force from one of the most original writers of fiction today.
324 pages, Hardcover
First published July 27, 2010
87 people are currently reading
2338 people want to read
About the author
Adam Rex
92 books773 followersAdam Rex grew up in Phoenix, Arizona, the middle of three children. He was neither the smart one (older brother) or the cute one (younger sister), but he was the one who could draw. He took a lot of art classes as a kid, trying to learn to draw better, and started painting when he was 11. And later in life he was drawn down to Tucson in order to hone his skills, get a BFA from the University of Arizona, and meet his physicist wife Marie (who is both the smart and cute one).
Adam is nearsighted, bad at all sports, learning to play the theremin, and usually in need of a shave. He can carry a tune, if you don't mind the tune getting dropped and stepped on occasionally. He never remembers anyone's name until he's heard it at least three times. He likes animals, spacemen, Mexican food, Ethiopian food, monsters, puppets, comic books, 19th century art, skeletons, bugs, and robots.
Garlic and crosses are useless against Adam. Sunlight has been shown to be at least moderately effective. A silver bullet does the trick. Pretty much any bullet, really.
Adam is nearsighted, bad at all sports, learning to play the theremin, and usually in need of a shave. He can carry a tune, if you don't mind the tune getting dropped and stepped on occasionally. He never remembers anyone's name until he's heard it at least three times. He likes animals, spacemen, Mexican food, Ethiopian food, monsters, puppets, comic books, 19th century art, skeletons, bugs, and robots.
Garlic and crosses are useless against Adam. Sunlight has been shown to be at least moderately effective. A silver bullet does the trick. Pretty much any bullet, really.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 736 reviews
November 19, 2011
This was one of those books that started out funny and full of potential, but somewhere along the way the author strayed off that path. I wanted to read this for myself since the reviews were all over the place, but I'm sorry to say that this just wasn't great. As others have said, at the halfway point this book really starts to go downhill; the characters and story lose their charm, and what once was funny becomes sad and disappointing.
Doug Lee is a recently made 15-year-old vampire, who also happens to be fat and a complete dork. He's struggling with the transition and finds himself relying on his best friend and animal blood to get him through the day. He still goes to school and tries to appear normal; complaining of a skin condition and constantly wearing a poncho to combat the harmful rays of the sun. Through mysterious circumstances, Doug is placed with a vampire mentor, an even more mysterious man who lives by himself in a house full of books. It is this mentor, and Doug's feast of deer's blood, that help him become a "better" vampire.
At about the halfway point, Doug's story all but disappears, and it's the other characters that take the stage. Doug becomes a minor character is his own story. The whole idea was that Doug was becoming the vampire he wanted to be, and so therefor was more cool, menacing, and primal. But we don't really get to witness any of this. In fact, a whole year has gone by in the space of this novel, and I for one couldn't even tell. With the lack of detail and narrative, I was led to believe that the story takes place over the course of a month, at the most.
One of the characters the novel focuses on for a good party of the story is Sejal, a foreign exchange student from India. I frankly would have been happy if she had been the focus throughout. She was interesting, funny, and different - although I wonder if the author included her to spice up an otherwise lackluster story. Every other character was a one-dimensional, walking stereotype, and I didn't care about a single one of them.
It's sad really, because the first half of the novel was pure gold. It was funny and relateable and if the author had continued in that vein I'm sure I would have loved it. He had two many trains of thought going, and none of them really made it into the station. Part of the novel was written like a movie script and I actually thought this could add something, but in the end it just fell flat like everything else.
Without divulging too much of the ending, I want to say that I understood where the author was going with the story. Two characters remark early on about Neil Gaiman's Sandman and what the actions of that character meant at the end of that series. I'm sorry, Adam Rex, you're not Neil Gaiman.
The ending was the worst. Doug's character does a complete 180 again, and we're led to believe he's the sweet kid from the beginning again. I'm sorry, I'm not buying it. And you shouldn't buy this book either.
Doug Lee is a recently made 15-year-old vampire, who also happens to be fat and a complete dork. He's struggling with the transition and finds himself relying on his best friend and animal blood to get him through the day. He still goes to school and tries to appear normal; complaining of a skin condition and constantly wearing a poncho to combat the harmful rays of the sun. Through mysterious circumstances, Doug is placed with a vampire mentor, an even more mysterious man who lives by himself in a house full of books. It is this mentor, and Doug's feast of deer's blood, that help him become a "better" vampire.
At about the halfway point, Doug's story all but disappears, and it's the other characters that take the stage. Doug becomes a minor character is his own story. The whole idea was that Doug was becoming the vampire he wanted to be, and so therefor was more cool, menacing, and primal. But we don't really get to witness any of this. In fact, a whole year has gone by in the space of this novel, and I for one couldn't even tell. With the lack of detail and narrative, I was led to believe that the story takes place over the course of a month, at the most.
One of the characters the novel focuses on for a good party of the story is Sejal, a foreign exchange student from India. I frankly would have been happy if she had been the focus throughout. She was interesting, funny, and different - although I wonder if the author included her to spice up an otherwise lackluster story. Every other character was a one-dimensional, walking stereotype, and I didn't care about a single one of them.
It's sad really, because the first half of the novel was pure gold. It was funny and relateable and if the author had continued in that vein I'm sure I would have loved it. He had two many trains of thought going, and none of them really made it into the station. Part of the novel was written like a movie script and I actually thought this could add something, but in the end it just fell flat like everything else.
Without divulging too much of the ending, I want to say that I understood where the author was going with the story. Two characters remark early on about Neil Gaiman's Sandman and what the actions of that character meant at the end of that series. I'm sorry, Adam Rex, you're not Neil Gaiman.
The ending was the worst. Doug's character does a complete 180 again, and we're led to believe he's the sweet kid from the beginning again. I'm sorry, I'm not buying it. And you shouldn't buy this book either.
January 13, 2011
What a mess. The first half to two-thirds was really promising, but it disintegrated almost completely. My main problem was that the main character, Doug, starts off as a fairly likable but imperfect nerdy guy and transforms into the most unlikable protagonist I've ever read. And there's no real transition for it either - in one chapter he's amusingly trying to deal with being a "fat vampire" (lots of humor, great one-liners, joking around with his best friend, some moderate angst) and in the next he's a complete asshole. As in, "this child should be put in prison so he doesn't hurt anyone, he's giving off indicators of being a sociopath" asshole.
Throw in a bunch of random stuff (vampire hunter tv show, a vampire mentoring program, weird new vampire mythology) that never gels together into a cohesive whole or really goes anywhere and you have such a mess of a book. And I have nfc what to make of the ending.
I really did like the secondary character, Sejal, and her backstory grew to be much more engrossing than Doug's. I wish that had been explored further. I read the book really quickly, so I think I'm a fan of Rex's writing style - good dialogue and the story moves at a good pace.
So disappointed in this one, especially after such a great beginning. Maybe there will be further edits before it's published - the word "mess" really is the right way to describe it, it just needs some clean-up to reveal what I think could be a genuinely good book.
Full review here: http://stackedbooks.blogspot.com/2010...
Throw in a bunch of random stuff (vampire hunter tv show, a vampire mentoring program, weird new vampire mythology) that never gels together into a cohesive whole or really goes anywhere and you have such a mess of a book. And I have nfc what to make of the ending.
I really did like the secondary character, Sejal, and her backstory grew to be much more engrossing than Doug's. I wish that had been explored further. I read the book really quickly, so I think I'm a fan of Rex's writing style - good dialogue and the story moves at a good pace.
So disappointed in this one, especially after such a great beginning. Maybe there will be further edits before it's published - the word "mess" really is the right way to describe it, it just needs some clean-up to reveal what I think could be a genuinely good book.
Full review here: http://stackedbooks.blogspot.com/2010...
July 28, 2010
This is the first book I can remember being so angry at that I wanted to throw it across the room. I think my extreme frustration partly stems from the fact that I wanted to love it. I loved the premise, I saw Adam Rex at Comic Con and he was awesome, and I snagged a signed copy of this book there. I started reading it that night (it starts in Comic Con as a nice bonus) and it was funny and nerdy and Doug and Jay were great as geeky best friends trying to figure out Doug's new life as a vampire.
But halfway through the book the story and the characters take a turn for the worse. The awesome voice and tone of the earlier chapters vanishes, and Doug, who was first the hero (or at least main character) becomes more of a villain. The story then focuses more on the POVs of the other characters, who are boring and spend their time coloring their hair and practicing for West Side Story.
Doug does things that are so repellent that I wanted to hit him. Where he was once smart and funny, he is now a complete idiot and a total jerk who molests girls and abandons his best friend. But I stuck with it thinking, ok, maybe he would be redeemed... NOPE!
Here is the ending of the book, without any spoilers. There is a twist, which becomes obvious to everyone reading the book long before Doug figures it out. At the end you want to yell at him STOP BEING A COMPLETE IDIOT, IT IS SO OBVIOUS! Finally he figures out that he is being dumb.... and then a minor character comes in and solves Doug's problem for him. Yes the book ends with a deus ex machina instead of Dug actually fixing anything, or being redeemed, or solving his own problems.
