“… I think for some people the purpose of a memoir is to really display the facts, to share the story exactly how it hapopened. And while I worked to make sure this story was as honest as possible, that was never the point for me. This book was never about sharing memories; it was about sharing a feeling. I don’t care what year the competition was it what dress I was actually wearing; I care about how it felt to be there; how it felt to win. And that’s why I avoided all memorabilia. It seemed like driving to the rink to take a look of finding the pictures from my childhood iPhone would tell a different story, an external story. I wanted every moment in this book to come from my own head, with all its flaws and inconsistencies.” – 3/5 stars!

Poignant and captivating, Ignatz Award winner Tillie Walden’s powerful graphic memoir, Spinning, captures what it’s like to come of age, come out, and come to terms with leaving behind everything you used to know.
It was the same every morning. Wake up, grab the ice skates, and head to the rink while the world was still dark.
Weekends were spent in glitter and tights at competitions. Perform. Smile. And do it again.
She was good. She won. And she hated it.
For ten years, figure skating was Tillie Walden’s life. She woke before dawn for morning lessons, went straight to group practice after school, and spent weekends competing at ice rinks across the state. It was a central piece of her identity, her safe haven from the stress of school, bullies, and family. But over time, as she switched schools, got into art, and fell in love with her first girlfriend, she began to question how the close-minded world of figure skating fit in with the rest of her life, and whether all the work was worth it given the reality: that she, and her friends on the figure skating team, were nowhere close to Olympic hopefuls. It all led to one question: What was the point? The more Tillie thought about it, the more Tillie realized she’d outgrown her passion–and she finally needed to find her own voice.

I was in the mood to grab a graphic novel, and this seemed really cute, so why not give it a go?
To be honest, it was just okay – it did feel a bit flat to me. I didn’t even know this was a memoir until about halfway through the book. It’s very focused on the author’s life growing up and her experience as a competitive skater (I mean, duh, it’s a memoir), but I struggled with keeping my interest in what was going on and the challenges the author was facing. I get that it was a coming-of-age kind of narrative where she is discovering herself, but it lacked… something.
Now that I’m thinking about it, it just seems like the book was unnecessarily long, with weird pacing… and a little boring. It’s not my intent to criticize the author and her life, but I think the book could have been put together in a different way, all while being true to her story.
The art was beautiful, though! And I also really liked how in the beginning of each chapter we get skater “tricks” (I don’t know what else to call them) and how to do them. That was a really nice touch!
Overall, it was just alright… I guess it just wasn’t for me.