Hello and welcome to my blog tour for The Other Side of Perfect by Mariko Turk, organised by the lovely TBR and Beyond Tours. This time around I’m in the middle of the schedule, which you can find here. I was planned to be sharing my review along with some of my favourite quotes from this fun young adult contemporary novel, published this week, but because of personal health issues, I’ll be sharing a spotlight today and reviewing at a later date.
Synopsis
Content Warning: protagonist is dealing with a lot of anger and some depression, various experiences of racism
Alina Keeler was destined to dance, but one terrifying fall shatters her leg–and her dreams of a professional ballet career along with it.
After a summer healing (translation: eating vast amounts of Cool Ranch Doritos and binging ballet videos on YouTube), she is forced to trade her pre-professional dance classes for normal high school, where she reluctantly joins the school musical. However, rehearsals offer more than she expected–namely Jude, her annoyingly attractive cast mate she just might be falling for.
But to move forward, Alina must make peace with her past and face the racism she had grown to accept in the dance industry. She wonders what it means to yearn for ballet–something so beautiful, yet so broken. And as broken as she feels, can she ever open her heart to someone else?
Touching, romantic, and peppered with humor, this debut novel explores the tenuousness of perfectionism, the possibilities of change, and the importance of raising your voice.
Book Links
Good Reads
Amazon US / Amazon UK
Barnes and Noble
Book Depository
Indigo
Indiebound
About The Author
Mariko Turk grew up in Pennsylvania and graduated from the University of Pittsburgh with a BA in creative writing. She received her PhD in English from the University of Florida, with a concentration in children’s literature. Currently, she works as a Writing Center consultant at the University of Colorado Boulder.
She lives in Colorado with her husband and baby daughter, where she enjoys tea, walks, and stories of all kinds.
Author Links
Website
Twitter
Instagram
Good Reads
And On She Reads 