Common Sense Media Review
By Andrea Beach
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
With girl power galore, graphic novel is great for tweens.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 8+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Read
Parent and Kid Reviews
Based on 12 parent reviews
Parents say this book offers an empowering story about friendship and self-discovery, particularly through the lens of a young girl engaging with roller derby, though some reviewers expressed concern over its language and themes of disobedience. Overall, it promotes positive messages about resilience and perseverance, with mixed reviews highlighting both its relatable characters and the occasional inappropriate language that sparked discussions among parents and children.
- empowerment
- friendship
- language concerns
- relatable characters
- resilience
Summarized with AI
Summarized with AI
Based on 20 kid reviews
Kids say this book is an inspiring and entertaining graphic novel that captures the essence of roller derby while promoting positive messages about friendship, perseverance, and self-discovery. Readers appreciate the strong female characters and well-drawn illustrations, though some caution about minor language and themes that may require parental guidance for younger audiences.
- inspiring story
- great characters
- positive messages
- fun illustrations
- strong female role models
Summarized with AI
What's the Story?
In the summer between fifth and sixth grades, Astrid's mother takes her and her best friend, Nicole, to see a roller-derby bout. Astrid is immediately fascinated by the strong, powerful athletes and their amazing moves on skates. When she discovers that the league offers a day camp for girls her age, Astrid immediately knows she wants to spend the summer as a ROLLER GIRL. But Nicole doesn't quite get it. Lately she's been more interested in boys, clothes, and her new snobby friend from ballet, Rachel. As Astrid deals with the pressure of training for her first bout in front of an audience, she and Nicole seem to be drifting in opposite directions. Is it time for them to go their separate ways, or can this lifelong friendship be saved?
Is It Any Good?
This colorful, engaging, and lively debut graphic novel has girl power galore. Big kids and tweens will easily relate to Astrid as she learns how to navigate a world where everything -- especially feelings and friendships -- is getting so much more complicated. And they'll really root for Astrid as she struggles to get good enough to be the team's jammer at the big bout. Astrid really is worth admiring as she powers through the bumps and bruises and picks herself up after each of the (seemingly millions) of times she falls down.
Author Victoria Jamieson's background in design and illustration serves her well in creating a vivid, entertaining, but realistic world. The engaging characters are well realized in pictures and with words, and the illustrations effectively enhance the text by adding nuance and telling detail to the story. Big kids and tweens will find a lot to admire here.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about why graphic novels are so popular. What do we like so much about putting words and pictures together to tell a story?
Astrid talks about how feelings are getting complicated now that she notices she's feeling more than one emotion at a time, and sometimes even opposite emotions at the same time, such as when she said she felt "shad." Which feelings have you had at the same time? How were you able to cope with them?
Did you know about roller derby before you read this book? What do you think of it now? Look in your library or online for more books about the sport, or any other that interests you, to find out more about it.
Book Details
- Author :
- Genre : Sports
- Topics : Friendship
- Book type : Fiction
- Publisher : Dial Books for Young Readers
- Publication date : March 10, 2015
- Publisher's recommended age(s) : 9 - 12
- Number of pages : 240
- Available on : Paperback, Nook, Hardback, Apple Books, Kindle
- Award : Newbery Medal and Honors
- Last updated : February 19, 2026
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