I wanted to love this book so much and I was so, so, upset when the second half of the book failed me. Also, killing the dog gets an automatic -50 points.
But halfway through the book the story and the characters take a turn for the worse. The awesome voice and tone of the earlier chapters vanishes, and Doug, who was first the hero (or at least main character) becomes more of a villain. The story then focuses more on the POVs of the other characters, who are boring and spend their time coloring their hair and practicing for West Side Story.
Doug does things that are so repellent that I wanted to hit him. Where he was once smart and funny, he is now a complete idiot and a total jerk who molests girls and abandons his best friend. But I stuck with it thinking, ok, maybe he would be redeemed... NOPE!
Here is the ending of the book, without any spoilers. There is a twist, which becomes obvious to everyone reading the book long before Doug figures it out. At the end you want to yell at him STOP BEING A COMPLETE IDIOT, IT IS SO OBVIOUS! Finally he figures out that he is being dumb.... and then a minor character comes in and solves Doug's problem for him. Yes the book ends with a deus ex machina instead of Dug actually fixing anything, or being redeemed, or solving his own problems.
I wanted to love this book so much and I was so, so, upset when the second half of the book failed me. Also, killing the dog gets an automatic -50 points.
August 9, 2010
There is nothing to like about this book. And, believe me, I wanted to like it. I wanted to like it so much.
Doug, the main character, is fifteen, fat, and a vampire. He isn't cool. He'll never be cool, and his life is, quite literally, over. Plus, he's a total comic book fanboy. To the point where the book starts at Comic Con. With a premise like that, this book should have been a slam dunk.
But... it wasn't. It failed on all levels. Doug goes from being nerdy and awesome to obnoxious and annoying. He drops his best friend, starts acting like an ass in an attempt to be popular and almost kills his 'girlfriend'. And does he feel any remorse? Does he do anything to redeem himself? NO. Not at all. He doesn't even die like I sort of hoped he would. He just... flails uselessly on the ground for a bit.
And the other main character, Senjal, isn't any better. Once again, she should have been awesome. She has a totally believe back story as a former internet troll. I'm not sure how I feel about 'the google,' which is supposed to be some form of sever internet addiction, but it did make for an interesting discussion of what it means to be living in an overly analyzed digital world. But, she doesn't ever do anything. Senjal serves primarily as an object of desire for Doug, which I can understand. A boy, especially a fanboy, needs to have a crush. Still, you would think that there would be more to her, since half of the book is seen through her POV. Instead she just short of drifts through the world she inhabits, not expressing much of an opinion about anything, tagging along with her host sister and trying to make up for her shady internet past.
Now, I could totally be cool with that if Adam Rex was making the point that she cannot connect because of her deep immersion into the world wide web, but that's not the vibe you get at all when reading her. It is clear that she is meant to be the hero of the piece, the person who dealt with her past and moved on to a, hopefully, beautiful future.
Senjal is the one who figures out what Dough is. Senjal is the one who pieces together who the villain of book the is. Senjal dispenses what is meant to be ground shaking words of wisdom as Doug lays not-dying on the ground. But all of it just comes off as flat and one dimensional as she is.
And since I mentioned it, the villain. WTF. Seriously? The gay vampire is the bad guy? And he's the one who turned all the homecoming king clones? And not a single one of those clones is confident enough with his sexuality to say that it was a creepy old guy that attacked them? They all had to invent a story about some hot, French babe? Seriously?
And the evil gay vampire of doom was just... such a let down. His actions make no sense. I mean, I can understand turning guys who look like his long lost love, but why did he go stalking Senjal? And why attack Doug's best friend? There was a tangential connection between what he was doing and what was done in The Sandman, which was conveniently discussed by two characters earlier in the book, but even that was weak.
Idk, I can forgive a lot in a book. I tend to look for that silver lining, to connect with the minor characters, and to find meaning in the littlest things. But Fat Vampire fended off all of my attempts to understand it, let alone enjoy it. Random characters were introduced, then vanish with no explanation. Plot lines showed up, meandered for a bit, and then disappeared without coming to any sort of conclusion or furthering the over arching plot at all; and amazing ideas (like a vampire super hero) were toyed with just long enough to get my hopes up and then never mentioned again.
So yeah. There is nothing to like about Fat Vampire. Nothing at all.
Doug, the main character, is fifteen, fat, and a vampire. He isn't cool. He'll never be cool, and his life is, quite literally, over. Plus, he's a total comic book fanboy. To the point where the book starts at Comic Con. With a premise like that, this book should have been a slam dunk.
But... it wasn't. It failed on all levels. Doug goes from being nerdy and awesome to obnoxious and annoying. He drops his best friend, starts acting like an ass in an attempt to be popular and almost kills his 'girlfriend'. And does he feel any remorse? Does he do anything to redeem himself? NO. Not at all. He doesn't even die like I sort of hoped he would. He just... flails uselessly on the ground for a bit.
And the other main character, Senjal, isn't any better. Once again, she should have been awesome. She has a totally believe back story as a former internet troll. I'm not sure how I feel about 'the google,' which is supposed to be some form of sever internet addiction, but it did make for an interesting discussion of what it means to be living in an overly analyzed digital world. But, she doesn't ever do anything. Senjal serves primarily as an object of desire for Doug, which I can understand. A boy, especially a fanboy, needs to have a crush. Still, you would think that there would be more to her, since half of the book is seen through her POV. Instead she just short of drifts through the world she inhabits, not expressing much of an opinion about anything, tagging along with her host sister and trying to make up for her shady internet past.
Now, I could totally be cool with that if Adam Rex was making the point that she cannot connect because of her deep immersion into the world wide web, but that's not the vibe you get at all when reading her. It is clear that she is meant to be the hero of the piece, the person who dealt with her past and moved on to a, hopefully, beautiful future.
Senjal is the one who figures out what Dough is. Senjal is the one who pieces together who the villain of book the is. Senjal dispenses what is meant to be ground shaking words of wisdom as Doug lays not-dying on the ground. But all of it just comes off as flat and one dimensional as she is.
And since I mentioned it, the villain. WTF. Seriously? The gay vampire is the bad guy? And he's the one who turned all the homecoming king clones? And not a single one of those clones is confident enough with his sexuality to say that it was a creepy old guy that attacked them? They all had to invent a story about some hot, French babe? Seriously?
And the evil gay vampire of doom was just... such a let down. His actions make no sense. I mean, I can understand turning guys who look like his long lost love, but why did he go stalking Senjal? And why attack Doug's best friend? There was a tangential connection between what he was doing and what was done in The Sandman, which was conveniently discussed by two characters earlier in the book, but even that was weak.
Idk, I can forgive a lot in a book. I tend to look for that silver lining, to connect with the minor characters, and to find meaning in the littlest things. But Fat Vampire fended off all of my attempts to understand it, let alone enjoy it. Random characters were introduced, then vanish with no explanation. Plot lines showed up, meandered for a bit, and then disappeared without coming to any sort of conclusion or furthering the over arching plot at all; and amazing ideas (like a vampire super hero) were toyed with just long enough to get my hopes up and then never mentioned again.
So yeah. There is nothing to like about Fat Vampire. Nothing at all.
March 7, 2010
The BEST vampire book in the history of EVERYTHING.
Up until this morning when I finished this book, Peeps by Scott Westerfeld was the best vampire book in the history of everything. And i thought it would remain that way.
But the mighty, mighty hand of Adam Rex has bitch-slapped Peeps out of the way and stolen that title for Fat Vampire.
It sheds a whole new light on "The Ennobled" -as the Signora Cassopeia calls them- and surpasses the luminous blacklight that Parasite Positives (or "Peeps") had originally shed on undead, human ticks.
It's freaking side-splitting hilarious, original, thought-provoking, and even if it wasn't the word that Adam Rex was hoping for, it's adorable.
This teen look at vampires eliminates the "OH WE'RE ALL BEAUTIFUL AND SPARKLY AND NOT SOCIALLY AWKWARD AT ALL" stereotype that everyone seems to believe.
It was impossible to put down. CHances are, i will be rereading this for many many years to come.
My favorite line?
"Thank you. Your brotherly encouragement is the fucking wind beneath my wings."
and I would also like to say that the ords 'fuckwit' and 'fucktard' are forever in my vocabulary thanks to this book.
Up until this morning when I finished this book, Peeps by Scott Westerfeld was the best vampire book in the history of everything. And i thought it would remain that way.
But the mighty, mighty hand of Adam Rex has bitch-slapped Peeps out of the way and stolen that title for Fat Vampire.
It sheds a whole new light on "The Ennobled" -as the Signora Cassopeia calls them- and surpasses the luminous blacklight that Parasite Positives (or "Peeps") had originally shed on undead, human ticks.
It's freaking side-splitting hilarious, original, thought-provoking, and even if it wasn't the word that Adam Rex was hoping for, it's adorable.
