Tillie Walden's Spinning is a starkly beautiful memoir about a girl who is stuck in place: between youth and adulthood, between pursuing a preternatural gift for figure skating and embracing a burgeoning interest in art, between hiding from her desire and being led by her body and heart towards that very desire. Walden is an immensely talented artist, with a deft and graceful sense of composition that accentuates both the sport she is depicting and the emotionality of being a young woman on the cusp of adulthood, when everything feels at once bright and hazy.

*This book was provided to me by NetGalley in return for an honest review*

3.5/5

My interaction with figure skating is minimal. When I was six I took lessons for a few months and while I can still skate around a rink, only one of my feet ever leaves the ice and you better not ask me to do more than go forward and stop. I was truly brought into this world through this graphic memoir however and Tillie's life became very real to me.

This is a very melancholy story, both the colours and the pictures paint an image of a sad and depressing time in the author's life and you spend the book looking for that glimpse of hope that rarely comes. I feel like this story told a very authentic tale of growing up and coming out and moving, all things that are scary in their own right and downright terrifying when you have to do them all together.

This was a bit of a slow burn for a graphic novel and, through some technical difficulties, I was unable to finish it. I hope that the published copy is cleaner.

This was a beautifully illustrated memoir that told the coming-of-age experience of a young girl as she dealt with friends, family, first love, coming out, heartbreak, and self-identity... all while training as an ice skater with intense coaching and an intense schedule.

I can't wait to add this to our library collection - This graphic memoir was real, and it was relatable... I can think of many patrons that will be able to connect with this memoir on one level or another, and I think that it would be a wonderful recommendation for YA readers that need to connect to a story that shows them that others out there have had similar experiences, tackled obstacles, and they have survived it all.

I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

I was so excited to receive an ARC of Spinning! I have been reading tons of graphic novels this summer, and a YA graphic novel memoir about ice skating and coming to terms with your sexuality sounded too amazing to pass up. However, while I appreciate what this book brought to the table, the narrative structure was a bit too all over the place for my personal taste.

Spinning chronicles author Tillie Walden’s adolescent years in the world of competitive figure skating. While ice skating is inarguably a huge focus of this memoir, the story covers a lot more than simply the ice skating part of Walden’s life. It shows her dealing with coming out as a lesbian, struggling with bullies at school, and dealing with general feelings of depression and worthlessness. It’s a coming-of-age story in more ways than one. That being said, I did enjoy learning more about growing up as a competitive ice skater and all the unique ins and outs of that (foreign-to-me) world.

The thing I can’t shake about Spinning is the pervasive sense of sadness this book left me feeling throughout. It’s just… not a particularly happy memoir. Tillie constantly feels like an outsider, even when surrounded by other people, which is a feeling I think lots of teens can relate to. I really appreciate the way Spinning dealt with sexuality and how being a queer woman can often isolate you from other women during your teenage years. It also dealt with mental health in a realistic way– meaning, it was a bit heart-wrenching at times. The art style, particularly the coloring (lots of purples and dark colors), of this graphic novel underscores this sense of melancholy that’s present throughout the book.

I’ve seen many people take issue with the pacing of Spinning, and while I see Walden’s intent with pacing the novel the way she did, I have to admit the story itself felt a bit jumbled. The book barely touches on any specific instance in Tillie’s life, and this left me feeling confused at more than one point. It glossed over so many events and moments I wish Walden had spent more time on. Plus, the timeline was not linear at all; whole years were totally skipped over for seemingly no reason, while others had 100 pages solely devoted to that specific year in Walden’s life. I get that this is reflective of the way we reflect on our own lives– some years stand out more than others– but it made the reading experience less enjoyable, for sure. The ending was pretty abrupt, too (side note: is this just… a thing in graphic novel memoirs? they all seem to come to a close so suddenly and without much resolution.).

Overall, though, I think the quiet, languid storytelling is a reflection of Tillie herself. She’s a fairly introverted person, struggling to find her place in the world. The jarring shifts in time make sense because Tillie is so unsure of herself and her future at any given moment. While it didn’t make for the most compulsively readable story, it was an excellent reflection of growing up and the journey of adolescence in general.

I would recommend Spinning to anyone who enjoys graphic novels or is interested in a quieter narrative about coming into your own.

A moving and personal book about skating and so much more, this is the memoir of Tillie Walden. While it does describe her life as a skater, and all the difficulties that entailed, the early morning starts, the hours of training, the uncomfortable outfits and makeup and the pressure to perform, it is also a coming of age story of a young woman, coming to terms with her sexuality and how to be open about it, to family, friends and teammates. There is a muted colour palette used throughout, but the simplicity of this, and of the illustration lends a charm to the book and adds to the feeling of it being a very personal tale. On the downside I did find that the narrative structure felt a little disjointed, and the pacing was strange, we jumped from one moment to another in a very abrupt manner, which made me lose track of what was going on.

This was such a beautifully written and illustrated story. I loved the internal journey of the character and also the artwork. I'm a big fan of ballet stories, and this one didn't disappoint. Will definitely pick up a copy when it comes out!

Tillie Walden has produced a fascinating memoir told primarily through the lens of competitive ice-skating, a sport that she participates in without much enjoyment. The plot meanders a bit and the text is, in places, difficult to read, but it is one of the more unique coming-of-age graphic novels that I've read in quite a while.

