Genres: Young Adult, Magical Realism
Pages: Hardcover, 280
Published: April 1, 2017
Publisher: Carolrhoda Lab (R)
Rating: ★
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Synopsis: Jessie Vale dances in an elite ballet program that requires perfection to land a spot with the professional company. When she is cast in an animalistic avant garde production, her careful composure cracks wide open. Nothing has felt more dangerous.
Meanwhile, her friend Dawn McCormick's world is full of holes. She wakes in strange places, bruised, battered, and unable to speak. The doctors are out of ideas.
These childhood friends are both running out of time. Jessie has one shot at her ballet dream. Dawn's blackouts are getting worse. At every turn, they crash into the many ways girls are watched, judged, used, and discarded. Should they play it safe or go feral?
About the Author: Amber J. Keyser is a former ballerina and evolutionary biologist with a master's degree in zoology and a doctorate in genetics. As a research scientist, she studied evolution in western bluebirds, blue grosbeaks, marine copepods, and fruit flies and published extensively in the scientific literature. Now she writes both fiction and nonfiction for young adult readers. She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband, two children, a flock of charismatic chickens, and a dog named Gilda.
My Review: I have always loved books about ballet and this one seemed really weird as well. So that was right up my alley!! Sadly though this one was just a little to weird for my tates. I ended up DNFing it around 60 pages.
Keyser s writing shimmers with raw emotion and empathy, and her finale, much like in dance, is poetic, bittersweet, and life affirming. --starred, Publishers Weekly
"[A] book of contrast and counterpoint, where scientific methodology accompanies nature s unpredictability, and the beauty of ballet exists as a result of grueling rehearsals. ---starred, Booklist
"[A brilliant] story of pain and wonder between two girls straddling the edge of body and mind." --Brie Spangler, author of Beast
"The narrative is appropriately dark . . . [and] viscerally evokes struggles of modern teenagers in a brutally authentic manner." --Kirkus Reviews
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