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Blood Sport
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Jason is sure his sister, Becca, was murdered, but he's the only one who thinks so. After finding a photograph Becca kept hidden, he decides to infiltrate a boxing gym to prove that she didn't die accidentally. As a transgender kid, Jason's been fighting for as long as he can remember, and those skills are going to come in handy as he investigates. Quickly invited into the
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Paperback, 128 pages
Published
January 28th 2020
by Orca Book Publishers
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I got an ARC of this book.
There are AMAZING parts of this book. I am mostly going to focus on those, because they are so very, very important to me.
1. The main character, Jason, is NEVER misgendered in the book. The characters never slip-up, especially the ones that know. There is a point in the book where Jason's birth name/dead name/"old name" comes up. Another character, not revealed who, is the one who corrects the issue.
2. Jason's transition is only talk ...more
I got an ARC of this book.
There are AMAZING parts of this book. I am mostly going to focus on those, because they are so very, very important to me.
1. The main character, Jason, is NEVER misgendered in the book. The characters never slip-up, especially the ones that know. There is a point in the book where Jason's birth name/dead name/"old name" comes up. Another character, not revealed who, is the one who corrects the issue.
2. Jason's transition is only talk ...more
4.5 stars
This was a shorter read than I expected, and I really wish I could do half stars because it doesn't deserve to lose a full star just for that, but I also want to keep my 5 star ratings for knock out books.
Otherwise though, this was a good little story! I don't think my rating would change if I had gone into it expecting a novella, because it runs through the murder mystery SO fast that I think I still would have been a little disappointed. The MC's voice is great though, and the side ch ...more
This was a shorter read than I expected, and I really wish I could do half stars because it doesn't deserve to lose a full star just for that, but I also want to keep my 5 star ratings for knock out books.
Otherwise though, this was a good little story! I don't think my rating would change if I had gone into it expecting a novella, because it runs through the murder mystery SO fast that I think I still would have been a little disappointed. The MC's voice is great though, and the side ch ...more
So I found the plot to be kind of lacking, but I think this book is extremely important. It’s own voices about a trans teen and it seems to be very well done. There is no misgendering, the plot doesn’t revolve around the boy being trans, and there is no unnecessary violence because he is trans. While a lot of books with a trans MC use their gender as a plot device, this book definitely didn’t and I think we need more books like that.
This is a quick read in the highly rated Hi-Lo readers series and I've rated it on that basis - yes I'm sufficiently Nerdy to have found out what they are.
Obviously I'm not part of that target readership and personally prefer the author's highly acclaimed Psionics series which I love.
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Obviously I'm not part of that target readership and personally prefer the author's highly acclaimed Psionics series which I love.
...more
A good short story with a trans character. I enjoyed to writing style.
Yay for well written transmasc content!
Short and fast-paced (High/Low), give this to reluctant readers who don't see themselves very often in books: a trans kid in foster care, who finds solace and camaraderie in the boxing ring.
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“Blood Sport” is a new offering in the Orca Soundings Hi-Lo reading series. Its intention is to address the need for more youth fiction for transgender or questioning teenagers. Tash McAdam, the author, identifies as queer and writes what “they” would like to have read in their teenage years.
The book is about Jason who is both transgender and a foster child who is close to aging out of the BC foster care system. The plan had been to join his older sister Becca when Jason turned eighteen. Howeve ...more
The book is about Jason who is both transgender and a foster child who is close to aging out of the BC foster care system. The plan had been to join his older sister Becca when Jason turned eighteen. Howeve ...more
First the positives. I love that this is a YA novella about a trans guy. I have only read trans girl stories for young people so this is a nice change. Similarly but to a lesser extent, I like that the sport of choice is boxing. Boxing is generally not written about in and of itself and there are a lot of great storytelling opportunities available with it, some of which McAdam takes advantage of. I also like the complex feelings on display about Jason's living situation. Group homes are better t
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I received a copy of Blood Sport from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
The premise was really promising and I was excited to read it. The writing itself is good, and it doesn’t feel awkward at all the way hi-lo books sometimes do. However, the plot and pacing of the plot were problematic for me. Everything happens very quickly and is wrapped up very quickly and there wasn’t nearly the amount of development there could have been. The mystery was solved way too easily, ...more
The premise was really promising and I was excited to read it. The writing itself is good, and it doesn’t feel awkward at all the way hi-lo books sometimes do. However, the plot and pacing of the plot were problematic for me. Everything happens very quickly and is wrapped up very quickly and there wasn’t nearly the amount of development there could have been. The mystery was solved way too easily, ...more
I was a bit disappointed with this one. I haven't found many books featuring trans-characters so when I find one, I dive right in. This was a short, quick read. The plot, was eh. I expected there to be more of a mystery aspect to this, but it kind of gets forgotten. What I did like was the fact that the author didn't shy away from the main character using a binder, navigating boxing, and coming out to friends.
If there had been more written, I think this could have been an excellent story. ...more
If there had been more written, I think this could have been an excellent story. ...more
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Tash is a Welsh-Canadian author and teacher. Their publications include The Psionics (Nine Star Press), and the Gold Standard Select Blood Sport (Orca Books) as well as multiple anthology contributions.
When they're not writing, they're usually found teaching either Computer Science or English in Vancouver. Tash identifies as trans and queer and uses the neutral pronoun 'they'. As an English teache ...more
When they're not writing, they're usually found teaching either Computer Science or English in Vancouver. Tash identifies as trans and queer and uses the neutral pronoun 'they'. As an English teache ...more
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