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queerandweird's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
My favorite roller derby memoir so far as a 14-year derby veteran! Fun read, well-written and recalled, and very authentic as a queer, low-class (read poor AF) white athlete with a fraught maternal relationship coming into this badass sport of roller derby that is led and dedicated to women & trans & queer AF spaces.
All bodies are welcome and can succeed in roller derby, unlike most other sports. We truly are unlike most other sports culturally, and I celebrate that.
Spark/Gabe writes beautifully about her past and how it fueled her future as a roller skating athlete. Ugh, her injury and recovery were brutal to relive, I'm sure Arch has improved their incident practices and rates of CPR-trained coaches since her spiral fracture - but holy gods that was a dumpster fire of an injury response and let it be a lesson to ALWAYS call 911 with a broken leg.
Rant ahead: Broken legs are WAY too big a longterm and LIFE risk to leave a skater alone for 20+min as you wait for an EMT-trained friend to tape up the break with a f*cking pizza box, for a ride in the back of a bumpy car without pain killers. nonono. My horror. Please ensure your leagues have skaters at every practice who are CPR-certified and informed in injury protocol, omg have injury protocols - esp. for concussions. Loving rant concluded <3
Fortunately, Spark is a beast as so many of us derby athletes are! I remember my spiral fracture tib fib recovery distinctly as well, the joy of walking again in pools - just feeling the weight on my injured leg when I had been so fragile, literally broken, was a lesson in growth, finding my resolve to heal from the mental & physical trauma of split bones. Her book depicted that brutal injury so often faced by athletes on rollerskates honestly and I loved all of the grit in recovery.
What she didn't talk about was the downside of overtraining, that's often why new athletes are injured or folks not balancing their intense derby training & cross-training with mobility, massage, and other active rest practices. It's great, and necessary, to have drive in our sport - it's also necessary to take time for muscles & connective tissue to heal throughout the training week.
Ending with marriage was so sweet! Kelly and Gabe's relationship was heart-warming and familiar <3 Gabe, I hope you've continued to address your eating disorder and improve your relationship with food, ; it can take a lifetime and know to lean on (and be honest with) your community.
The book has conflicting info for where the couple ended up, one says St. Louis and the other says Denton, TX - which, yuck y'all please you don't want to be in Denton, teaching probably isn't worth it and the derby is nooot the best.
Though, I hear through the derby grapevine that they're living in St. Louis as of Spring '23, where Gabe has been performing drag!! So exciting if this is true, wishing the best for your love and happiness.
All bodies are welcome and can succeed in roller derby, unlike most other sports. We truly are unlike most other sports culturally, and I celebrate that.
Spark/Gabe writes beautifully about her past and how it fueled her future as a roller skating athlete. Ugh, her injury and recovery were brutal to relive, I'm sure Arch has improved their incident practices and rates of CPR-trained coaches since her spiral fracture - but holy gods that was a dumpster fire of an injury response and let it be a lesson to ALWAYS call 911 with a broken leg.
Rant ahead: Broken legs are WAY too big a longterm and LIFE risk to leave a skater alone for 20+min as you wait for an EMT-trained friend to tape up the break with a f*cking pizza box, for a ride in the back of a bumpy car without pain killers. nonono. My horror. Please ensure your leagues have skaters at every practice who are CPR-certified and informed in injury protocol, omg have injury protocols - esp. for concussions. Loving rant concluded <3
Fortunately, Spark is a beast as so many of us derby athletes are! I remember my spiral fracture tib fib recovery distinctly as well, the joy of walking again in pools - just feeling the weight on my injured leg when I had been so fragile, literally broken, was a lesson in growth, finding my resolve to heal from the mental & physical trauma of split bones. Her book depicted that brutal injury so often faced by athletes on rollerskates honestly and I loved all of the grit in recovery.
What she didn't talk about was the downside of overtraining, that's often why new athletes are injured or folks not balancing their intense derby training & cross-training with mobility, massage, and other active rest practices. It's great, and necessary, to have drive in our sport - it's also necessary to take time for muscles & connective tissue to heal throughout the training week.
Ending with marriage was so sweet! Kelly and Gabe's relationship was heart-warming and familiar <3 Gabe, I hope you've continued to address your eating disorder and improve your relationship with food, ; it can take a lifetime and know to lean on (and be honest with) your community.
The book has conflicting info for where the couple ended up, one says St. Louis and the other says Denton, TX - which, yuck y'all please you don't want to be in Denton, teaching probably isn't worth it and the derby is nooot the best.
