When the main character moves from Iran to the United States, she faces the challenges of adolescence, cultural identity, and body image all at once. As she begins to gain weight, her mother’s constant pressure to lose it grows unbearable. Finding comfort in her best friend Carmen’s home, she feels seen and safe until her desperate attempts to fit in attracts the attention of the popular girl at school. Suddenly, she’s torn between popularity and true friendship. Along the way, cruel stereotypes about her heritage and painful family secrets force her to confront who she really wants to be.

This was such a good book. Rebecca Morrison captures disordered eating with heartbreaking honesty. The story shines a light on the impossible standards so many young girls face, especially those balancing two cultures. Hearing classmates call her dad a “terrorist” because she’s from Iran was gut-wrenching, yet sadly realistic. When the truth behind her mother’s obsession with weight is revealed, it brings empathy and healing to both characters.

Rebecca Morrison’s writing is vivid and emotionally raw. Her prose isn’t flowery, but it carries a quiet power that is honest, vulnerable, and full of sensory detail. The narrative voice feels deeply personal, as though you’re reading the character’s inner thoughts in real time. The pacing balances introspection with tension, especially during moments when disordered eating and cultural shame intersect. Morrison doesn’t shy away from the uncomfortable, but she handles it with empathy and restraint.

The portrayal of disordered eating is what will stay with me. Morrison captures the obsessive thoughts, secrecy, and exhaustion of it with heartbreaking precision. It’s written in a way that both teens and adults will recognize as truthful and important.

The Blue Dress is an honest and necessary book about growing up between cultures and learning to make peace with your body and your past. It deserves a place in every middle and high school library. The immigrant experience is central — not only through prejudice and stereotypes, but also through the quiet longing to belong without erasing yourself. The conflict between external validation (popularity) and internal peace (self-worth) will resonate with many teen readers.