This teen look at vampires eliminates the "OH WE'RE ALL BEAUTIFUL AND SPARKLY AND NOT SOCIALLY AWKWARD AT ALL" stereotype that everyone seems to believe.
It was impossible to put down. CHances are, i will be rereading this for many many years to come.
My favorite line?
"Thank you. Your brotherly encouragement is the fucking wind beneath my wings."
and I would also like to say that the ords 'fuckwit' and 'fucktard' are forever in my vocabulary thanks to this book.
February 15, 2011
It’s been a long time since I’ve read a book that made me laugh out loud as much as Fat Vampire by Adam Rex. I mean literally, sitting in bed, home alone and cracking up. Loud, hysterical laughter. Laughter so hard, I had to put down the book to compose myself, then call my mom to read her a passage, and insist that she read this book the minute I was done with it. (She now has it in her possession. And then my dad has dibs.)
Fat Vampire tells the story of Doug, who finds himself accidentally a vampire, and therefore facing an eternity of life as a chubby 15-year-old. Doomed to never slim down. Doomed to never get his driver’s license (legally, at least). Doomed to sucking the blood from unsuspecting cows because he can’t even get the goth girls at school to go for his vampire story. Oh, and while he’s coming to grips with his not-so-sparkly life as a vampire and coping with his crush on the new foreign exchange student, Doug’s also being chased by the team of the TV show “Vampire Hunters.” No big, right?
Rex writes with a dry, sarcastic tone that lends itself perfectly to this story and its characters. It’s no-nonsense and that’s what makes this outrageous story work so well. He just tells it like it is, so that there’s no questioning the supernatural elements. As the reader, you just go with it. And yet, Rex uses this simplistic prose to create such colorful scenes that you can see each moment play out so clearly. He weaves together such vivid imagery that the story and characters come to life as you’re reading.
Rex also injects Fat Vampire with the perfect amount of pop culture references, whether real or fictional (including a thinly veiled take on the cult classic vampire movie, “The Lost Boys”). Two of the pop culture highlights include Doug and his best friend Jay cavorting through San Diego Comic Con (all while Doug tries to dodge the sunlight in a poncho) and a colorful scene set during a midnight screening of “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” (a tradition older readers, especially, will appreciate).
Fat Vampire is marketed as a Young Adult book — and while it definitely is a book about teens and would appeal to teen readers — I would hardly limit it to this branding. This book has broad cross-over appeals amongst readers of both genders and all ages (though maybe not readers too young, since there are some F-bombs and other mature subjects addressed).
Rex has created a classic farce on the vampire genre and the coming of age story, while crafting a story that is uniquely his own. You will laugh at Doug. You will feel sorry for Doug. You’ll probably want to punch Doug at some point, and tell him to get himself together. But no matter how you feel, you’ll definitely feel something. Fat Vampire is one of those books that’s so funny you forget it’s making you excited to keep turning the page.
Fat Vampire tells the story of Doug, who finds himself accidentally a vampire, and therefore facing an eternity of life as a chubby 15-year-old. Doomed to never slim down. Doomed to never get his driver’s license (legally, at least). Doomed to sucking the blood from unsuspecting cows because he can’t even get the goth girls at school to go for his vampire story. Oh, and while he’s coming to grips with his not-so-sparkly life as a vampire and coping with his crush on the new foreign exchange student, Doug’s also being chased by the team of the TV show “Vampire Hunters.” No big, right?
Rex writes with a dry, sarcastic tone that lends itself perfectly to this story and its characters. It’s no-nonsense and that’s what makes this outrageous story work so well. He just tells it like it is, so that there’s no questioning the supernatural elements. As the reader, you just go with it. And yet, Rex uses this simplistic prose to create such colorful scenes that you can see each moment play out so clearly. He weaves together such vivid imagery that the story and characters come to life as you’re reading.
Rex also injects Fat Vampire with the perfect amount of pop culture references, whether real or fictional (including a thinly veiled take on the cult classic vampire movie, “The Lost Boys”). Two of the pop culture highlights include Doug and his best friend Jay cavorting through San Diego Comic Con (all while Doug tries to dodge the sunlight in a poncho) and a colorful scene set during a midnight screening of “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” (a tradition older readers, especially, will appreciate).
Fat Vampire is marketed as a Young Adult book — and while it definitely is a book about teens and would appeal to teen readers — I would hardly limit it to this branding. This book has broad cross-over appeals amongst readers of both genders and all ages (though maybe not readers too young, since there are some F-bombs and other mature subjects addressed).
Rex has created a classic farce on the vampire genre and the coming of age story, while crafting a story that is uniquely his own. You will laugh at Doug. You will feel sorry for Doug. You’ll probably want to punch Doug at some point, and tell him to get himself together. But no matter how you feel, you’ll definitely feel something. Fat Vampire is one of those books that’s so funny you forget it’s making you excited to keep turning the page.
August 14, 2019
Halfway through this book, I read the reviews and almost got scared off reading the rest. Glad I continued! There is definitely a tone shift from the first half to the second half. The first half of this book is light-hearted, slapstick, silly, sweet, and has a middle grade vibe. The second half turns serious and introspective, the humor gets dark, there's more blatant social commentary, and the themes veer fully into YA territory. The two main characters, Doug and Sejal, turn out to have hidden demons. I don't think the author signaled this change at all, so it takes readers by surprise, and many resented the sudden change in tone and themes and humor. However, I actually enjoyed the second half more!
A number of reviewers say they liked Doug until he turned into an asshole. I think Doug is a classic unreliable narrator, and the signs of his jerkish behavior were there, if subtle. In his POV, he is the hero. But he is a classic case of "so-called nice guy is self-deceptive and doesn't realize he is the opposite of a nice guy." He spent his whole life thinking he was the underdog, but it turns out he's a bully. And he's also a rather mundane, normal teenager, despite being a vampire with weird powers--he thinks he's a superhero, but he isn't.
In the end, the story gives a self-aware nod that there are no heroes in this tale, and if anyone is the hero, it is Sejal.
One thing this book does exceptionally well is give a genuine-feeling glimpse into the lives and psychology of teenagers. I am in awe whenever an adult author captures childhood so well.
The audiobook narrator is very good with accents, but I think he did a disservice to this book by making Doug and Jay sound slow, like Dumb & Dumber. Their characters aren't supposed to be stupid, per se. The dumb-ass parody of teenage voices made it hard to get a handle on their characters.
The themes and humor in this book are subtle, but I really enjoyed it.
A number of reviewers say they liked Doug until he turned into an asshole. I think Doug is a classic unreliable narrator, and the signs of his jerkish behavior were there, if subtle. In his POV, he is the hero. But he is a classic case of "so-called nice guy is self-deceptive and doesn't realize he is the opposite of a nice guy." He spent his whole life thinking he was the underdog, but it turns out he's a bully. And he's also a rather mundane, normal teenager, despite being a vampire with weird powers--he thinks he's a superhero, but he isn't.
In the end, the story gives a self-aware nod that there are no heroes in this tale, and if anyone is the hero, it is Sejal.
One thing this book does exceptionally well is give a genuine-feeling glimpse into the lives and psychology of teenagers. I am in awe whenever an adult author captures childhood so well.
The audiobook narrator is very good with accents, but I think he did a disservice to this book by making Doug and Jay sound slow, like Dumb & Dumber. Their characters aren't supposed to be stupid, per se. The dumb-ass parody of teenage voices made it hard to get a handle on their characters.
The themes and humor in this book are subtle, but I really enjoyed it.
January 17, 2021
*Overdrive app*
Narrator: Five stars 🌟
Story: 4 stars 🌟
---
This was a random rec from a good friend of mine and I just started listening to it after a bad day , not expecting much. Just read my friends review and saw the overall rating for it.
At first it was just okay for me, I was interested but not totally invested but something about it still spoke to me so I kept going forward (and it was helping me forget about certain stressors in my life). It took a couple hours to pick up but after that I was listening every chance I got:).
You'll either love it or hate it,no in between methinks. Its just a fun story that goes along its merry way.
The ending. I can see why some would hate it and I partly agree. A couple things of what the author did I liked and the rest not so much.
It felt like the author wasn't sure how to end it maybe and just threw what he did out there..
Or I could be reading that wrong. *shrugs*
Would recommend 👌 👍 It was the right book at the right time for me.
Narrator: Five stars 🌟
Story: 4 stars 🌟
---
This was a random rec from a good friend of mine and I just started listening to it after a bad day , not expecting much. Just read my friends review and saw the overall rating for it.
At first it was just okay for me, I was interested but not totally invested but something about it still spoke to me so I kept going forward (and it was helping me forget about certain stressors in my life). It took a couple hours to pick up but after that I was listening every chance I got:).
You'll either love it or hate it,no in between methinks. Its just a fun story that goes along its merry way.
The ending. I can see why some would hate it and I partly agree. A couple things of what the author did I liked and the rest not so much.
It felt like the author wasn't sure how to end it maybe and just threw what he did out there..
