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4.07 AVERAGE
4.07 AVERAGE
I received a free digital copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Maxine has dreams of becoming an Olympic figure skater. Currently, she navigates seventh grade with a friend who has suddenly dropped her for the boy who constantly makes racist remarks about Maxine's Asian heritage while attending skating and ballet practices almost daily. While preparing for regionals, a new student joins Maxine at the rink and the two become friends.
Maxine has dreams of becoming an Olympic figure skater. Currently, she navigates seventh grade with a friend who has suddenly dropped her for the boy who constantly makes racist remarks about Maxine's Asian heritage while attending skating and ballet practices almost daily. While preparing for regionals, a new student joins Maxine at the rink and the two become friends.
Maxine is pursuing her dream of figure skating in Lake Placid, NY, former host city of the Olympics. She and her parents are one of the only Asian American families in town. This isn't an issue on the ice, since she has several Asian American skating heroes to look up to. It is an issue in middle school, however, where one of the boys in her class continually taunts her with anti-Chinese slurs and microaggressions. When this gets under her skin enough to start affecting her skating, Maxine has to learn to stand up for herself. She does this with help of new girl Hollie, who is a formidable opponent on the ice and an even better friend. While this is a fun skating story on the surface, it is a also a much deeper and more important story of the subtle racism that still pervades much of America. Highly recommended for grades 4 & up.
eARC provided by publisher via Edelweis
eARC provided by publisher via Edelweis
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I loved this delightful middle grade book. Maxine is a great character, and so is Hollie. Some of the things Maxine experienced broke my heart, but I know that is the reality for many kids. I felt like the 5th grade perspective was pretty accurate as well. This is a lovely book, and I would highly recommend it to others.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Racial slurs, Xenophobia
This novel tells the story of a young Asian figure skater who must deal with friendship transitions and racial bullying at school. The book draws on the author's personal experience, and addresses issues related to making a new friend, finding oneself in American history, dealing with bullies, and embracing one's natural physical features.
This book is well-written, with engaging characters and believable dialogue. The skating scenes are fun to read, clearly explain skating terminology, and vary each time, without repetition or predictability. The story also includes meaningful moments of family connection, and insight into how to accept yourself and embrace your culture.
This is a great choice for middle grade readers who are interested in Asian representation, figure skating, and relatable middle school dynamics. Sensitive readers may struggle with depictions of racial bullying, but the book can start lots of great conversations, and there are no other content concerns. This book is suitable for younger children who are ready for a middle grade reading level.
This book is well-written, with engaging characters and believable dialogue. The skating scenes are fun to read, clearly explain skating terminology, and vary each time, without repetition or predictability. The story also includes meaningful moments of family connection, and insight into how to accept yourself and embrace your culture.
This is a great choice for middle grade readers who are interested in Asian representation, figure skating, and relatable middle school dynamics. Sensitive readers may struggle with depictions of racial bullying, but the book can start lots of great conversations, and there are no other content concerns. This book is suitable for younger children who are ready for a middle grade reading level.
Thank you to Macmillan Children's Publishing Group and NetGalley for this digital ARC.
The plot of The Comeback reads like an 80's movie--in the best way! This is the story of Maxine Chen: a 12 year old sixth grader, a competitive skater, and one of the only Chinese people in her town. She works hard at practice, enjoys her friends, and does normal preteen stuff like watch YouTube make-up tutorials. But Maxine has to contend with a bully, a racist bully. While she works to keep his racist comments a secret, she also tries to alter her looks to make herself appear less Chinese. At the same time, the new girl in town is a better skater than Maxine. All of this adds up to more pain than a 12 year old should have to deal with. With the right amount of tension and triumph, this book had me feeling all the excitement and horror right alongside Maxine.
The plot of The Comeback reads like an 80's movie--in the best way! This is the story of Maxine Chen: a 12 year old sixth grader, a competitive skater, and one of the only Chinese people in her town. She works hard at practice, enjoys her friends, and does normal preteen stuff like watch YouTube make-up tutorials. But Maxine has to contend with a bully, a racist bully. While she works to keep his racist comments a secret, she also tries to alter her looks to make herself appear less Chinese. At the same time, the new girl in town is a better skater than Maxine. All of this adds up to more pain than a 12 year old should have to deal with. With the right amount of tension and triumph, this book had me feeling all the excitement and horror right alongside Maxine.
This is a great realistic middle grade story about the hard work that goes into being a young competitive figure skater as well as the hard work that goes into being strong in the face of microagressions at school. I really loved Maxine's arc and especially the way she deals with her own jealousy of a new skater compared to the way the racist mean boy at school deals with his issues, and I appreciated that it's a story about bullying where the moral isn't "but also the bully was sad and what about his feelings"?
I liked this book because it addresses the current situation that is facing people of Asian descent. The young Maxine has so much on her plate and to top it off, she has to deal with racism and cruelty from a classmate. This book tells of great bravery and persistence in the face of major adversity. I highly recommend it to anyone who has been in this kind of situation.
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes