grunbean's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
relaxing
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Another Taylor Jenkins-Reid book, another book that can’t be put down. I’d describe a lot of her work as ‘sleeper’ books’. I was unsure when I first started reading (partly because I know nothing about tennis), but once I hit the midpoint I couldn’t stop reading until it was done.
There is something so unique about how this author can bring so much to stories I wouldn’t have blinked twice at. A really good read - perfect for the summer!
There is something so unique about how this author can bring so much to stories I wouldn’t have blinked twice at. A really good read - perfect for the summer!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Chronic illness, Racism, Fatphobia, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Bullying, Cancer, Cursing, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Drug use, Injury/Injury detail, Lesbophobia, Mental illness, and Sexism
bookwookie's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
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
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexism
lotoblanco's review
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
sad
tense
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Stalking, Medical trauma, Injury/Injury detail, Xenophobia, Grief, Sexism, and Death of parent
sefrahudman's review
emotional
informative
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I liked this book a lot for how unlikable the main character was for most of the book. She was written that way and so it made her very real feeling and somewhat enduring at times. I like that she got some good growth near the end of the book. I also really appreciated that. I spoke Spanish, because as I listened to the audiobook, if I had not, I would have lost a lot of what was being said. Most of the exchanges were probably pretty easy to follow even if you didn’t speak Spanish, but it is definitely an asset in the audiobook being able to just listen and know what was being said. Speaking of the audiobook, it was perfection. They had all the different voices and clips that sounded like it was actually a newscast, and it was awesome!
I felt like the explanations of tennis were very accessible for somebody who didn’t really understand very much about tennis before this book. I still got sort of confused sometimes with the difference between a game, a match and a set, but it was fine, and I was able to still get excited about the matches or games or whatever they were.
I felt like the explanations of tennis were very accessible for somebody who didn’t really understand very much about tennis before this book. I still got sort of confused sometimes with the difference between a game, a match and a set, but it was fine, and I was able to still get excited about the matches or games or whatever they were.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism, Misogyny, Cursing, and Death of parent
Moderate: Fatphobia and Body shaming
Minor: Lesbophobia
david_slack110507's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
reflective
relaxing
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
4.25
Back with Taylor Jenkins Reid books and this one was unsurprisingly another hit and incredibly well written. I will preface this by saying that I cannot say whether or not this is a good representation of a Latina character and the Latino community, but I do wish that for those that can give an accurate account of this aspect, that she has done this in a careful, well thought out and well-respected manner to the community and its culture.
I really liked this book even though it is based on a sport I never thought twice about: tennis. The way that Reid wrote the tennis matches and the tennis rules was extremely engaging even if I did forget some of the rules sometimes. The tennis aspect was kept as a constant focus and was well used as a means of facilitating the larger themes and developments of the story, something that reminiscing on Malibu Rising, cannot really be said as if my memory serves me right, the surfing aspect of the book became less critical as the book went on and the party started. I also really liked the return of news articles and interview/talk show transcripts which we last saw that type of documenting format in The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, which allowed for there to not only be breaks in the story but also see the larger world's view on the current events and state of tennis.
Something that I also found quite strong was the themes of the book and its characters. The discussion on the difficulties faced by women and people of colour in sports in the past such as when this book is set (E.g. the mid-1990s) and even now was remarkably interesting and is a very topical discussion now and in my opinion is dealt with very well. It expertly highlighted these issues as well as those affected by these issues and how they must hide their anger with this system to appear their absolute best for the public eye. The book has a very focused look on a few characters rather than having a wide stretching one allowing for the story to feel much more intimate as we only really focus on Carrie, Javier (A standout in this book to me due to how willing he was to train his daughter and not be jealous at her success and actually understand her better than she did herself - their relationship and father/daughter bond was probably the best-written part of this book), Bowe, Nicki, and Gwen.
Carrie has to be one of my favourite protagonists that I've read about in a long time, not only does she have the fiery attitude that many of TJR's female protagonists have but she also has incredible character development. She goes from being someone who must win every single game she plays even if it means coming off as an awful person to the public and those that she cares about to being someone who still wants to win but also recognises that losing is not the be all end all of the situations and that it is the journey and the game itself that is the most important part of it all. I also really liked how Carrie developed emotionally as well going from being perceived as cold and remorseless to being someone who gives genuine thanks and appreciation to those who help her and even respect to those she is facing off against.
I really liked this book even though it is based on a sport I never thought twice about: tennis. The way that Reid wrote the tennis matches and the tennis rules was extremely engaging even if I did forget some of the rules sometimes. The tennis aspect was kept as a constant focus and was well used as a means of facilitating the larger themes and developments of the story, something that reminiscing on Malibu Rising, cannot really be said as if my memory serves me right, the surfing aspect of the book became less critical as the book went on and the party started. I also really liked the return of news articles and interview/talk show transcripts which we last saw that type of documenting format in The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, which allowed for there to not only be breaks in the story but also see the larger world's view on the current events and state of tennis.
Something that I also found quite strong was the themes of the book and its characters. The discussion on the difficulties faced by women and people of colour in sports in the past such as when this book is set (E.g. the mid-1990s) and even now was remarkably interesting and is a very topical discussion now and in my opinion is dealt with very well. It expertly highlighted these issues as well as those affected by these issues and how they must hide their anger with this system to appear their absolute best for the public eye. The book has a very focused look on a few characters rather than having a wide stretching one allowing for the story to feel much more intimate as we only really focus on Carrie, Javier (A standout in this book to me due to how willing he was to train his daughter and not be jealous at her success and actually understand her better than she did herself - their relationship and father/daughter bond was probably the best-written part of this book), Bowe, Nicki, and Gwen.
Carrie has to be one of my favourite protagonists that I've read about in a long time, not only does she have the fiery attitude that many of TJR's female protagonists have but she also has incredible character development. She goes from being someone who must win every single game she plays even if it means coming off as an awful person to the public and those that she cares about to being someone who still wants to win but also recognises that losing is not the be all end all of the situations and that it is the journey and the game itself that is the most important part of it all. I also really liked how Carrie developed emotionally as well going from being perceived as cold and remorseless to being someone who gives genuine thanks and appreciation to those who help her and even respect to those she is facing off against.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Sexism, Grief, Death of parent, and Misogyny
Moderate: Medical content, Cancer, Death of parent, Racism, Cursing, Injury/Injury detail, Death, and Grief
Minor: Alcohol, Addiction, Bullying, Homophobia, Lesbophobia, Sexual content, and Infidelity
kylielf's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
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
4.0
TJR does not write a bad book, and CSIB is no different. I loved how fast-paced the story was. This book literally made me want to play tennis when I had never touched a racquet before. When reading, you feel like you are right there beside the characters. So much heart in this book, and it was a great read.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent, Sexism, Death, and Misogyny
meaghanpal's review
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
lighthearted
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
The book started out a bit slow for me, but boy does Taylor Jenkins Reid know how to write a good story.
Most authors cannot pull off switching writing styles within a book, like from narrative to interview transcripts, but Taylor Jenkins Reid is not like most authors.
I felt I was in each match as it happened and could fully picture this on the screen. It will definitely be a movie or tv show.
Also I loved how she incorporated Spanish throughout the book and often it wasn’t translated. I had to harken back to my language classes but once I understood the sentences it felt like a nice little secret knowing I understood another layer of the book. In that way it felt kind of like watching Stephen Spielberg’s west wide story.
Most authors cannot pull off switching writing styles within a book, like from narrative to interview transcripts, but Taylor Jenkins Reid is not like most authors.
I felt I was in each match as it happened and could fully picture this on the screen. It will definitely be a movie or tv show.
