A review by rachels_booknook
Head Over Heels by Hannah Orenstein

4.0

Head Over Heels follows Avery Abrams, a former competitive gymnast who blew her chance at making the Olympic team. Seven years later she’s reeling from a breakup and unsure of what to do with her life. She moves back to her parent’s house and begins working with her former gymnastics crush, Ryan, to train Hallie, a promising young gymnast with Olympic aspirations. Just before the Olympic tryouts, a shocking scandal breaks and has shattering effects not only on the sport, but also on Hallie, Avery, and Avery’s former best friend and Olympic gymnast, Jasmine. 

Unlike Avery, Jasmine did make the Olympic team, and then married their verbally and emotionally abusive older coach. Avery was jealous of Jasmine for years over the Olympics but Jasmine had her own struggles and unhappiness. I liked reading the juxtaposition of two elite gymnasts, one who made the Olympic team and one who did not, along with Hallie’s drive to make the upcoming Olympic team. 

Head Over Heels released in 2020, a few years after the Larry Nasser scandal broke. For 18 years, Larry Nasser was the team doctor for the US women’s national gymnastics team, where he used his position to exploit and sexually assault hundreds of young athletes. Hannah Orenstein writes about this in her author’s note at the beginning of her book. 

Like Hannah Orenstein’s other books, I loved this one. I think the world of competitive sports is a fascinating setting for a book. The way Ryan and Avery coach Hallie demonstrates the priority on physical, mental and emotional well-being of competitive athletes, for those that have coaches and families that care, but Avery and Jasmine’s experience, as well as the scandal, shows there is more work to be done.