Though, I hear through the derby grapevine that they're living in St. Louis as of Spring '23, where Gabe has been performing drag!! So exciting if this is true, wishing the best for your love and happiness.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Eating disorder, Body shaming, Medical content, Vomit, Bullying, Self harm, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, and Lesbophobia
orchidd's review against another edition
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Eating disorder, Child abuse, and Body shaming
Moderate: Fatphobia, Homophobia, Lesbophobia, Medical content, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Cursing
abigailkokitus's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
Found myself dog-earring so many pages because it was like the author was writing my exact thoughts on paper. Joining roller derby was singularly the best decision I’ve ever made in my life, and Gabe perfectly captured the joy and the community. It made me feel seen. Beautiful story overall!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Eating disorder, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Fatphobia, Medical trauma, Emotional abuse, Lesbophobia, and Body shaming
anielabooks's review
funny
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
I am a casual reader of nonfiction, as I more often read fantasy and romance. However, I won this book in a giveaway; A memoir about a queer woman who plays roller derby was definitely something that intrigued me. From reading this book, I learned so much about the sport and it’s accompanying community. Montesanti’s writing style really helps you feel connected to her teammates, especially her derby mom, Taryn. While I loved reading about Joan of Spark’s roller derby fun, I was most captivated by the self-discovery happening at the same time. Montesanti shares very personal experiences from her childhood, which have shaped her to become the person she is now. It was truly inspiring to see how she learned to be more independent from her mother and was able to recognize the flaws within that relationship. I recommend this book to readers who love nonfiction and queer books with an emphasis on personal growth.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail and Medical content
Moderate: Body shaming, Bullying, Eating disorder, Misogyny, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gaslighting, Homophobia, Lesbophobia, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Drug use, Excrement, and Vomit
aus10england's review against another edition
inspiring
medium-paced
3.25
I definitely enjoyed some aspects of this memoir, especially the first half learning about the author’s experience with roller derby. au began to lose attention when it came to the medical side in the back half. I did enjoy hearing about the family drama though. Overall, pretty solid memoir! Could have been trimmed down a bit though.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical content, Homophobia, and Lesbophobia
Moderate: Sexism
snowydaze's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
5.0
I received an electronic ARC of Brace for Impact by Gabe Montesanti from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. To begin, this memoir was one of my favorite books of the year! Overall, I found Gabe’s writing to consist of thoughts and experiences that I have dealt with in the past and as such, the way in which Gabe interconnects her feelings related to her family and her longing to not feel alone, hit a little too close to home. Which allowed for me to feel a very peculiar connection to her memoir.
Although the pacing for the first few chapters seemed a little slow, it picked up shortly thereafter and maintained a steady pace for the remainder of the book. When coupled with the way she organized the memoir, this helped to keep my attention hooked for the rest of the book. Additionally, I enjoyed reading about how roller derby allowed for Gabe to have the necessary space to learn to not only be comfortable in her skin but to thrive. Her descriptions of longing to belong and the bonds of family that exceed beyond blood, were insightful and inspiring for those of us still looking for our place in the world. Overall, this memoir is an ode to roller derby, self acceptance and found families, with a queer cast of amazing individuals whose personalities shined through the pages.
Although the pacing for the first few chapters seemed a little slow, it picked up shortly thereafter and maintained a steady pace for the remainder of the book. When coupled with the way she organized the memoir, this helped to keep my attention hooked for the rest of the book. Additionally, I enjoyed reading about how roller derby allowed for Gabe to have the necessary space to learn to not only be comfortable in her skin but to thrive. Her descriptions of longing to belong and the bonds of family that exceed beyond blood, were insightful and inspiring for those of us still looking for our place in the world. Overall, this memoir is an ode to roller derby, self acceptance and found families, with a queer cast of amazing individuals whose personalities shined through the pages.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Body shaming, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Cursing, Gaslighting, Grief, Mental illness, Lesbophobia, and Medical content
Minor: Vomit
caseythereader's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.75
Thanks to the Dial Press for the free advance copy of this book.
- BRACE FOR IMPACT is a beautiful blend of queer discovery, relearning who you are away from your family, and peek into the wild and wonderful world of roller derby.
- This memoir is not for the faint of heart, given that it covers eating disorders, emotionally abusive parents, and horrific sports injuries, but following along as Montesanti grows more at home with herself is more than worth the trip. Plus, it's chock full of excellent derby player names.
- The joy of finding your queer home is so wonderful, I'm glad books like this one showcase that experience so lovingly.
- BRACE FOR IMPACT is a beautiful blend of queer discovery, relearning who you are away from your family, and peek into the wild and wonderful world of roller derby.
- This memoir is not for the faint of heart, given that it covers eating disorders, emotionally abusive parents, and horrific sports injuries, but following along as Montesanti grows more at home with herself is more than worth the trip. Plus, it's chock full of excellent derby player names.
- The joy of finding your queer home is so wonderful, I'm glad books like this one showcase that experience so lovingly.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Child abuse, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Cultural appropriation, Cursing, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Lesbophobia, Medical content, Ableism, Gaslighting, Homophobia, Toxic relationship, and Vomit
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