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Reviews tagging 'Death of parent'

Bruised by Tanya Boteju

37 reviews

sad medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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challenging emotional hopeful informative sad 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

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emotional fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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emotional reflective medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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dark emotional hopeful sad fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

A YA roller derby story that isn’t “cute.” 

This book is a dark depiction of grief and self injury and the journey to healthy outlets after severe loss. Daya is a jerk sometimes, but as someone who was a depressed teenager, her behavior makes sense. 

I didn’t love the depiction of roller derby as a player of over a decade. It seemed the author understood the game but not the community and focused a lot on the tropes of a full contact sport (lots of how Daya behaves would have NEVER been considered ok) and the hyper-sexualized femininity associated with the image of the sport but not the reality. The other players and derby community having more depth would have really contributed to the growth arc of the book. 

Overall a decent read that’s accessible and poignant for young adult audiences. If you love roller derby, check out Gabe Montesanti’s Brace for Impact for a more accurate depiction of the derby community. 

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emotional funny hopeful 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: Yes

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challenging dark emotional hopeful medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
emotional lighthearted reflective fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
emotional lighthearted reflective 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

Roller derby and a bunch of lesbians, what's not to love?

It was a lot more fun to read than I expected, honestly. Easy to work through, fun and bubbly characters with depth, and a whole lot of character development! 

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DID NOT FINISH: 15%

This was way too triggering for me soooo plus the MC ?? Nah thank you 

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