Also I loved how she incorporated Spanish throughout the book and often it wasn’t translated. I had to harken back to my language classes but once I understood the sentences it felt like a nice little secret knowing I understood another layer of the book. In that way it felt kind of like watching Stephen Spielberg’s west wide story.
Spoiler
Sure the book was a bit predictable, like that Bowe and Carrie would get together and Carrie wouldn’t win it all a La Rookie. As a reader it was very satisfying for the characters I invested in to have a happy ending. It was very sad when he did passed, I think the author handled that grief and feeling beautifully and realistically to the identities of the characters she created.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Death of parent, and Grief
Moderate: Alcoholism
Minor: Sexism and Sexual content
stephmcoakley's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fatphobia, Grief, Sexism, Body shaming, Cancer, Death, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Car accident, Medical content, and Misogyny
mimikac's review
emotional
medium-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
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Death of parent, and Sexism
indyjg's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
reflective
medium-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
4.25
As someone who was introduced to tennis because of my Mum and has watched it for years, I knew I’d love this book. I’ve followed the careers of tennis players like Ash Barty and Serena Williams through the highs and lows and have the utmost respect for the Original Nine, so reading through the career of Carrie Soto, a woman who is wholly unapologetic for being herself, for her success and learning how to face failure along the way was a treat. So, this book gets 4.25 stars from me!
Carrie subverts the expectations that women should be ‘grateful’ for their success as though it was their price for winning. There is an overarching expectation in both real life and fiction that women in sports are expected to act a certain way, to be demure, kind, and appreciative of their success. To not do so, you’ll be ostracised, called a bitch, cold-hearted. When men display the same traits, they are lauded and applauded. They are seen as greats of the game. You see these double standards with Carrie. You see it with Tonya Harding. You see it when men, such as the former Indian Wells CEO Raymond Moore, say female tennis players “ride on the coattails of the men.”
<blockquote>"The bulk of the commentators... They wanted a woman whose eyes would tear up with gratitude, as if she owed them her victory, as if she owed them everything she had."</blockquote>
Carrie’s hardest lesson is one that she learns in the twilight of an incredible career. That to lose is not to fail. She overcomes great challenges through sheer determination, which I deeply admire, but more importantly, she realises that perfection is a double-edged sword.
<blockquote>“Needing to win because we cannot bear to lose.”</blockquote>
As Voltaire said, perfection is the enemy of good, leaving out the possibilities for improvement. I quite enjoyed the ending, even if I did predict it. I haven’t read any other books by Taylor Jenkins Reid, but I’m sure I’ll pick up some of her other stuff soon!
Carrie subverts the expectations that women should be ‘grateful’ for their success as though it was their price for winning. There is an overarching expectation in both real life and fiction that women in sports are expected to act a certain way, to be demure, kind, and appreciative of their success. To not do so, you’ll be ostracised, called a bitch, cold-hearted. When men display the same traits, they are lauded and applauded. They are seen as greats of the game. You see these double standards with Carrie. You see it with Tonya Harding. You see it when men, such as the former Indian Wells CEO Raymond Moore, say female tennis players “ride on the coattails of the men.”
<blockquote>"The bulk of the commentators... They wanted a woman whose eyes would tear up with gratitude, as if she owed them her victory, as if she owed them everything she had."</blockquote>
Carrie’s hardest lesson is one that she learns in the twilight of an incredible career. That to lose is not to fail. She overcomes great challenges through sheer determination, which I deeply admire, but more importantly, she realises that perfection is a double-edged sword.
<blockquote>“Needing to win because we cannot bear to lose.”</blockquote>
As Voltaire said, perfection is the enemy of good, leaving out the possibilities for improvement. I quite enjoyed the ending, even if I did predict it. I haven’t read any other books by Taylor Jenkins Reid, but I’m sure I’ll pick up some of her other stuff soon!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism, Death, Grief, and Death of parent
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Alcoholism