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amando's review
5.0
I loved this one! Dance with compelling themes like body dysmorphia, addiction, racism, made it a one sitting book for me.
destdest's review
emotional
inspiring
sad
fast-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
4.0
I really enjoyed this. I have a soft spot for books about black girls doing ballet. This one has such a simple, easygoing narrative voice.
I was invested in the tender yet tense platonic friendship between Neil and Aisha. Like, I could see they were close and not just told this. Honestly, Neil's self-destructiveness and Aisha's worsening mental health kept them in a tug-of-war with each other trying to see how much to divulge to the other.
The execution of disassociation was good to me. I haven’t read many stories that cover this but it explained what Aisha was going through in a way that was understandable to someone who had never heard of this. I can’t speak to the actual accuracy of the portrayal though.
In the background is subtle commentary on colorism, body image, racism, eating disorders, toxic masculinity, and abandonment issues. It is integrated so seamlessly into the story despite the heavy subjects. But the main focus is on mental health, especially as it relates to the dance world, and a sweet, gentle romance.
And it’s a breath of fresh air that the book acknowledges not every therapist will be a good fit; some will be downright patronizing. But it’s still worth it to find the right one.
I was invested in the tender yet tense platonic friendship between Neil and Aisha. Like, I could see they were close and not just told this. Honestly, Neil's self-destructiveness and Aisha's worsening mental health kept them in a tug-of-war with each other trying to see how much to divulge to the other.
The execution of disassociation was good to me. I haven’t read many stories that cover this but it explained what Aisha was going through in a way that was understandable to someone who had never heard of this. I can’t speak to the actual accuracy of the portrayal though.
In the background is subtle commentary on colorism, body image, racism, eating disorders, toxic masculinity, and abandonment issues. It is integrated so seamlessly into the story despite the heavy subjects. But the main focus is on mental health, especially as it relates to the dance world, and a sweet, gentle romance.
And it’s a breath of fresh air that the book acknowledges not every therapist will be a good fit; some will be downright patronizing. But it’s still worth it to find the right one.
daenknight's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
fast-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? Yes
5.0
This book was so absolutely incredible... There were so many issues faced by the main character within this novel (microaggressions; racism; strained friendship; burnout; eating disorders; problems with her relationship with her mother) and this book handled them all very well. There were some moments that hit me so hard that I had to take a moment and put the book down just to emotionally digest the things Aisha was feeling. The writing was fantastic; the ending felt so right; and Aisha was an incredible character to be with throughout her journey. I will definitely be rereading this in the future!
marria_vl4's review
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
smalltownbookmom's review
4.0
This was a heartfelt, YA debut that tackles some tough issues as aspiring Black ballet dancer Aisha comes to terms with not getting a prestigious apprenticeship position and decides to enroll in public school instead.
Aisha also reconnects with her former dance partner and friend as he goes through his own battles with alcoholism. Part YA coming of age story, part romance, this book was certainly heavy at times. Aisha deals with racism in the dance industry, an eating disorder, mental health problems (dissociative identity disorder) and hard to please parents.
Good on audio narrated by Max Amani and perfect for fans of books like The turning pointe by Vanessa L. Torres or Until we break by Matthew Dawkins. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review!
Aisha also reconnects with her former dance partner and friend as he goes through his own battles with alcoholism. Part YA coming of age story, part romance, this book was certainly heavy at times. Aisha deals with racism in the dance industry, an eating disorder, mental health problems (dissociative identity disorder) and hard to please parents.
Good on audio narrated by Max Amani and perfect for fans of books like The turning pointe by Vanessa L. Torres or Until we break by Matthew Dawkins. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review!
perugininicole's review
emotional
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
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Eating disorder and Bullying
Minor: Racism, Emotional abuse, Medical content, Sexual assault, Body shaming, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide attempt
artemis_05's review
emotional
fast-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
3.5
oof
Content Warnings
Minor: Sexual assault, Alcoholism, Eating disorder, and Mental illness
thediaryofanauthorintraining's review
5.0
You know that feeling when you feel that you found a book that's written just for you? When someone has written down the things that you wanted to say but couldn't? That's what this book felt like for me.
