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A review by alexfromistemor
Bruised by Tanya Boteju
4.0
TW: This book deals with Self Harm & Death. Actual rating 4.5
Sapphic love and roller derby, what's not to love?!
This was really, really good. I brought it home from my store a week or two ago intending to read it right away, and then I didn't. I found other things that jumped out at my initially, but yesterday morning I woke up early before my alarm went off and started it, and could barely put the things down from then on!
Daya is a very interesting, and at times frustrating, protagonist. I don't think everyone will like her. The book is told in her 1st person POV, so you're stuck right there with her throughout, experiencing her highs and, quite often, her lows, as she figures her life and herself out following the car crash that kills her parents, the one she survived. If there is a key theme to Daya's story, it's that no one thing makes up who we are or defines us, but it can be easy to believe there is. She was brought up in such a way that she seems to believe happiness is weakness, and so for quite a while she seems to deny her happiness. Excitement, sure, that's allowed, but happiness, that's weakness. As such, reading her won't be for everyone.
Of course, we're also introduced to Shanti and, to paraphrase the bard, 'she was a jock, she was a nerd, could it be anymore obvious?' Those two have an immediate connection, even if Daya is like...painfully oblivious for like half of the book. She is a wonderfully smart character, and our main focus voice for the idea that strength isn't just necessarily how physically strong or tough you may be (but certainly not the only one).
The other supporting cast is mostly all great. Fee...oh gosh, Fee...I think we all need a Fee in our lives. They seem like that amazing, accepting friend that are always there to listen and hug without ever offering much pressure. Their girlfriend Cai is equally awesome, and, from my limited experience, seemed to be an immensely great example of a character using ASL. Priam and Vicki are obviously a lot, but them being just so into each other, and without a care about peoples perceptions. Immediately throwing on Seasons of Love when they figure out Daya & Santi...yeah, it would have been embarrassing as all hell...but it's also pretty adorable? The other two senior couples, Bee & Yolanda and Alma & Joe are both just...*chef kiss* they're all wonderful. All the wonderful little derby folk of Daya's team are all fun, particularly Lena.
And then there's Kat. Kat is frustrating in many of the same way that Daya is, though also in her own ways. In some ways, she's obviously one of the coolest people evar...I mean, sleeve tattoos, buff af, intensely caring about her team. But she's also a very broken person. She would never admit it herself, but she really is, and I get that her reaction is similarly to Daya's an unhealthy coping mechanism...but she really goes overboard, y'know. Like, to seemingly absurd degrees. It just felt a bit much.
One thing I found interesting is that sexuality is almost never named in the entire text of the book. Queer people are all over the book, but for the most part it's written in the manner of 'you like who you like', which is very interesting. As far as diversity goes, this book is hands down incredible.
This is a book that deals with self harm. It is a very big part of the narrative and Daya's journey. And that can be a very difficult subject to deal with sensitively. And yet, Tanya manages this superbly. That feeling like as long as you and make your pain physical, then you can ignore the pain in your heart or mind. It's kind of minor, but I'm not actually used to depictions of SH like the ones featured here. Usually, you get cutting, or scratching like in [b:Honey Girl|49362138|Honey Girl|Morgan Rogers|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1591632931l/49362138._SY75_.jpg|74797148], something like that.
If I have any issues with this book, it's a common one I have with a lot of books, particularly stand alone stories: getting so into the world and the way the story is flowing (and trust me, I get that), and then realizing you're most of the way through your page count, and you need to wrap things up!
So, yeah, great great book.
Sapphic love and roller derby, what's not to love?!
This was really, really good. I brought it home from my store a week or two ago intending to read it right away, and then I didn't. I found other things that jumped out at my initially, but yesterday morning I woke up early before my alarm went off and started it, and could barely put the things down from then on!
Daya is a very interesting, and at times frustrating, protagonist. I don't think everyone will like her. The book is told in her 1st person POV, so you're stuck right there with her throughout, experiencing her highs and, quite often, her lows, as she figures her life and herself out following the car crash that kills her parents, the one she survived. If there is a key theme to Daya's story, it's that no one thing makes up who we are or defines us, but it can be easy to believe there is. She was brought up in such a way that she seems to believe happiness is weakness, and so for quite a while she seems to deny her happiness. Excitement, sure, that's allowed, but happiness, that's weakness. As such, reading her won't be for everyone.
Of course, we're also introduced to Shanti and, to paraphrase the bard, 'she was a jock, she was a nerd, could it be anymore obvious?' Those two have an immediate connection, even if Daya is like...painfully oblivious for like half of the book. She is a wonderfully smart character, and our main focus voice for the idea that strength isn't just necessarily how physically strong or tough you may be (but certainly not the only one).
The other supporting cast is mostly all great. Fee...oh gosh, Fee...I think we all need a Fee in our lives. They seem like that amazing, accepting friend that are always there to listen and hug without ever offering much pressure. Their girlfriend Cai is equally awesome, and, from my limited experience, seemed to be an immensely great example of a character using ASL. Priam and Vicki are obviously a lot, but them being just so into each other, and without a care about peoples perceptions. Immediately throwing on Seasons of Love when they figure out Daya & Santi...yeah, it would have been embarrassing as all hell...but it's also pretty adorable? The other two senior couples, Bee & Yolanda and Alma & Joe are both just...*chef kiss* they're all wonderful. All the wonderful little derby folk of Daya's team are all fun, particularly Lena.
And then there's Kat. Kat is frustrating in many of the same way that Daya is, though also in her own ways. In some ways, she's obviously one of the coolest people evar...I mean, sleeve tattoos, buff af, intensely caring about her team. But she's also a very broken person. She would never admit it herself, but she really is, and I get that her reaction is similarly to Daya's an unhealthy coping mechanism...but she really goes overboard, y'know. Like, to seemingly absurd degrees. It just felt a bit much.
One thing I found interesting is that sexuality is almost never named in the entire text of the book. Queer people are all over the book, but for the most part it's written in the manner of 'you like who you like', which is very interesting. As far as diversity goes, this book is hands down incredible.
This is a book that deals with self harm. It is a very big part of the narrative and Daya's journey. And that can be a very difficult subject to deal with sensitively. And yet, Tanya manages this superbly. That feeling like as long as you and make your pain physical, then you can ignore the pain in your heart or mind. It's kind of minor, but I'm not actually used to depictions of SH like the ones featured here. Usually, you get cutting, or scratching like in [b:Honey Girl|49362138|Honey Girl|Morgan Rogers|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1591632931l/49362138._SY75_.jpg|74797148], something like that.
Spoiler
I do have personal experiences with this particular topic, and as such, it felt familiar to read these aspects and feelings, in both positive and negative ways, and so that was a while thing.If I have any issues with this book, it's a common one I have with a lot of books, particularly stand alone stories: getting so into the world and the way the story is flowing (and trust me, I get that), and then realizing you're most of the way through your page count, and you need to wrap things up!
Spoiler
It felt a bit like this book managed to wrap everything up with the HEA within 20-30 pages at the end of the book, and while Daya is still implied to be working on herself, it feels a little bit like 'well, she's fixed now', and I think I just would have preferred if it were more obvious that 'things are better, but this is a long process', even though emotionally, I like the HEA.So, yeah, great great book.