Or I could be reading that wrong. *shrugs*
Would recommend 👌 👍 It was the right book at the right time for me.
June 24, 2010
I really wanted to like this book because I like Adam Rex and the cover art is the best EVER. But I found the story a bit confusing, the moral a bit heavy-handed, and the whole thing just not that entertaining in general. It took me forever to get through it because I just wasn't that jazzed to get back to it. Bummer.
Doug is a fifteen-year-old, chubby nerd who is bitten in an off-putting encounter with another fifteen-year-old jock vampire. Now he is stuck in his body forever, doesn't know how exactly to be a vampire, and really just wants to go back to normal so he can ask out the new, cute Indian exchange student. While the premise sounds like a pretty good book, the plot nose dives. The book is also about Doug trying to figure out who he is and what makes a good person - in an evil monster's body. A good chunk of the story is also told by Sejal, the Indian exchange student who is struggling with the same questions. I guess that struggle is what this novel is supposed to be about, but all the action is a bit confusing and Doug only becomes less and less likable as a character as the book goes on. It's just a mess.
Doug is a fifteen-year-old, chubby nerd who is bitten in an off-putting encounter with another fifteen-year-old jock vampire. Now he is stuck in his body forever, doesn't know how exactly to be a vampire, and really just wants to go back to normal so he can ask out the new, cute Indian exchange student. While the premise sounds like a pretty good book, the plot nose dives. The book is also about Doug trying to figure out who he is and what makes a good person - in an evil monster's body. A good chunk of the story is also told by Sejal, the Indian exchange student who is struggling with the same questions. I guess that struggle is what this novel is supposed to be about, but all the action is a bit confusing and Doug only becomes less and less likable as a character as the book goes on. It's just a mess.
February 15, 2015
Fat Vampire by Adam Rex starts off with a lot of potential. We meet Doug Lee, a chubby fifteen year old vampire who isn't the most popular or charismatic teen. We also meet Doug's nerdy best friend Jay. For the first 50 -100 pages, I was quite amused by the struggles of Doug as a newbie vampire and by all the shenanigans Jay and Doug got into. Then all of a sudden Sejal, a love interest for Doug, and a bunch of other people including teens and older vampires got involved and it went downhill. The whole thing started feeling really disconnected and choppy, and I couldn't make myself care about all the side story going on. Doug also changed from a loveable and goofy underdog into.... well, kind of an ass. I'm not even going to get started on my problems with the ending. I'll simply say it felt like a really lazy way out for the author. If the story and characters had stayed closer to how they started in the beginning, it would have been far more enjoyable for me.
January 14, 2012
Absolutely fantastic. There is just no other way to say it. FAT VAMPIRE spoofs the hell out of everything that is vampire nowadays but maintains this underlying tone of seriousness that really hits home. Underneath it all it's about a kid fitting in in life. How many kids now are all vampire obsessed and want to turn into a vampire? Well Adam Rex takes that notion and slaps reality home like a puck into a net. If you're a meatball-looking geek in life, then guess what? You're going to be a meatball-looking geek in undeath. Except your lack of eating won't get you to lose any weight. Sorry.
It throws everything that pop culture has made of vampires right back in its face. Yeah, it sucks to have to go to school when you're a vampire because of that slight light sensitivity you have. The remedy? A poncho. Constantly. As if you weren't made fun of enough. And even as a vampire you can't get chicks to get with you because you're a bit of a creep factor. You take the je ne sais quoi that vampires are supposed to have and give it a holy water bath because that vampire blood didn't eradicate your inner comic book-loving goof.
The best part? The homage to The Lost Boys. Oh yeah, it's in there. And it's not very subtle if you're a fan of the movie. But it's awesome all the same.
There wasn't a character in FAT VAMPIRE that I didn't like. I thought Doug was an insanely complex character that even from the beginning wasn't your standard geek because he's never not a vampire in the book. So while he wants to geek out at Comic-Con, he needs to raid the local blood mobile in order to do it. And you can see him change; slip into his vampire skin a little better. And people notice it too, but it's not necessarily in a good way. And he has a hard time with this and it shows. Doug's just such a dynamic character; I really couldn't get enough of him.
Sejal was pretty cool too. There was really no bowing to American pressures at all and she really stood her ground when it came to Doug. She told him how it was without any pretenses and didn't back down. She's super girl for doing that, I think. But in the end she was there for him exactly how he needed her to be, which is different from how he wanted her to be. Read it and you'll see what I'm talking about.
The ending? Amazing. At first it starts off kind of quirky and goofy and then it just slams you with seriousness that leaves you going awww in a sad sort of way. It doesn't cut any corners, it doesn't sugar-coat anything. It ends exactly how the story should end and I love it all the more for it.
Again, absolutely fantastic. It's a satire without really being a satire but maintains it's seriousness about itself without taking itself too serious. It's funny (Doug is called Assferatu, win), it's witty and it puts vampires right back in the grave where they belong. Read it. You'll love it.
It throws everything that pop culture has made of vampires right back in its face. Yeah, it sucks to have to go to school when you're a vampire because of that slight light sensitivity you have. The remedy? A poncho. Constantly. As if you weren't made fun of enough. And even as a vampire you can't get chicks to get with you because you're a bit of a creep factor. You take the je ne sais quoi that vampires are supposed to have and give it a holy water bath because that vampire blood didn't eradicate your inner comic book-loving goof.
The best part? The homage to The Lost Boys. Oh yeah, it's in there. And it's not very subtle if you're a fan of the movie. But it's awesome all the same.
There wasn't a character in FAT VAMPIRE that I didn't like. I thought Doug was an insanely complex character that even from the beginning wasn't your standard geek because he's never not a vampire in the book. So while he wants to geek out at Comic-Con, he needs to raid the local blood mobile in order to do it. And you can see him change; slip into his vampire skin a little better. And people notice it too, but it's not necessarily in a good way. And he has a hard time with this and it shows. Doug's just such a dynamic character; I really couldn't get enough of him.
Sejal was pretty cool too. There was really no bowing to American pressures at all and she really stood her ground when it came to Doug. She told him how it was without any pretenses and didn't back down. She's super girl for doing that, I think. But in the end she was there for him exactly how he needed her to be, which is different from how he wanted her to be. Read it and you'll see what I'm talking about.
The ending? Amazing. At first it starts off kind of quirky and goofy and then it just slams you with seriousness that leaves you going awww in a sad sort of way. It doesn't cut any corners, it doesn't sugar-coat anything. It ends exactly how the story should end and I love it all the more for it.
Again, absolutely fantastic. It's a satire without really being a satire but maintains it's seriousness about itself without taking itself too serious. It's funny (Doug is called Assferatu, win), it's witty and it puts vampires right back in the grave where they belong. Read it. You'll love it.
October 10, 2022
Fun premise, but I felt like it wandered a lot, and not in entertaining ways. Also, who were we rooting for? I liked Sujol (Sorry if that's not the right spelling, I listened to this), and Kat, and even Jay, mostly. But Doug was a dick, and so were most of the others, especially the vampires. But there was no exploration of whether they had always been awful, or if it was being a vampire that did it to them, or just highlighted the inner asshole. And in the end, characters that we had spent a lot of time with in the first two thirds of the book just got dropped, leaving me wondering if they are okay. Also I have a lot of questions about and for, the vampire elders of Philadelphia.
July 21, 2016
It was an ok story.
January 2, 2014
Every vampire that we have met in the new age are all the same. Brooding, mysterious, perfect looking men who fall in love with the human girl. Are people afraid to show the imperfect vampires? Say the short, fat one who no one likes and every girl will laugh in their face as they try to be mysterious? Well, fear no more, for one author has given us that. Let us all applaud Adam Rex!
Whenever we think of vampires, we think of Anne Rice’s Louis and Lestate, Stephenie Meyer’s Edward Cullen and Charlaine Harris’ Bill and Eric. The all too typical architecture of a modern vampire. But now, Adam Rex brings us Douglas Lee. Who is Douglas Lee you ask? Well let me not hold you from meeting this great fellow. Douglas Lee is a short, fat, Jewish vampire who will politely ask you if he can suck your blood, and then be seen walking away with a pout because he was turned down.
Douglas is fifteen-years-old when he is attacked by the woman of his dreams. Or so he says. But the truth? He was attacked by his naked acquaintance and is too ashamed to admit it. Douglas could barely fit in his tragic story of his human life and now fitting in as a vampire is even worse. The only reason he stays sane is because of Jay, his best friend who entertains himself by proving and disproving vampiric ideas.
Then we meet Sejal, an exchange student from India who traveled to America due to a severe case of “the Google”. Sejal and Douglas’ lives do not intertwine as one might expect. He is in love with her, and she is merely a friendly face trying to fit into the crowd. Unlike all other vampiric fiction, this story is not about love. It is about their story.
As mentioned several times before, I don’t usually enjoy vampire novels. I have never liked them, even when I was a kid. And now, seeing them being taken out of their traditions, I have grown even more dislike for them. I actually won Fat Vampire in a contest and I finally got to reading it. I am glad I actually did read it and not give it away. In the beginning I kind of hesitant about actually reading it. I did laugh with the funny one liners and the sense of humor the characters had, but the fact that it was a vampire novel seemed to throw me off course. I almost gave up at one point just because it was a vampire novel.
