Review: "Rollergirl" by Victoria Jamieson

In "Roller Girl" by Victoria Jamieson, Astrid's mom has taken her and her best friend, Nicole, on "an evening of cultural enlightenment" before. Poetry readings, the opera, and the modern art gallery have been some of the more exciting evenings in the past, but this one is different. She takes them to see Portland's hometown roller derby racers, The Rose City Rollers. Astrid's life is forever changed. The players have crazy names, weird hair, and tattoos. One player, a jammer named Rainbow Bite, looks like a superhero and actually winks at Astrid! She cannot wait to begin junior roller derby camp. There's just one problem--her best friend, Nicole, is into ballet and boys and plans on going to dance camp over the summer instead of joining Astrid.

The summer before junior high is not going the way Astrid had planned. Instead of spending every moment with her BFF, she's learning to skate and trying to figure out if she fits into the roller derby community while hopefully making new friends in the process. School Library Journal lists this graphic novel full of self discovery and strong female characters as appropriate for grades four to eight.

--Heather N., Eureka Hills