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ewitsell's review
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs and Racism
hoffnungswolke's review against another edition
funny
inspiring
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? Yes
5.0
This book really brought me back to my childhood. I never figure skated, but little me always sat in front of the tv and watched figure skating on tv, dreaming of being a figure skater myself, cause the dresses were all so pretty.
I loved this book.
This comes with trigger warnings, and it really was hard hitting at times.
But overall, this book was just a joy to read.
I TRULY love the Chen family, Maxine and her parents have such a great and supportive relationship. You know getting into a book that is about a kid being a figure skater (or being any kind of athlete), you are just a bit worried about the parents and how much pressure they put on their kids. The Chen family was really all about balance, taking breaks and having fun.
I also really loved the friendship element. This book shows friendships you grow out of, and while it's always a bit painful, it also opens the door for other friendships. I just loved that the book went in the direction it did and showed (especially young) readers that there doesn't have to be female rivalry.
Also, bullies suck!!!
I loved this book.
This comes with trigger warnings, and it really was hard hitting at times.
But overall, this book was just a joy to read.
I TRULY love the Chen family, Maxine and her parents have such a great and supportive relationship. You know getting into a book that is about a kid being a figure skater (or being any kind of athlete), you are just a bit worried about the parents and how much pressure they put on their kids. The Chen family was really all about balance, taking breaks and having fun.
I also really loved the friendship element. This book shows friendships you grow out of, and while it's always a bit painful, it also opens the door for other friendships. I just loved that the book went in the direction it did and showed (especially young) readers that there doesn't have to be female rivalry.
Also, bullies suck!!!
mfumarolo's review
4.0
A charming and honest look at middle school through the eyes of a young student athlete. Maxine dreams of figure skating in the Olympics, but it's not always a fun journey. There's lots of balancing her school work, some jealousy with more talented competitors, and the challenges that can come with being a person of color in a not-very-diverse town and thus becomes the victim of bullying. I read this entire book in one sitting and was rooting for Max every step of the way!
bonniereads777's review
4.0
Maxine is dealing with a demanding sport, bullying in school, and losing her best friend. She meets Hollie, her competitor, who seems to have it all, but learns things aren’t always as they seem.
This is Middle Grade fiction based in the world of figure skating. As a fan of figure skating and sports fiction, I loved the figure skating aspect and the references to the greats in the sport. The issue of racial bullying is also addressed. Overall I feel this is well written and The Comeback is referred to in different ways. There are comebacks in competition, comebacks in life, and verbal comebacks to racist comments. I feel that parents should supervise the reading of this book with kids under 12 so they can discuss the racial bullying aspect.
I received a free copy of this book from the publishers via Netgalley. My review is voluntary.
This is Middle Grade fiction based in the world of figure skating. As a fan of figure skating and sports fiction, I loved the figure skating aspect and the references to the greats in the sport. The issue of racial bullying is also addressed. Overall I feel this is well written and The Comeback is referred to in different ways. There are comebacks in competition, comebacks in life, and verbal comebacks to racist comments. I feel that parents should supervise the reading of this book with kids under 12 so they can discuss the racial bullying aspect.
I received a free copy of this book from the publishers via Netgalley. My review is voluntary.
jademelody's review
3.0
I love reading children's/middle grade stories even though I am not the target audience for the story. It's interesting for me to see how stories have changed and grown since I was younger, and they really have for the better. Stories like this weren't present in my childhood and if they were around they were not advertised or well known, like I believe this book is.
The little saying on the cover says it all
Winning is harder than it looks
So true. Not everything is a happily ever after and that's not something I fully learned and understood until I was 19, so for that to be printed on the cover of a novel meant for a juvenile audience really impresses me.
This book covered a lot of important ground. Your friends are allowed to change as you continue to grow up. Don't tolerate mean boys (or girls for that matter). You're beautiful in your own skin, no matter what you look like, working hard doesn't always mean winning but that's okay, jealousy can be toxic but you can recover.