But I made myself go through until I finished it. Each character had their own funny personality that really adds to the story. And it is not as if we are meeting them for the first time. From the very beginning we go as if we have already know them and throughout the story we learn more and more about them.
What would a vampire novel be without the inclusion of a vampire hunter? That’s right, someone wants to hurt our lovable, fat vampire. Within the world of Fat Vampire, there exists a show that is not much unlike our real world Ghost Hunters. They’ve got their lock on Douglas with a couple of Redeemers, a hunter-made weapon that might even make a human or two raise their eyebrows.
By the end of the book, you are feeling pretty good. You have laughed plenty of times, gasped, and laughed a bit more. But by the end, you are left with your mouth opened by the shock of an ending.
This novel is one of those that you either hate it, love it, or don’t really know which category to put it in. Most of the humor in it wouldn’t make everyone laugh but when it does, you’ll get a real kick out of it. So if you’re not really a vampire fan, but want to give it a try, read Fat Vampire. A never coming of age story starring our cake-eating friend. A blood cake that is.
Whenever we think of vampires, we think of Anne Rice’s Louis and Lestate, Stephenie Meyer’s Edward Cullen and Charlaine Harris’ Bill and Eric. The all too typical architecture of a modern vampire. But now, Adam Rex brings us Douglas Lee. Who is Douglas Lee you ask? Well let me not hold you from meeting this great fellow. Douglas Lee is a short, fat, Jewish vampire who will politely ask you if he can suck your blood, and then be seen walking away with a pout because he was turned down.
Douglas is fifteen-years-old when he is attacked by the woman of his dreams. Or so he says. But the truth? He was attacked by his naked acquaintance and is too ashamed to admit it. Douglas could barely fit in his tragic story of his human life and now fitting in as a vampire is even worse. The only reason he stays sane is because of Jay, his best friend who entertains himself by proving and disproving vampiric ideas.
Then we meet Sejal, an exchange student from India who traveled to America due to a severe case of “the Google”. Sejal and Douglas’ lives do not intertwine as one might expect. He is in love with her, and she is merely a friendly face trying to fit into the crowd. Unlike all other vampiric fiction, this story is not about love. It is about their story.
As mentioned several times before, I don’t usually enjoy vampire novels. I have never liked them, even when I was a kid. And now, seeing them being taken out of their traditions, I have grown even more dislike for them. I actually won Fat Vampire in a contest and I finally got to reading it. I am glad I actually did read it and not give it away. In the beginning I kind of hesitant about actually reading it. I did laugh with the funny one liners and the sense of humor the characters had, but the fact that it was a vampire novel seemed to throw me off course. I almost gave up at one point just because it was a vampire novel.
But I made myself go through until I finished it. Each character had their own funny personality that really adds to the story. And it is not as if we are meeting them for the first time. From the very beginning we go as if we have already know them and throughout the story we learn more and more about them.
What would a vampire novel be without the inclusion of a vampire hunter? That’s right, someone wants to hurt our lovable, fat vampire. Within the world of Fat Vampire, there exists a show that is not much unlike our real world Ghost Hunters. They’ve got their lock on Douglas with a couple of Redeemers, a hunter-made weapon that might even make a human or two raise their eyebrows.
By the end of the book, you are feeling pretty good. You have laughed plenty of times, gasped, and laughed a bit more. But by the end, you are left with your mouth opened by the shock of an ending.
This novel is one of those that you either hate it, love it, or don’t really know which category to put it in. Most of the humor in it wouldn’t make everyone laugh but when it does, you’ll get a real kick out of it. So if you’re not really a vampire fan, but want to give it a try, read Fat Vampire. A never coming of age story starring our cake-eating friend. A blood cake that is.
September 17, 2010
Fallacious Fat
This book gets a 2 out of 5 gnomes, It has a brilliant premise for pretty much the first half of the book but then it kind of throws that right out the window towards the end and the main character becomes unlikeable.
This book was really kind of disappointing. I was drawn in by the cover and the synopsis. I was the first person to even request it from the library.
Ok, first the premise, Doug is fifteen and now a vampire but he wasn't good looking when he became a vampire hence the title Fat Vampire. The only other person he tells about being a vampire is his best friend Jay. The have some very funny escapades in the beginning of the book that involve going to Comic Con and a blood mobile. Doug usually gets his blood from cows but they have quite the trip to the zoo that involves a panda mom, a baby panda, and a video camera. Doug escapes but is seen on tape by the camera.
Then comes in the other very entertaining part of this book, the Vampire Hunters TV show. The host of this show is seen as being pretty much certifiable by his staff. All they usually do is track down European guys with bad accents and lately have shows of them shooting dummies with stake guns. Then they see a video and he's sure that there is a real vampire out there aka Doug.
There is humor to be found in this book, the beginning is chock full of funny. My favorite part is when Doug is trying to transform into a bat but gets stuck halfway thus looking pretty horrifying. Another great part is the story that Doug tells and the true story about who actually made Doug a vampire.
The love interest of the book, Sejal, seems like she is going to fit well into the book but she just doesn't. She has the Google, which is portrayed like severe internet addiction. When you find out here whole story it just makes her unlikeable. She seems like a character that didn't even need to be added to the book.
Overall I really wish the book would have continued along like the first part where it was just Doug and Jay and the Vampire Hunters TV show that is after Doug. When you bring in a love interest who is not interested, and a group or new and old vampires that are supposed to mentor the new vampires, things just kind of fall apart.
The minute Doug starts taking blood from a human he turns into a well to put it nicely, a jerk. Technically though he should have been changing into a jerk earlier/become better looking from the blood that he stole from a blood mobile earlier in the book. He even acts like a superhero at one point but nothing ever comes of that part of the story.
The ending, wow, it made me really mad I won't spoil it for you but I hate when endings make no sense or just seem lazy.
This had the creative potential to be truly awesome but alas the author did not put the pieces together in a pleasing way.
This book gets a 2 out of 5 gnomes, It has a brilliant premise for pretty much the first half of the book but then it kind of throws that right out the window towards the end and the main character becomes unlikeable.
This book was really kind of disappointing. I was drawn in by the cover and the synopsis. I was the first person to even request it from the library.
Ok, first the premise, Doug is fifteen and now a vampire but he wasn't good looking when he became a vampire hence the title Fat Vampire. The only other person he tells about being a vampire is his best friend Jay. The have some very funny escapades in the beginning of the book that involve going to Comic Con and a blood mobile. Doug usually gets his blood from cows but they have quite the trip to the zoo that involves a panda mom, a baby panda, and a video camera. Doug escapes but is seen on tape by the camera.
Then comes in the other very entertaining part of this book, the Vampire Hunters TV show. The host of this show is seen as being pretty much certifiable by his staff. All they usually do is track down European guys with bad accents and lately have shows of them shooting dummies with stake guns. Then they see a video and he's sure that there is a real vampire out there aka Doug.
There is humor to be found in this book, the beginning is chock full of funny. My favorite part is when Doug is trying to transform into a bat but gets stuck halfway thus looking pretty horrifying. Another great part is the story that Doug tells and the true story about who actually made Doug a vampire.
The love interest of the book, Sejal, seems like she is going to fit well into the book but she just doesn't. She has the Google, which is portrayed like severe internet addiction. When you find out here whole story it just makes her unlikeable. She seems like a character that didn't even need to be added to the book.
Overall I really wish the book would have continued along like the first part where it was just Doug and Jay and the Vampire Hunters TV show that is after Doug. When you bring in a love interest who is not interested, and a group or new and old vampires that are supposed to mentor the new vampires, things just kind of fall apart.
The minute Doug starts taking blood from a human he turns into a well to put it nicely, a jerk. Technically though he should have been changing into a jerk earlier/become better looking from the blood that he stole from a blood mobile earlier in the book. He even acts like a superhero at one point but nothing ever comes of that part of the story.
The ending, wow, it made me really mad I won't spoil it for you but I hate when endings make no sense or just seem lazy.
This had the creative potential to be truly awesome but alas the author did not put the pieces together in a pleasing way.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 29, 2010
I wanted to love this book, I really did. Smekday is one of my all-time favorite middle grade novels--funny, inventive and quotable. The illustrations are superb.
But this book is a mess. Rex never gets a handle on point of view, so the narration is a mix of kind-of Doug and then kind-of Sejal and a snarkily witty omniscient voice. Sadly, it never gels.
The first few chapters are laugh-out-loud promising, placing newly vampired Doug in San Diego for Comic Con. Yes! A nerd-boy vampire from the Philly 'burbs, none too sparkly sexy. Awkward as hell, feeding on cows. Converted by a guy vampire (ugh!)near Hickory Run in the Poconos. (A favorite detail of mine, as it was a favorite childhood destination.) Then Indian exchange student Sejal appears, and evertyhing goes downhill. Too much telling, not enough showing. A victim of social networking addiction, "a case of the Google," brings her to America and a host family with no more technology than dial-up on a Pentium II.
