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hailey_alexis's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Moderate: Abortion, Sexual assault, Sexism, Alcoholism, Toxic relationship, Body shaming, Misogyny, and Pregnancy
Minor: Cancer
miacorkum's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.25
Graphic: Abortion, Death, Sexual content, Cancer, and Sexual assault
ekkane's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Moderate: Sexual assault and Abortion
readrienne's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Sexual assault and Death of parent
Moderate: Eating disorder, Cancer, Alcoholism, and Abortion
Minor: Injury/Injury detail
jcinf's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
• Friendship between women
• The secrets we keep
• The relentless and exhausting pursuit of perfection (one that I’d argue is an experience profoundly belonging to women)
• The feeling of being watched that all women live with
This book ended up healing me in ways I didn’t expect. Here are some of my favorite quotes. Huge spoilers in the last couple:
We all stuck to our stories. And it is so easy to see someone through only one own lens: the role they play in yours. Stella had been right. I’d only ever seen her as a guru, a mentor, the friendly neighborhood witch. Who was Stella in her own story?
I’ve always thought dying would be a little bit like dissolving into the sun. We leave our little frames behind and see the whole picture for the first time. The entire panorama. I like to feel the sun on my face because I can practice living and practice dying. Both at the same time.
I watched her, struggling for perfection, this woman who had been struggling for perfection for more than twenty years, and I was fascinated.
This is why I loved choreographing. This is why it was better than dancing. Instead of trying to contort myself into someone else’s vision, I would take what was already inside me and find the perfect vessel for it.
Living our lives as though we expect it to be forgotten. As though now is all that matters. It might be easier on the mind to live like that, but it’s harder in the soul.
You’re bigger than us. And after everything’s said and done, we depend on your goodwill. Not just to make things easier. For survival. If you want, to you can kill us, and we know it.
This wasn’t the movies in our lives didn’t work that way. Someone was always, always watching us and it was too late. It had been too late since I pushed him through the window. It had been too late long before then. Besides, I didn’t want to cover this up. Monstrous and horrible as his body had become, as horrified as I was that I actually killed somebody, I also felt like I was watching the stage at the end of the best dance I’ve ever made. In the darkness, I felt my mother beside me. Smiling. Maybe, after everything, this was her legacy. She spent her life performing for the void but two hands on Daniel‘s chest and I flip the script, made the only ballet that could ever truly be for us and about us at the same time. And achieved what she never could: we had become the spectators for once. We had been the ones to please. And he was the one who failed. His death was my masterpiece. Because that’s all ballet is, in the end. Just bodies moving through time and space.
Absolutely stunning novel.
Graphic: Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, and Sexual assault
Moderate: Abortion, Addiction, Alcoholism, Murder, and Adult/minor relationship
Minor: Infertility, Grief, Death, Blood, Miscarriage, Infidelity, Death of parent, and Sexism
kwoot7's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Moderate: Gaslighting, Infertility, Misogyny, Death of parent, Sexism, and Sexual assault
Minor: Abortion
serendipitysbooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
There was real depth and breadth to the storytelling which I enjoyed. The exploration of sexism and misogyny in the world of ballet felt spot on; the me too storyline all too plausible. The book also took an in-depth look at some issues specific to the world of ballet, particularly the constant critiquing of women’s bodies - what they look like and what they can do, the fetishisation of the image of the graceful and elegant perfect ballerina vs the hard physical reality of the job, as well as issues relating to the fact that choreographers and ballet masters are mainly men.This is not a book in which the male characters came off well. They all seemed to want to control women’s bodies and or limit their career opportunities. The female characters aren’t wholly likeable, either. All three were flawed, made questionable decisions, and let ambition get the better off the them at times. Delphine was particularly self-absorbed and lacking in awareness of the possible needs of others.
I thought the then and now storylines worked effectively to explore the friendship between the three, how it began and the challenges it faced. Specifically, the very insular pressure-cooker nature of ballet made it hard to make and maintain friendships outside the company, and yet ballet is intensely competitive and cut-throat. Is it possible to maintain a friendship when you are competing against your friends, vying for plum roles and key promotions?
I thought some of the social messaging was overly heavy handed and had mixed feelings about the ending, but overall enjoyed the time I spent with this book.
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Death of parent, Sexual assault, Cancer, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Eating disorder, Misogyny, and Toxic friendship
jillgoober's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I enjoyed reading this book overall mostly due to the drama behind the curtain, so to speak: who's cheating on who, so and so was injured, she will get cut from the company next season, etc. I found the structure to be a little boring sometimes mostly because I wasn't sure where this story was going. Every time some big secret was vaguely brought up, I thought we would have to wait until the end to hear the details but it was always revealed much sooner. However, I certainly did not see the end coming.
Like I said before, I loved reading about the drama behind the scenes of the ballet company as well as the focus on the competitive aspects and how, at some point, you might age out before achieving star status. I would recommend this to readers who enjoy character-driven stories where the characters are flawed, make many mistakes, and are still working on it by the end.
Graphic: Death of parent, Pregnancy, Abortion, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Cancer, Injury/Injury detail, and Vomit
briannad4's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Sexual assault, Abortion, Death of parent, Violence, and Misogyny
Moderate: Alcoholism, Addiction, Eating disorder, and Infertility
Minor: Miscarriage
joensign's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
Moderate: Sexual assault