Sheila Haigh

One of my guilty reading pleasures are children's books about ballet or gymnastics. Gymnastics books are a strange breed of their own, filled with spunky Nadia-like children, all spinning, vaulting and twisting around the place.

Rival Gymnast is the third book about Anda, a young English gymnast who is training for a number of competitions. I've read the first book, but haven't got the second - which really isn't an issue in a book like this. The plot is pretty thin - a new girl (who looks like Anda) joins the gymnastic club. She's surly and mean (and bitchy), but a brilliant gymnast who's disliked by all the other girls. Turns out her parents have been through a bad break up and she never wanted to move.

There's a number of stereotypes in here. The tough coach who occasionally crosses the line, the slightly older girl who's not improving anymore and may be over-the-hill. The parents who don't understand that gymnastics means everything to their daughter. There's really nothing new in the story, and it's poorer for it.

If you're interested in a gymnastics book, I'd probably avoid this and go for one of the others out there.… (altro)