The gang of high school friends are assembled, and with the exception of Cat (Sejal's host-sister), none are memorable. The description of a night out at Rocky Horror is groaningly painful--"Abby met them dressed like a syphilitic French maid." It sounds like it's written from the POV of a clueless adult rather than a virgin teen. And what's the point of naming a character after yourself, Adam? A confrontation erupts in " a floral rococo of virtuoso cursing." Huh? "But these were mostly drama kids, so the girls were more prone to histrionics, and the boys were more likely to throw parties than punches." You lost me, Adam (the writer). Show! Write the scene!
Doug begins to find his vampire roots with the help of gay-vamp mentor Stephin. He longs for Sejal. He becomes distant from his best friend, Jay. A TV reality show, Vampire Hunters, is added to the sloppy mix.
And by the end, I didn't care what happened to Doug, Sejal, or anyone else. Which was a good thing, as resolution is an elusive thing in this rambling tome.
But this book is a mess. Rex never gets a handle on point of view, so the narration is a mix of kind-of Doug and then kind-of Sejal and a snarkily witty omniscient voice. Sadly, it never gels.
The first few chapters are laugh-out-loud promising, placing newly vampired Doug in San Diego for Comic Con. Yes! A nerd-boy vampire from the Philly 'burbs, none too sparkly sexy. Awkward as hell, feeding on cows. Converted by a guy vampire (ugh!)near Hickory Run in the Poconos. (A favorite detail of mine, as it was a favorite childhood destination.) Then Indian exchange student Sejal appears, and evertyhing goes downhill. Too much telling, not enough showing. A victim of social networking addiction, "a case of the Google," brings her to America and a host family with no more technology than dial-up on a Pentium II.
The gang of high school friends are assembled, and with the exception of Cat (Sejal's host-sister), none are memorable. The description of a night out at Rocky Horror is groaningly painful--"Abby met them dressed like a syphilitic French maid." It sounds like it's written from the POV of a clueless adult rather than a virgin teen. And what's the point of naming a character after yourself, Adam? A confrontation erupts in " a floral rococo of virtuoso cursing." Huh? "But these were mostly drama kids, so the girls were more prone to histrionics, and the boys were more likely to throw parties than punches." You lost me, Adam (the writer). Show! Write the scene!
Doug begins to find his vampire roots with the help of gay-vamp mentor Stephin. He longs for Sejal. He becomes distant from his best friend, Jay. A TV reality show, Vampire Hunters, is added to the sloppy mix.
And by the end, I didn't care what happened to Doug, Sejal, or anyone else. Which was a good thing, as resolution is an elusive thing in this rambling tome.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 1, 2010
This book was interesting and hilarious. I love how it was written, from a male point of view, which you don't see much. Also it was written by a male author.
I knew from the moment I layed eyes on this book that I would enjoy it immensely and that I did. Right from the beginning, you were thrown into this geeky, fat boys world of trying to make it as a fat vampire. I felt for him during his hardships. He struggle in feeding, as well in other areas.
I was glad to see he go help through a mentor. Through this he was able to learn more and of course become a better vampire. He also took a chance and finally step up to the plate, becoming the true vampire that he his. But in doing this, his ego went straight to his head and all of the sudden he was "BAD" He end up getting a girlfriend and used her badly. I was disappointed in his choice. While I was glad that he finally came who he was, he made a poor choice in it as well.
In the end, Doug hardships paid off. He went off the find he friends attacker, dubbing him my knight and shining armor. I admit that the ending was a little confusing for me. I'm still not sure what to make of it.
Mr. Rex, did a great job writing this. The plot, drama and suspense was written perfect. I enjoyed reading each and every page of it. Mr. Rex did a great job capturing the voice of a real teenage boy. I was happy as a reader to get a good insight on the character. Doug was not your typical teenage boy and for that I was grateful to see someone who was not popular, or cute from the start.
July 12, 2023
I did not find this YA novel to stray off course, as have other reviewers. Whatever course it was on it more or less stayed there. Ultimately it is just another YA vampire book and that is the worst thing you can say.
There is a meta moment when the author intrudes to note that gay characters are almost mandatory these days. The gay characters in this book may have been mandated but are weak and undeveloped.
There is a meta moment when the author intrudes to note that gay characters are almost mandatory these days. The gay characters in this book may have been mandated but are weak and undeveloped.
March 22, 2022
Okay....so this fell into my hands at a library sale because a certain kid in my life thought the title was funny.
NOTE - NOT A KID FRIENDLY STORY.
This was fun. A cute take on the what-if of a teenager who ISN'T the jock or the popular girl becoming a vampire. It had moments that all of us former teens will remember (a some pretty good music references to boot!) and smile/shake our heads at.
Do I think it is the epitome of vampire lit? Nope. But a fun read and not a bad book at all.
NOTE - NOT A KID FRIENDLY STORY.
This was fun. A cute take on the what-if of a teenager who ISN'T the jock or the popular girl becoming a vampire. It had moments that all of us former teens will remember (a some pretty good music references to boot!) and smile/shake our heads at.
Do I think it is the epitome of vampire lit? Nope. But a fun read and not a bad book at all.
July 26, 2011
Doug is having a hard time getting the hang of this whole vampire thing. First of all, he is only about 5’5 and overweight. He’d been meaning to workout and lose some weight, but he was bitten before he could do that, so now he is eternally damned to be forever fat. It’s not exactly an ideal situation for a vampire. To make matters worse, he has no idea what he is doing. There’s no manual, he has no mentor, and everything that Bram Stoker wrote in Dracula seems to be wrong. He is afraid of turning other people into vampires, so he feeds on cows and other unsuspecting animals. When he and his best friend Jay attend Comic-Con in San Diego, Doug attempts to feed on a panda in the San Diego zoo. Unbeknownst to him, there is a live panda cam recording his attempt. Soon, the video is on YouTube and the people behind a fake reality series titled “Vampire Hunters” get ahold of the footage in hopes of finding their first real vampire and upping their ratings.
When Doug returns to school he is immediately smitten with Sejal, the foreign exchange student from India. Sejal has been sent to America by her parents who hope to cure her of “The Google” (an internet afflicted disease). He also runs into his maker and eventually they are introduced to a group of older vampires who agree to mentor them. As the reality TV hounds begin honing in on Doug’s location, Doug begins to wonder if he can maybe be cured of his vampirism. He remembers a movie where the newly created vamps were able to kill their maker and return themselves to true human form. But is he ready to go back to being a regular, dorky dude and lose these cool new powers? If he does, will he stand any kind of chance with Sejal?
For the most part I really enjoyed Fat Vampire: A Never Coming of Age Story. The premise is genius. Doug is the anti-Edward. He and his friend Jay are funny and lovable. Adam Rex’s writing is wicked and clever and the characters are all engaging. My only problem with this one was that the storyline seemed to be too big for the length of the book. I felt a lot of plot lines fell flat, some of my favorite characters just disappeared, and some of the scenes felt rushed. Had this book been longer the multiple plots would have had more room to breathe and these characters could have grown more. Still, the book is worth reading, especially if you want a fresh, funny new take on vampires.
One last thing – try googling uncombable hair syndrome and check out the images it brings up. If you read the book, you’ll get it immediately.
When Doug returns to school he is immediately smitten with Sejal, the foreign exchange student from India. Sejal has been sent to America by her parents who hope to cure her of “The Google” (an internet afflicted disease). He also runs into his maker and eventually they are introduced to a group of older vampires who agree to mentor them. As the reality TV hounds begin honing in on Doug’s location, Doug begins to wonder if he can maybe be cured of his vampirism. He remembers a movie where the newly created vamps were able to kill their maker and return themselves to true human form. But is he ready to go back to being a regular, dorky dude and lose these cool new powers? If he does, will he stand any kind of chance with Sejal?
For the most part I really enjoyed Fat Vampire: A Never Coming of Age Story. The premise is genius. Doug is the anti-Edward. He and his friend Jay are funny and lovable. Adam Rex’s writing is wicked and clever and the characters are all engaging. My only problem with this one was that the storyline seemed to be too big for the length of the book. I felt a lot of plot lines fell flat, some of my favorite characters just disappeared, and some of the scenes felt rushed. Had this book been longer the multiple plots would have had more room to breathe and these characters could have grown more. Still, the book is worth reading, especially if you want a fresh, funny new take on vampires.
One last thing – try googling uncombable hair syndrome and check out the images it brings up. If you read the book, you’ll get it immediately.
July 13, 2010
It was refreshing to read about a vampire that wasn't physically perfect. All too often, the people who are turned into vampires already possess unearthly beauty. The only outside flaws they exhibit result from some horrific torture years after becoming vampires. In Fat Vampire, Doug is an outcast, overweight teen. When he is turned, nothing changes. He faces being unattractive forever. Seeing a vampire character deal with this type of reality was definitely intriguing.