Our main character Maxine has to learn all of these lessons throughout the course of this book and the author writes it tastefully. I love that these things were covered in this book, like I said I'm very impressed, because I think these are crucial things for young people to know. Maxine has to realize that childhood friends don't always last forever because they change and so do you. She has to deal with mean boys and them making racist comments about how she looks, and her response is appropriate for someone her age, but she later figures out that she doesn't need any eye tape to be beautiful because she is already. She also learns how to use makeup to enhance the beauty she already has, which I love because I feel like she is the age where I first got into using makeup. The next thing is something I personally understand on such a deep level: working hard doesn't always mean winning. This is probably my favorite lesson in the whole book because this is still something I'm struggling to grasp as a 22 year old, so portraying that in a book like this could help speed up the process of realization for younger people as they grow up. Maxine works hard, while she is dealing with all the other aspects that come with growing up, and she is successful, but her dream is still out of her reach; however, it's not fully out of range if she keeps working and growing up and learning. I love Maxine's friendship with Hollie. It starts off exactly how I imagine many friendships start off in childhood (some of mine included). Maxine is jealous of how amazing Hollie is at skating and is scared that because of Hollie's talent she won't qualify in her next competition. And despite Maxine's toxic jealous behavior, she realizes her mistakes and after some apologies, her and Hollie become friends and relate to each others skating and personal life struggles. This kind of friendship is important to have as you grow up and I like that the author included it.
Also random side note: the author got into skating because of the movie Ice Princess and omg that is the best thing ever!
Overall, I really liked this book! I rate most books of this kind three stars not because they are bad but because they are not targeted at me and I get what I can out of them.
The little saying on the cover says it all
Winning is harder than it looks
So true. Not everything is a happily ever after and that's not something I fully learned and understood until I was 19, so for that to be printed on the cover of a novel meant for a juvenile audience really impresses me.
This book covered a lot of important ground. Your friends are allowed to change as you continue to grow up. Don't tolerate mean boys (or girls for that matter). You're beautiful in your own skin, no matter what you look like, working hard doesn't always mean winning but that's okay, jealousy can be toxic but you can recover.
Our main character Maxine has to learn all of these lessons throughout the course of this book and the author writes it tastefully. I love that these things were covered in this book, like I said I'm very impressed, because I think these are crucial things for young people to know. Maxine has to realize that childhood friends don't always last forever because they change and so do you. She has to deal with mean boys and them making racist comments about how she looks, and her response is appropriate for someone her age, but she later figures out that she doesn't need any eye tape to be beautiful because she is already. She also learns how to use makeup to enhance the beauty she already has, which I love because I feel like she is the age where I first got into using makeup. The next thing is something I personally understand on such a deep level: working hard doesn't always mean winning. This is probably my favorite lesson in the whole book because this is still something I'm struggling to grasp as a 22 year old, so portraying that in a book like this could help speed up the process of realization for younger people as they grow up. Maxine works hard, while she is dealing with all the other aspects that come with growing up, and she is successful, but her dream is still out of her reach; however, it's not fully out of range if she keeps working and growing up and learning. I love Maxine's friendship with Hollie. It starts off exactly how I imagine many friendships start off in childhood (some of mine included). Maxine is jealous of how amazing Hollie is at skating and is scared that because of Hollie's talent she won't qualify in her next competition. And despite Maxine's toxic jealous behavior, she realizes her mistakes and after some apologies, her and Hollie become friends and relate to each others skating and personal life struggles. This kind of friendship is important to have as you grow up and I like that the author included it.
Also random side note: the author got into skating because of the movie Ice Princess and omg that is the best thing ever!
Overall, I really liked this book! I rate most books of this kind three stars not because they are bad but because they are not targeted at me and I get what I can out of them.
panickat123's review against another edition
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.0
scampbell1290's review against another edition
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
nekomata's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
For the intended purpose & audience of this book, it did a wonderful job.
miszjeanie's review
4.0
The Comeback is a fun, insightful middle-grade book about ice skating, friendship, and bullying that is perfect for fans of books about sports. Through Maxine’s experiences, this book highlights some practical ways of handling bullying, as well as ways to be a good sport while participating in competitive sports. If you enjoy books about unlikely friendships and body image issues, you should definitely put this debut middle-grade novel on your TBR.
Read my full review on my blog.
Many thanks to the author and publisher for an electronic ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review
Read my full review on my blog.
Many thanks to the author and publisher for an electronic ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review
mariagape's review
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0