Going in Circles

As soon as I found out this book was about roller derby I got super excited being a nonskating official with a flat track derby league myself.

Charlotte's husband leaves her and it's the worse thing to happen to her, until he comes back and she can't deal with the fear that he will suddenly up and leave again. She ends up leaving him and putting the whole marriage on hold for over a year. Charlotte lives in limbo and becomes self absorbed and obsessed with making decision but not actually making any kind of decision. She can't move forward and she can't go back. Then she makes friends with a girl at work, Francesca. Frannie introduces Charlotte to roller derby. Like a lot of people at first she thinks it's insane, but as she starts show more skating she uses it to help her cope and become a stronger person. The beginning of the novel was very slow and I was going nuts trying to figure out exactly what it was that drove Matthew to leave and his sudden return. Then the roller derby started and I got caught up in that. Being part of a roller derby league I think that the author caught the camraderie in roller derby accurately, and I recognized some of the feelings I had when I first tried skating (picturing getting kicked in the face does in fact make me get up faster, lol). I also really liked that Charlotte didn't end up with a guy at the end. (yes there is a hint of a relationship beginning at the end but it's not the guy that makes that happily ever after and that makes me happy because roller derby is all about self confidence and a man shouldn't be what gives a girl confidence.) I'll get off my soapbox now and say that if you can get through the very slow beginning you will enjoy the book. show less

I think this was the best of Pamie's three novels. I thought the story of Charlotte's marriage was interesting and found her friendship and newfound love of roller derby really enjoyable. I think part of why I enjoyed it was because I could picture Pamie doing these things because I know the roller derby experiences were probably torn from her real life. I wonder how somebody who wasn't as familiar with her life/work would have appreciated those sections? This was a very quick read, and overall I give it thumbs up.

This was a struggle to get through, but be persistent, your diligence will be rewarded. Once Charlotte gets involved in the roller derby, it is totally worth it. The best is the description on how roller derby is like life. I'd also read Whip it, which is on the same topic. This is from an adult perspective, and Whip it is more the other character's viewpoint, that of a younger person. Charlotte's marriage is falling apart and so is she, and this is how she puts her life back together and how roller derby makes it happen.

As soon as I found out this book was about roller derby I got super excited being a nonskating official with a flat track derby league myself.

Charlotte's husband leaves her and it's the worse thing to happen to her, until he comes back and she can't deal with the fear that he will suddenly up and leave again. She ends up leaving him and putting the whole marriage on hold for over a year. Charlotte lives in limbo and becomes self absorbed and obsessed with making decision but not actually making any kind of decision. She can't move forward and she can't go back. Then she makes friends with a girl at work, Francesca. Frannie introduces Charlotte to roller derby. Like a lot of people at first she thinks it's insane, but as she starts show more skating she uses it to help her cope and become a stronger person. The beginning of the novel was very slow and I was going nuts trying to figure out exactly what it was that drove Matthew to leave and his sudden return. Then the roller derby started and I got caught up in that. Being part of a roller derby league I think that the author caught the camraderie in roller derby accurately, and I recognized some of the feelings I had when I first tried skating (picturing getting kicked in the face does in fact make me get up faster, lol). I also really liked that Charlotte didn't end up with a guy at the end. (yes there is a hint of a relationship beginning at the end but it's not the guy that makes that happily ever after and that makes me happy because roller derby is all about self confidence and a man shouldn't be what gives a girl confidence.) I'll get off my soapbox now and say that if you can get through the very slow beginning you will enjoy the book. show less

As soon as I found out this book was about roller derby I got super excited being a nonskating official with a flat track derby league myself.

Charlotte's husband leaves her and it's the worse thing to happen to her, until he comes back and she can't deal with the fear that he will suddenly up and leave again. She ends up leaving him and putting the whole marriage on hold for over a year. Charlotte lives in limbo and becomes self absorbed and obsessed with making decision but not actually making any kind of decision. She can't move forward and she can't go back. Then she makes friends with a girl at work, Francesca. Frannie introduces Charlotte to roller derby. Like a lot of people at first she thinks it's insane, but as she starts show more skating she uses it to help her cope and become a stronger person. The beginning of the novel was very slow and I was going nuts trying to figure out exactly what it was that drove Matthew to leave and his sudden return. Then the roller derby started and I got caught up in that. Being part of a roller derby league I think that the author caught the camraderie in roller derby accurately, and I recognized some of the feelings I had when I first tried skating (picturing getting kicked in the face does in fact make me get up faster, lol). I also really liked that Charlotte didn't end up with a guy at the end. (yes there is a hint of a relationship beginning at the end but it's not the guy that makes that happily ever after and that makes me happy because roller derby is all about self confidence and a man shouldn't be what gives a girl confidence.) I'll get off my soapbox now and say that if you can get through the very slow beginning you will enjoy the book. show less

As soon as I found out this book was about roller derby I got super excited being a nonskating official with a flat track derby league myself.

Charlotte's husband leaves her and it's the worse thing to happen to her, until he comes back and she can't deal with the fear that he will suddenly up and leave again. She ends up leaving him and putting the whole marriage on hold for over a year. Charlotte lives in limbo and becomes self absorbed and obsessed with making decision but not actually making any kind of decision. She can't move forward and she can't go back. Then she makes friends with a girl at work, Francesca. Frannie introduces Charlotte to roller derby. Like a lot of people at first she thinks it's insane, but as she starts show more skating she uses it to help her cope and become a stronger person. The beginning of the novel was very slow and I was going nuts trying to figure out exactly what it was that drove Matthew to leave and his sudden return. Then the roller derby started and I got caught up in that. Being part of a roller derby league I think that the author caught the camraderie in roller derby accurately, and I recognized some of the feelings I had when I first tried skating (picturing getting kicked in the face does in fact make me get up faster, lol). I also really liked that Charlotte didn't end up with a guy at the end. (yes there is a hint of a relationship beginning at the end but it's not the guy that makes that happily ever after and that makes me happy because roller derby is all about self confidence and a man shouldn't be what gives a girl confidence.) I'll get off my soapbox now and say that if you can get through the very slow beginning you will enjoy the book. show less

I don't like this as well as I like Ribon's other books, though I did really enjoy it, and it totally makes me want to try roller derby. As with her other books, this one's very, very funny, with well-drawn characters and just the right amount of sad. Charlotte's compelling, even if she's also a neurotic and vaguely self-absorbed disaster. I feel like the book gets a little bit of a slow start, and I'm not in love with the trope of the narrator inside Charlotte's head. I feel like it maybe isn't as quite as funny as it could have been, and like the interaction between Charlotte and her in-brain narrator might be either too self-aware or not self-aware enough. But it's a funny, fun read, and I really enjoyed it, so if you've liked her show more other books, you shouldn't miss it. show less