As a Black Girl who grew up doing ballet, I could see so much of myself in Aisha. Growing up, I didn't notice some of the things I do now because I just liked doing ballet. But looking back, you notice subtle things like wearing pink tights that don't match your skin color and not seeing any ballerinas that look like you (Michaela DePrince and Misty Copeland came into popularity a lot later in my dancing career). I still love ballet, but I had to take a break from it after high school, so I can relate to Aisha loving ballet but the culture of it taking a toll on her mental health. Also, seeing the microaggressions she has to deal with makes me mad because it's frustratingly real, and her choosing to ignore it can feel frustrating as well, but it's accurate because dealing with it can feel so exhausting.
Waiting for change to come is exhausting in general, and Aisha taking control of where she practices is a nice character moment, and she does see a good change. But everything has its downsides and seeing the amount of pressure Aisha puts on herself and how her relationships with her best friend and potential love interest fluctuate because of it just feels, again, so accurate.
On that note, I feel that this book does a great job of exploring her relationships with her best friend, Neil (finally boy-girl platonic friendship rep), and her potential love interest, Ollie, who is another one of Neil's best friends. Watching the three of them navigate their relationships with each other while dealing with their own problems is done so well in this book, and I feel like we do get a fair insight into these three characters' problems even though the book is written from Aisha's POV.
Overall, this book was an amazing read, and I'm so honored that my first ARC ever was this book.
The reasons I gave this book five stars:
This book made my heart happy
Will read Forever
Full-on Connected
I See Me
Again, An Amazing Book, but please check out the trigger warnings for the subjects you might be sensitive to.
This Book in Emojis:
As a Black Girl who grew up doing ballet, I could see so much of myself in Aisha. Growing up, I didn't notice some of the things I do now because I just liked doing ballet. But looking back, you notice subtle things like wearing pink tights that don't match your skin color and not seeing any ballerinas that look like you (Michaela DePrince and Misty Copeland came into popularity a lot later in my dancing career). I still love ballet, but I had to take a break from it after high school, so I can relate to Aisha loving ballet but the culture of it taking a toll on her mental health. Also, seeing the microaggressions she has to deal with makes me mad because it's frustratingly real, and her choosing to ignore it can feel frustrating as well, but it's accurate because dealing with it can feel so exhausting.
Waiting for change to come is exhausting in general, and Aisha taking control of where she practices is a nice character moment, and she does see a good change. But everything has its downsides and seeing the amount of pressure Aisha puts on herself and how her relationships with her best friend and potential love interest fluctuate because of it just feels, again, so accurate.
On that note, I feel that this book does a great job of exploring her relationships with her best friend, Neil (finally boy-girl platonic friendship rep), and her potential love interest, Ollie, who is another one of Neil's best friends. Watching the three of them navigate their relationships with each other while dealing with their own problems is done so well in this book, and I feel like we do get a fair insight into these three characters' problems even though the book is written from Aisha's POV.
Overall, this book was an amazing read, and I'm so honored that my first ARC ever was this book.
The reasons I gave this book five stars:
This book made my heart happy
Will read Forever
Full-on Connected
I See Me
Again, An Amazing Book, but please check out the trigger warnings for the subjects you might be sensitive to.
This Book in Emojis:
literary_moss's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
The author creates such a vivid world. As someone from near Toronto I loved that it was set there. It’s really cool to see a place that I’ve spent lots of time in depicted in a book. All the characters were so real and well developed. The mental illness and struggles of Aisha, Neil and Ollie were so well handled and accurate. I think that the characters really act their age and this is a great YA book. I can’t believe this is a debut novel as it was so well written! I can’t wait to read what else Maya Ameyaw comes up with. It really showcased how hard the ballet world can be especially for black people. There were a lot of issues covered in a short time and while all of them were done well some could have used more time to really deal with. I feel like some of the topics could be stretched into the next parts of the series to allow for a deeper dive into them. Overall, it’s a great book I really enjoyed reading. I’m still thinking about the characters!
ellacmack's review
4.0
3.75 rounded up! I read just about every dance book that comes out and this one felt different in a good way! I like that the main focus of this book is friendship and them helping each other through some really dark times. I went in with the notion it would be more romance and dance driven. Aisha is super likable and I was rooting for her throughout the entire book. The two side characters were well written and their stories felt complete which was refreshing.
Thanks NetGalley!
Thanks NetGalley!