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anna_wa's review
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
After reading Camp QUILTBAG (the newest book written by AJ Sass), reading this book (AJ Sass's debut) was not at all what I expected. It's incredible how different the two books are, how much range AJ Sass has as a writer.
Reading this book, I immediately wanted to go out and buy a whole bunch of copies in bulk and then give them away to all of the middle school kids I know - before remembering that actually, as of right now I only know two middle school kids, and I also don't have an unlimited amount of money to buy 50 copies of this one book - no matter how wonderful it may be.
So the book... Ana On The Edge is about a twelve year old ice-skater named Ana. The moment the book begins, we are immediately entered into Ana's happy place: the rink. Performing a routine that was practiced and perfected for weeks, we see Ana fall into the rhythm of the skating, losing all cares about anyone or anything in the world other than this moment right here that is Ana and the ice. Ana does not think about the judges watching, getting ready to grade each skater on how their moves look and decide their futures by how well they do. No, all Ana thinks about is the ice. That's Ana's heart, Ana's home.
As someone who doesn't know anything about figure skating at all (outside of, like, the videos AJ Sass himself posts on his official Instagram) I was very entranced from the beginning. I've read several books about several different types of "sports kids" (not to mention my own siblings' history in soccer) but I had never read anything from the perspective of a figure skater - kid or adult - until now.
There were a lot - and I do mean A LOT - of moments in the book where Sass would describe moves on the ice that I didn't understand. Words like twizzles and toe turns sort of passed through my brain as I didn't fully know what they looked like (and maybe I should have paused to look it up but I didn't want to; I wanted to keep reading to see what would happen next), but nonetheless I was absolutely enamored by how much Ana clearly loved skating. Ana's love for skating made me think of my love for writing and how I can lose myself in a writer's buzz and feel like nothing else in the world matters during that moment.
So, as I said before: we begin with Ana on the ice, at the juvenile nationals no less. Then we continue from there, with Mom and Coach Alex talking to Ana about how things are going to be different this summer. Good different. Ana is going to go to a new rink, where there will be a professional choreographer hired to teach Ana a new routine for the upcoming year and, if all goes well over the summer, Ana could end up skipping sectionals and go straight to regionals (which would save Mom a lot of money).
It all sounds great. Until... The choreographer tells Ana to wear a skirt to their sessions. This is not something Ana wants to do, although the reason why is not really clear even in Ana's own mind. It only gets worse when Ana learns that the number is gonna be Sleeping Beauty themed - and Ana's going to have to wear a big sparkly blue dress.
Meanwhile, Ana manages to accidentally grab the wrong nametag one time (for Alex, the coach) and a new boy at the rink - Hayden - thinks that Ana is a boy too. Ana doesn't correct him, relishing in the fact that for once someone who sees Ana does not automatically think "girl".
But it's still not clear in Ana's own brain why the big sparkly blue dress, why being seen as a girl to the world, feels so wrong. Especially when being seen as a boy by Hayden doesn't feel entirely right either. While Ana is going through all of this mental turmoil and debate, Tamar (Ana's best friend since the two of them were little) is also feeling like Ana doesn't really care about her anymore.
Between all of these things, Ana's life at the new rink is anything but what was expected/planned.
I really loved this book a lot and when I reached the ending of it, I wanted to cry. I feel like every kid should read this book, regardless of if they can relate to Ana's specific gender journey or not. Even if they can't, I feel like all children can relate to the feeling of knowing something is wrong/off but not having the words for it, to miscommunications in friendships, and to the feeling of wanting to tell an adult something but not being sure that they'll understand/being worried that they'll tell you you don't know yourself (when you do, better than anyone else).
Reading this book, I immediately wanted to go out and buy a whole bunch of copies in bulk and then give them away to all of the middle school kids I know - before remembering that actually, as of right now I only know two middle school kids, and I also don't have an unlimited amount of money to buy 50 copies of this one book - no matter how wonderful it may be.
So the book... Ana On The Edge is about a twelve year old ice-skater named Ana. The moment the book begins, we are immediately entered into Ana's happy place: the rink. Performing a routine that was practiced and perfected for weeks, we see Ana fall into the rhythm of the skating, losing all cares about anyone or anything in the world other than this moment right here that is Ana and the ice. Ana does not think about the judges watching, getting ready to grade each skater on how their moves look and decide their futures by how well they do. No, all Ana thinks about is the ice. That's Ana's heart, Ana's home.
As someone who doesn't know anything about figure skating at all (outside of, like, the videos AJ Sass himself posts on his official Instagram) I was very entranced from the beginning. I've read several books about several different types of "sports kids" (not to mention my own siblings' history in soccer) but I had never read anything from the perspective of a figure skater - kid or adult - until now.