Unfortunately, Doug has a very repellent personality. He's extremely hard to care about. At first he seems too nice to be able to survive as a vampire, but slightly farther into the book we see that the niceness is a front for his insecurity. As he becomes more self-confident, he becomes more on an obnoxious, self-important jerk.
Senjal, an exchange student that Doug finds himself attracted to, has the Google - something like an addiction to the internet. A vampire hunter reality TV show starts hunting Doug. He's let into San Diego Comic-Con early because the sunlight is making him sick, which is taken as a normal occurrence because the security people believe anyone who would attend Comic-Con would be sickly and not go out in the daylight much. Many small but wonderfully quirky little ideas helped the book along.
I truly wanted to love Fat Vampire. I love the cover, I love the premise and the writing was very good. The book just didn't work for me. Nothing clicked. I could not care what happened to any of the characters in the book. Doug was so deeply unlikeable that the character himself brought the rest of the book down for me.
Unfortunately, Doug has a very repellent personality. He's extremely hard to care about. At first he seems too nice to be able to survive as a vampire, but slightly farther into the book we see that the niceness is a front for his insecurity. As he becomes more self-confident, he becomes more on an obnoxious, self-important jerk.
Senjal, an exchange student that Doug finds himself attracted to, has the Google - something like an addiction to the internet. A vampire hunter reality TV show starts hunting Doug. He's let into San Diego Comic-Con early because the sunlight is making him sick, which is taken as a normal occurrence because the security people believe anyone who would attend Comic-Con would be sickly and not go out in the daylight much. Many small but wonderfully quirky little ideas helped the book along.
I truly wanted to love Fat Vampire. I love the cover, I love the premise and the writing was very good. The book just didn't work for me. Nothing clicked. I could not care what happened to any of the characters in the book. Doug was so deeply unlikeable that the character himself brought the rest of the book down for me.
August 5, 2013
I'm confused.
It almost felt like an anthology of Fat Vampire stories. You have your funny, steal-blood-from-a-blood-bus-at-SDCC, paranormal comedy at the start, and then... a slightly more complicated, paranormal-but-still-mildly-funny-mystery around the middle, and then the last third is a tangle of various story threads and attempts at being deep and metaphorical and intelligent and...
I'M CONFUSED.
So many story threads that seemed disconnected, that didn't get tied up, that were just there for the benefit of a dozen pages or so and then gone. I almost never want a book to be longer, but it feels like, if Adam Rex had let the book go on for another hundred or so pages, actually integrated these handfuls of subplots better, then it might have succeeded more.
I liked Sejal, I liked Jay and his relationship with Cat, and the "you're actually being a massive idiot to your best friend" part of Doug's character development - sadly dropped about ten pages after its culmination - was great. Also the ending was pretty cool. It would have been heartbreaking if I had been more involved in the story; and ending like that paired with characters I love, like Artemis Fowl or Supernatural, would have had me on the floor in a catatonic daze. As it was, I liked the writing/word choice and the style, thought it was a good, ambiguous ending. I had hopes for better.
(Also - ALL THE F-BOMBS.)
It almost felt like an anthology of Fat Vampire stories. You have your funny, steal-blood-from-a-blood-bus-at-SDCC, paranormal comedy at the start, and then... a slightly more complicated, paranormal-but-still-mildly-funny-mystery around the middle, and then the last third is a tangle of various story threads and attempts at being deep and metaphorical and intelligent and...
I'M CONFUSED.
So many story threads that seemed disconnected, that didn't get tied up, that were just there for the benefit of a dozen pages or so and then gone. I almost never want a book to be longer, but it feels like, if Adam Rex had let the book go on for another hundred or so pages, actually integrated these handfuls of subplots better, then it might have succeeded more.
I liked Sejal, I liked Jay and his relationship with Cat, and the "you're actually being a massive idiot to your best friend" part of Doug's character development - sadly dropped about ten pages after its culmination - was great. Also the ending was pretty cool. It would have been heartbreaking if I had been more involved in the story; and ending like that paired with characters I love, like Artemis Fowl or Supernatural, would have had me on the floor in a catatonic daze. As it was, I liked the writing/word choice and the style, thought it was a good, ambiguous ending. I had hopes for better.
(Also - ALL THE F-BOMBS.)
September 11, 2016
This was a really fun book and I'm glad I came across it. I was just browsing around on Overdrive (you need to google it if you don't know what it is and you like audiobooks) and the cherry slushy on the cover caught my eye. I'm on a low sugar diet and I was all, "Oh man does that look freaking incredible...Reading that book will be like drinking a delicious cherry slushy but without the sugar!" Of course, this book is about vampires, so it did eventually dawn on me that the main ingredient in that red concoction probably is NOT cherry syrup... none the less, the audiobook was delicious!
The beginning of the book had some really funny moments. It got more serious towards the end but it remained engaging. The narration was done well (that can really make or break an audiobook).
The beginning of the book had some really funny moments. It got more serious towards the end but it remained engaging. The narration was done well (that can really make or break an audiobook).
January 3, 2023
This book was ok. There really isn’t too much to write about it. Parts of the story were interesting and there were parts that were really random and disjointed. There were a lot of loose ends and things that did not make sense. I really wanted to like this book, but it fell short for me. 🙁
April 27, 2020
Интересна е човешката психология - всички ние много обичаме да правим това, което правят другите и не само не го осъзнаваме, ами често си мислим, че е точно обратното. Забелязали ли сте, как всички "бунтари" които не искат да са като всички останали, се обличат и държат... като всички останали бунтари?
Ето например, настоящата книга по някаква причина е станала популярна като "лоша" и в тоя сайт е станало модерно да й се дава ниска оценка - до степен да е една от най-ниско оценените книги в него и да е включена в списъци за най-лоши книги за всички времена.
Как и защо е станало това нямам идея, защото не ми се занимава чак толкова с глупости, но самата книга не е нито особено лоша, нито особено добра, просто е забавна, с няколко интересни и нови идеи и леко разочароващ край. Първата половина определено е по-добра и после тръгва надолу.
Ето например, настоящата книга по някаква причина е станала популярна като "лоша" и в тоя сайт е станало модерно да й се дава ниска оценка - до степен да е една от най-ниско оценените книги в него и да е включена в списъци за най-лоши книги за всички времена.
Как и защо е станало това нямам идея, защото не ми се занимава чак толкова с глупости, но самата книга не е нито особено лоша, нито особено добра, просто е забавна, с няколко интересни и нови идеи и леко разочароващ край. Първата половина определено е по-добра и после тръгва надолу.
May 30, 2015
Do you ever feel like you're not the hero of your own life story? A subplot? The storyteller has pushed you into the background? Doug's story is just that. As the title character, the fat vampire, Doug starts the story, but by changing too drastically he pushes himself into the background and another hero emerges.
Doug is a typical teen with typical problems. He's unpopular, bullied by the jocks, just fringe-friends with the drama kids and a little overweight. He does have one great friend, Jay, but it's clear their friendship is on Doug's terms and not Jay's.
Then Doug gets vamped and it's too late to lose those few extra pounds.
Doug is all he was before but with a new fear of sunlight and a thirst that won't go away. Jay is the only one he tells and they both head off to school in the fall.
Turns out Doug's not the only student with problems. In fact, most of the characters struggle with their perceived imperfections. Sejal, a foreign exchange student, has decided she needs a change. She has "the Google" which is an internet addiction. She's realized she is withdrawing from human contact and knows it's time do do something drastic. It is this very decision that shows she's the wisest character in the story.
Together Doug and Sejal have reasons to avoid people, their fellow students and each other. It's when Doug realizes he likes Sejal, and not just for her blood, that the hero of the story changes. Sejal has been watching Doug and she doesn't like how he treats his friend Jay. She rebuffs Doug and he decides to use this rejection as an excuse to show his true colors: he's an unlikeable jerk.
So the question is can becoming the undead actually make you more human? In Doug's case the answer is no. He could have used his change to vampire to become the unquestioned hero of this story. As an outsider before he became vamped, it's possible he might have adjusted better to this new class of different. Instead it just brought out what was always right under the surface. I found myself not caring about Doug after Sejal dumped him. Like the jerks I know in real life, I found myself wanting to turn away from Doug's storyline and focus on Sejal's. She becomes the character to watch. She's the one who makes friends and focuses on relationships. She's the one who knows that you don't have to have perfect human qualities to care about humanity. I wanted her to succeed and got bored with Doug. He had his chance to be the hero. To be empathetic not pathetic. Poor Doug.
It's after this change in the characters the story really goes downhill for me. The hero switcharoo didn't seem to work. A story from Sejal's point of view might have been stronger. The fat vampire taking a secondary role to the foreign exchange student half-way through just didn't move me.
Doug is a typical teen with typical problems. He's unpopular, bullied by the jocks, just fringe-friends with the drama kids and a little overweight. He does have one great friend, Jay, but it's clear their friendship is on Doug's terms and not Jay's.
Then Doug gets vamped and it's too late to lose those few extra pounds.
