Wish

by Grier Cooper

[girlinthepages]

***Actual Rating 3.5 Stars***

I spent a good 7 years of my adolescence dancing. The performing, the athleticism, the costumes, the music- I loved it all. Though ballet wasn't my main focus, I took enough classes to appreciate the extreme talent and dedication it breeds, and how it becomes a lifestyle for many. My dance background, along with the stunningly gorgeous cover is what drew me to Wish, although aside from that I had no idea what to expect, having never read a dance based book. What Wish provided wasn't just a book about dance, but a gutting, heart-wrenching account of alcoholism, emotional abuse, and the weight of a fractured family resting precariously on a teenager's shoulders.

I'd like to start with saying that the writing in this novel was very, very good and never felt clunky or over dramatic. Indigo's narrative was honest without being whiny, as she narrates the continued deterioration of her family system that's running parallel with the mounting pressure of the looming date of the audition of a lifetime. This balance of tensions was incredibly well done, and the two storylines intertwined perfectly. Grier Cooper definitely knows her dance terminology and manages to translate the physical beauty and intensity of ballet to the page, which was a task that's undoubtedly difficult, as dance is so visual. Cooper likewise writes Indigo's alcoholic mother with an able hand, as her erratic behavior and viscous treatment toward her children is painfully realistic, and had me cringing and screaming for Indigo to fight back while simultaneously fearing for her and her little brothers.

The only aspect of the book that didn't work as well for me were the social ones. Indigo's relationship with Jesse didn't resonate with me and seemed to serve more as a plot point (as it pulls her attention from dancing) rather than a real romance. Indigo's friends were a mixed bag; at times they felt vapid and silly but at other times they really pulled through for her (though there was a large cast of them plus all of their boyfriends and it was hard to keep track of them or feel invested in them at times). It was nice to see female relationships that were constructive rather than destructive portrayed a majority of the time, although there was a mini sort-of rivalry constantly in the background between Indigo and another dancer named Marlene that seemed rather unnecessary.

Overall: As a dancer, I enjoyed this book and appreciated the attention to detail. As a reader, I was invested in Indigo's family's outcome and Indigo's future. As a human, I was proud to see the way Indigo confronted the alcoholism running unchecked in her family and how she looked to resources such as Al-Anon for support. I will definitely be checking out the sequel in this series to see how Indigo's family continues to cope and how Indigo herself balances healing herself with her budding dance career.

This review originally appeared at Girl in the Pages