There were a lot - and I do mean A LOT - of moments in the book where Sass would describe moves on the ice that I didn't understand. Words like twizzles and toe turns sort of passed through my brain as I didn't fully know what they looked like (and maybe I should have paused to look it up but I didn't want to; I wanted to keep reading to see what would happen next), but nonetheless I was absolutely enamored by how much Ana clearly loved skating. Ana's love for skating made me think of my love for writing and how I can lose myself in a writer's buzz and feel like nothing else in the world matters during that moment.
So, as I said before: we begin with Ana on the ice, at the juvenile nationals no less. Then we continue from there, with Mom and Coach Alex talking to Ana about how things are going to be different this summer. Good different. Ana is going to go to a new rink, where there will be a professional choreographer hired to teach Ana a new routine for the upcoming year and, if all goes well over the summer, Ana could end up skipping sectionals and go straight to regionals (which would save Mom a lot of money).
It all sounds great. Until... The choreographer tells Ana to wear a skirt to their sessions. This is not something Ana wants to do, although the reason why is not really clear even in Ana's own mind. It only gets worse when Ana learns that the number is gonna be Sleeping Beauty themed - and Ana's going to have to wear a big sparkly blue dress.
Meanwhile, Ana manages to accidentally grab the wrong nametag one time (for Alex, the coach) and a new boy at the rink - Hayden - thinks that Ana is a boy too. Ana doesn't correct him, relishing in the fact that for once someone who sees Ana does not automatically think "girl".
But it's still not clear in Ana's own brain why the big sparkly blue dress, why being seen as a girl to the world, feels so wrong. Especially when being seen as a boy by Hayden doesn't feel entirely right either. While Ana is going through all of this mental turmoil and debate, Tamar (Ana's best friend since the two of them were little) is also feeling like Ana doesn't really care about her anymore.
Between all of these things, Ana's life at the new rink is anything but what was expected/planned.
I really loved this book a lot and when I reached the ending of it, I wanted to cry. I feel like every kid should read this book, regardless of if they can relate to Ana's specific gender journey or not. Even if they can't, I feel like all children can relate to the feeling of knowing something is wrong/off but not having the words for it, to miscommunications in friendships, and to the feeling of wanting to tell an adult something but not being sure that they'll understand/being worried that they'll tell you you don't know yourself (when you do, better than anyone else).
Content Warnings
Minor: Abandonment and Bullying
olliereadabook's review
challenging
emotional
inspiring
reflective
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? N/A
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Dysphoria, Outing, Transphobia, and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Deadnaming, Bullying, and Abandonment
Minor: Toxic friendship
dlrosebyh's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
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
5.0
The current US Juvenile figure skating champion, 12-year-old Ana-Marie Jin, is not a fan of flowery dresses. As a result, Ana quickly begins to distrust the program's princess-themed concept when she hears about it. Ana makes an effort to remain focused on her training and creating a fantastic routine deserving of national triumph.
Ana's ideas about the princess program and gender identity begin to take center stage until she meets Hayden, a transgender boy who is new to the rink. Additionally, Ana doesn't confront Hayden when he misinterprets her for a boy and instead takes solace in her boyish persona while he is there. Ana learns that it might be challenging to balance two distinct identities on one slick sheet of ice as their friendship grows. And when a significant tournament draws near, Ana must choose if jeopardizing years of effort and sacrifice by disclosing the truth is worth it.
I have spent a long time looking for a novel with a protagonist that struggles with dysphoria, and I must say that this one did not dissapoint. This book would be the epitome of comfort, if comfort were a genre. I'm so glad this was written by a non-binary author and not simply someone who has a fetish for the lgbtqia+ community. Unfortunately, my eyes were too weary from reading to finish in one sitting, but despite having to put this down, I couldn't quit thinking about Ana's predicament and what I would do if I were Ana.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Transphobia and Dysphoria
Moderate: Bullying, Abandonment, and Deadnaming
danileah07's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Dysphoria
Minor: Bullying and Transphobia
perpetualpages's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
tense
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
4.5
CWs: Misgendering, misnaming, allusions to transphobia and bullying, and contains multiple coming out scenes
Rep: Ana is non-binary, Chinese-American (with possibly some Hawaiian heritage as well), and Jewish
I'm so glad this book exists. It's overwhelming to think about how this story is going to affirm so many things for so many young readers, in ways we can't even imagine.
(First of all, Ana is trying out multiple pronouns by the end of this story, she/her being some of them, and those are what I'll be using to refer to her in this review.)
This is a masterfully told story of self-discovery on and off the ice. Ana's questioning of her gender is shown so organically, whether it be the mental double-take she does when her mom full-names her, or the way she hates wearing skirts during practice, or how she's intimidated by other skaters' ease in showcasing their femininity. She doesn't have the vocabulary to describe it, she doesn't know about labels or inclusive terminology, she doesn't know where to begin questioning it, but she knows enough to know that femininity doesn't quite fit.