Doug is all he was before but with a new fear of sunlight and a thirst that won't go away. Jay is the only one he tells and they both head off to school in the fall.
Turns out Doug's not the only student with problems. In fact, most of the characters struggle with their perceived imperfections. Sejal, a foreign exchange student, has decided she needs a change. She has "the Google" which is an internet addiction. She's realized she is withdrawing from human contact and knows it's time do do something drastic. It is this very decision that shows she's the wisest character in the story.
Together Doug and Sejal have reasons to avoid people, their fellow students and each other. It's when Doug realizes he likes Sejal, and not just for her blood, that the hero of the story changes. Sejal has been watching Doug and she doesn't like how he treats his friend Jay. She rebuffs Doug and he decides to use this rejection as an excuse to show his true colors: he's an unlikeable jerk.
So the question is can becoming the undead actually make you more human? In Doug's case the answer is no. He could have used his change to vampire to become the unquestioned hero of this story. As an outsider before he became vamped, it's possible he might have adjusted better to this new class of different. Instead it just brought out what was always right under the surface. I found myself not caring about Doug after Sejal dumped him. Like the jerks I know in real life, I found myself wanting to turn away from Doug's storyline and focus on Sejal's. She becomes the character to watch. She's the one who makes friends and focuses on relationships. She's the one who knows that you don't have to have perfect human qualities to care about humanity. I wanted her to succeed and got bored with Doug. He had his chance to be the hero. To be empathetic not pathetic. Poor Doug.
It's after this change in the characters the story really goes downhill for me. The hero switcharoo didn't seem to work. A story from Sejal's point of view might have been stronger. The fat vampire taking a secondary role to the foreign exchange student half-way through just didn't move me.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 22, 2010
Not long ago, I read a book with one of the best titles I’d read in a long while (How to say goodbye in Robot by Natalie Standiford). Fat Vampire, on the other hand, might very well have the best book cover in a long while… I know, you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, but hey, in this over-mediatized world of teenage drama, an eye-catching cover might just do the trick, right? And catching your eye, it does (care for a blood slushee, anyone?).
Needless to say the cover raised my interest, and the blurb, really got my attention… I mean, aren’t we all in favor of an anti-Edward vamp these days? A pudgy unpopular geek of a vampire, interested in Comic Cons… tell me you’re not just a little bit interested in knowing what will happen to him?
At first the book reads like the book version of Buffy The Vampire Slayer meets Jay & Silent Bob. It’s fun, it’s goofy, and it’s all about the fun interaction between 2 guys completely in tune with their inner geek. Much like Buffy has to come to terms with her fate as the Slayer, Doug – the Fat Vampire – needs to find out how he will deal with being 15, fat, and unattractive forever. The beginning of the book is very very funny and you will find yourselves laughing out loud at the jokes. Unfortunately (for Doug as well as the reader), Doug, being the self-obsessed teenager that he was while still alive, will also remain a self-obsessed, completely unlikeable vampire the more his self-confidence grows (and growing it does!) in the book.
Then, instead of focusing on the characters of Doug and Jay, the story takes on 2 different threads. First there is Senjal, the Indian exchange student who has ‘the Google’ (yes, it’s a disease). At first it appears the interaction between Doug and Senjal will lead to spectular vampire-human fireworks, but then all this… falls flat. A real pity, because the potential was really there.
And second, apparently, writing a vampire story (even of the anti-Twilight variety) by definition seems to mean you have to include the whole vampire-community, you know, who sired who and how do these people deal with their immortality. This is an OK thought, if you can come up with a decent back story. The problem here is that the eventual ending of the book is such a letdown – not to mention completely out of the blue because none of these vampire characters are properly developed – that it spoils much of the excellent beginning of the book.
Adam Rex sure can write. He does have great ideas, but still, Fat Vampire is a bit of a missed opportunity.
Needless to say the cover raised my interest, and the blurb, really got my attention… I mean, aren’t we all in favor of an anti-Edward vamp these days? A pudgy unpopular geek of a vampire, interested in Comic Cons… tell me you’re not just a little bit interested in knowing what will happen to him?
At first the book reads like the book version of Buffy The Vampire Slayer meets Jay & Silent Bob. It’s fun, it’s goofy, and it’s all about the fun interaction between 2 guys completely in tune with their inner geek. Much like Buffy has to come to terms with her fate as the Slayer, Doug – the Fat Vampire – needs to find out how he will deal with being 15, fat, and unattractive forever. The beginning of the book is very very funny and you will find yourselves laughing out loud at the jokes. Unfortunately (for Doug as well as the reader), Doug, being the self-obsessed teenager that he was while still alive, will also remain a self-obsessed, completely unlikeable vampire the more his self-confidence grows (and growing it does!) in the book.
Then, instead of focusing on the characters of Doug and Jay, the story takes on 2 different threads. First there is Senjal, the Indian exchange student who has ‘the Google’ (yes, it’s a disease). At first it appears the interaction between Doug and Senjal will lead to spectular vampire-human fireworks, but then all this… falls flat. A real pity, because the potential was really there.
And second, apparently, writing a vampire story (even of the anti-Twilight variety) by definition seems to mean you have to include the whole vampire-community, you know, who sired who and how do these people deal with their immortality. This is an OK thought, if you can come up with a decent back story. The problem here is that the eventual ending of the book is such a letdown – not to mention completely out of the blue because none of these vampire characters are properly developed – that it spoils much of the excellent beginning of the book.
Adam Rex sure can write. He does have great ideas, but still, Fat Vampire is a bit of a missed opportunity.
August 18, 2012
A fat geeky teenage boy, Doug, becomes the world's least glamorous vampire in Rex's second novel. This one is nowhere near as assured or successful as Smekday.
It alternates narratives between Doug and Senjal, an Indian exchange student with an internet addiction. Doug's narration is dead-on as a geeky teenage boy. Senjal is potentially interesting but comes across more as a narrative construct than a flesh-and-blood character. But I was enjoying it, mostly for Doug's narration, until, at the two-thirds mark, the entire thing falls apart into a mess of preachiness and WTF.
It alternates narratives between Doug and Senjal, an Indian exchange student with an internet addiction. Doug's narration is dead-on as a geeky teenage boy. Senjal is potentially interesting but comes across more as a narrative construct than a flesh-and-blood character. But I was enjoying it, mostly for Doug's narration, until, at the two-thirds mark, the entire thing falls apart into a mess of preachiness and WTF.
July 24, 2010
Rex writes great funny dialogue, which kept me going for the first half of the book. The concept of a socially awkward, overweight teen being stuck in a body that will never change is unique and intriguing as well, and refreshing in light of the trend towards YA vampire romance books.
The second half of the book seemed stagnant. Plots that were set up in the first half of the book didn't progress, and characters that were developed so well in the first half didn't do anything interesting. The great exception to this is Sejal, who would have made for an interesting subject in a non-vampire themed book. The protagonist Doug got less likable as the story progresses, which may have been the point but it still lowered my interest in the plot.
The ending was completely incongruous with the rest of the book. This book is a light-hearted comedy, sure there are some moral messages laced within it but they are subtle. The ending of Fat Vampire however, turns downright preachy. The ending was so strange that I thought it was something accidently left in the ARC version I read, as if Rex was asking his editor how to end his own book. But no, its the actual published ending which is unfortunate because it is unsatisfying. Again, that may have been the point but I still didn't like it.
The second half of the book seemed stagnant. Plots that were set up in the first half of the book didn't progress, and characters that were developed so well in the first half didn't do anything interesting. The great exception to this is Sejal, who would have made for an interesting subject in a non-vampire themed book. The protagonist Doug got less likable as the story progresses, which may have been the point but it still lowered my interest in the plot.
The ending was completely incongruous with the rest of the book. This book is a light-hearted comedy, sure there are some moral messages laced within it but they are subtle. The ending of Fat Vampire however, turns downright preachy. The ending was so strange that I thought it was something accidently left in the ARC version I read, as if Rex was asking his editor how to end his own book. But no, its the actual published ending which is unfortunate because it is unsatisfying. Again, that may have been the point but I still didn't like it.
June 7, 2017
This book is poorly written! I've encountered TWO instances where the "inference" was left out... one time was major! Author described character as werewolf... then a few pages later he switches to being a vampire! And switching the narrative style mid chapter to screenplay format just because character is watching a tv show? I realize it's "hip" right now for YA books to mix genres... but this one doesn't do it well at all. So then... the author tells the plot and ending of another book that he didn't even write... and now, on page 218 out of 323 author has suddenly and completely changed the main character's personality. This has got to be the worst written book I've ever been really interested in finishing. Later, right before what I assume is the climax, the author discovers he has no feelings at all for his best friend, then vows to go after the person who attacked his best friend, then immediately lets the attacker get away, then 30 seconds later, re-vows to go get the attacker. WTF. Author seriously needs to make up his mind. And I hardly ever pay attention to "style" when reading for pleasure... but "the grass grew optimistically." Really? What a STUPID-ass ending!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 736 reviews