There's also a nuanced distinction about how Ana doesn't "hate" femininity, she just doesn't claim femininity for herself. It doesn't mean "girly" things are bad or that they're not a part of her in some ways, it just means they don't define her. Ana is realizing that, yes, there are boys who like to sew and craft just like there are girls who love sports and video games. So why do we all put so much stock in "boy things" versus "girl things" when there are literally no rules?
These questions occur naturally in the story, which makes sense for a character so strongly questioning their gender. When Ana meets Hayden and realizes that it's possible for people to change their names and pronouns, she become fascinated by the implications of that and begins making space for herself to experiment with different expressions. When she realizes that her body and her personhood doesn't tell the story she always thought it would, that's huge for her.
Another aspect I love about the story is how it parallels skating performance against gender performance. There's this idea that when you get on the ice, you're "portraying a character," and then the more you lean into that role, the higher points you receive. And that's exactly how gender works as well. So Ana is wondering if she can disassociate from her performance in that way, but also questioning where to draw the line between acting and expressing, both on and off the ice.
My only note, if anything, is that I wish Ana got to take all those deeply internal thoughts about gender and put them into conversation outside of the coming out scenes. Most people, especially parents, have absolutely no knowledge of what non-binary even MEANS, which naturally leads to a lot of questions. (Keep in mind, I say this from my own experience.) But we don't really get to see that side of the conversation. Part of me is glad it's that way because I wouldn't want readers to conflate Ana's non-binary experience with "THE Non-Binary Experience" (whatever that is). But the other part of me sees it as ever so slightly idealistic.
There's just so much to love about this story. It's incredibly rich and layered, and Ana's character progression is so well done. A.J. Sass does such a good job of building a safe, supportive environment for Ana to explore herself and express herself, and even though we don't get all the answers, we are given every reason to hope for her.
Very eager for this one to come out in the fall and I highly recommend it for readers of all ages!
Rep: Ana is non-binary, Chinese-American (with possibly some Hawaiian heritage as well), and Jewish
I'm so glad this book exists. It's overwhelming to think about how this story is going to affirm so many things for so many young readers, in ways we can't even imagine.
(First of all, Ana is trying out multiple pronouns by the end of this story, she/her being some of them, and those are what I'll be using to refer to her in this review.)
This is a masterfully told story of self-discovery on and off the ice. Ana's questioning of her gender is shown so organically, whether it be the mental double-take she does when her mom full-names her, or the way she hates wearing skirts during practice, or how she's intimidated by other skaters' ease in showcasing their femininity. She doesn't have the vocabulary to describe it, she doesn't know about labels or inclusive terminology, she doesn't know where to begin questioning it, but she knows enough to know that femininity doesn't quite fit.
There's also a nuanced distinction about how Ana doesn't "hate" femininity, she just doesn't claim femininity for herself. It doesn't mean "girly" things are bad or that they're not a part of her in some ways, it just means they don't define her. Ana is realizing that, yes, there are boys who like to sew and craft just like there are girls who love sports and video games. So why do we all put so much stock in "boy things" versus "girl things" when there are literally no rules?
These questions occur naturally in the story, which makes sense for a character so strongly questioning their gender. When Ana meets Hayden and realizes that it's possible for people to change their names and pronouns, she become fascinated by the implications of that and begins making space for herself to experiment with different expressions. When she realizes that her body and her personhood doesn't tell the story she always thought it would, that's huge for her.
Another aspect I love about the story is how it parallels skating performance against gender performance. There's this idea that when you get on the ice, you're "portraying a character," and then the more you lean into that role, the higher points you receive. And that's exactly how gender works as well. So Ana is wondering if she can disassociate from her performance in that way, but also questioning where to draw the line between acting and expressing, both on and off the ice.
My only note, if anything, is that I wish Ana got to take all those deeply internal thoughts about gender and put them into conversation outside of the coming out scenes. Most people, especially parents, have absolutely no knowledge of what non-binary even MEANS, which naturally leads to a lot of questions. (Keep in mind, I say this from my own experience.) But we don't really get to see that side of the conversation. Part of me is glad it's that way because I wouldn't want readers to conflate Ana's non-binary experience with "THE Non-Binary Experience" (whatever that is). But the other part of me sees it as ever so slightly idealistic.
There's just so much to love about this story. It's incredibly rich and layered, and Ana's character progression is so well done. A.J. Sass does such a good job of building a safe, supportive environment for Ana to explore herself and express herself, and even though we don't get all the answers, we are given every reason to hope for her.
Very eager for this one to come out in the fall and I highly recommend it for readers of all ages!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Deadnaming, Transphobia, and Bullying
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