Would love to have read this but the format would not download and the only option i could download was a protected pdf and neither my laptop nor my iphone would download and open it

Spinning is a story of a young girl in competitive ice-skating and she doesn't really like it. The ice-rink serves as backdrop for a coming of age story about a young girl finding her identity and sexuality in an insular environment that she doesn't get much joy out of. The artwork is beautiful and I think this book would appeal to a lot of my students. It wasn't really for me, personally, as I felt it could have been tighter and honed in more on one thread but I would happily recommend it and will keep an eye out for Tillie Walden in the future.

A quiet coming-of-age story that touches on a number of difficult topics -- bullying, homophobia, distant parents, sexual harassment, compulsory femininity -- but doesn't really dwell on any of them. That said, they collectively certainly dominate the narrative and the overall impression I get from the book is grinding misery, with the moments that the narrator enjoys (first love, a caring mentor, art) few and far between. It's a tough read, and offers little in the way of resolution. The art is spare and lovely, and the illustrations of skating terminology are an interesting choice of chapter break.

Spinning is an interesting story about Tillie herself, her struggles with skating and competitions and her sexual orientation that looms behind everything at the tender age of, well, being a preteen. The comic is slow-paced and pondering as well as somewhat sad and dark even. Tillie doesn't seem to fit in her new life in Texas, she's bullied and her relationship with Rae is exposed and she doesn't meet her after that anymore. Skating becomes something unwanted and things she felt joyous about don't do that anymore and the analyzing part is surely the best. My only concern is that the comic doesn't really go anywhere. I wasn't really expecting anything earthshaking, but there's hardly anything in the comic. It's just a phase of life and thus soon forgotten.

The art with violet and yellow hues was perfect! It complimented the sadness and hollowness of the comic and the colors were refreshing. I also liked how simple the panels are and so very functional. Walden moves the story with pauses and empty space well, which is awesome and hard to do well. The art is simple and poignant, which is surely the best counterpart to the story. Considering the story is quite long, I really do wish it could have had more content. Thus three stars.

This is a hard book to describe, at first glance it is a graphic memoir but, as the author rightfully points out, its goal is to document feelings, not memories. The author is successful in doing so. I related to this book in many ways but I think it works particularly well in conveying the self-imposed isolation of some queer girls who are afraid of their "difference" and the nervous excitement of that secretive first love.

Cartoonist and illustrator Tillie Walden's graphic memoir looks at her childhood and adolescence as a competitive figure skater and her journey out of the closet. Spinning is Walden's chance to look back at skating (a key part of her identity for over a decade), bullying, first love, sexual abuse, depression, coming out, and the stress of outgrowing a passion.

Sensitive but visceral, Tillie quietly tells her story. The rigor of her skating routine, the loneliness of practice and traveling without her parents and the stress of competition. She talks about her first love, and the pain of enforced separation. It's a coming of age story that teenagers will embrace. Tillie speaks plainly, but with powerful emotion underneath the surface. I felt her crushing depression and anxiety as I continued throughout the book; told in two-color artwork, Tillie's often in the shadows or drawn solitary, alone, speaking volumes to the reader.

Spinning is brilliant and beautiful. If you've ever competed in a sport, played an instrument, or felt alone, Tillie Walden understands you. A strong addition to graphic novel and memoir collections.

Tillie Walden is an Ignatz award winner. You can find her webcomic, On a Sunbeam, online and more of her comics at her website. Spinning has received a starred review from Booklist and mentioned in Entertainment Weekly's LGBTQ YA Book List for 2017.

The illustrations were beautiful and the story was very moving. I enjoyed Tillie's comming of age story dealing with coming out, bullying, emotional insecurities, meeting and maintaining friends.Parts of the book, I feel didn't transition well to the next or jumped to fast to the next scene but overall really well done. I will definitely recommend this book.

Author Tillie Walden says in the author's note that she's the kind of author who didn't start out with a certain point of view, but wrote down her story and let the meaning find itself along the way. I think that shows when you read this book - it feels a little scattered and I think it would have been a stronger narrative if she'd figured out what she wanted it to say.

That said, although there's a lot going on in this book - getting bullied, coming out, absent parents, and so forth - my biggest takeaway is that Walden expresses what it feels like to be trapped into doing something and feel like there's no way out. I attended a performing arts high school and dropped out of the band program my senior year after months and months of feeling like I hated it but there was no way out. Walden gets this and she puts down on paper how it feels.

I'm sure other readers will connect with other parts of this book. It brought me to tears more than once. Hand this to fans of teen or adult graphic novel memoirs or teens with an interest in figure skating. Two readalikes that come to mind are Honor Girl, a graphic memoir by Maggie Thrash and All the Sundays Yet to Come by Kathryn Bertine, a prose figure skating memoir.

A graphic memoir - certainly a first for me as a long time fan of graphic novels,

However, the author uses the format beautifully to draw you into their tale. It is at times amusing, charming, heartbreaking, and always relatable. I would recommend this book for anyone who has ever just gone through the motions, or knows what it was like to not quite fit in.

A graphic novel memoir told with the backdrop of competitive ice skating and identifying as lesbian but unlike other memoirs this is a memoir of emotions where feelings play the protagonist alongside the author. Innovative and thought provoking writing that adds a new layer of depth to this growing genre!
-Jesica Sweedler DeHart

I understand that this isn't a finished copy of the book, but the messy and uneven lettering was too hard for me to read. I tried on multiple screens and finally decided that my eyesight isn't right for this book.

This was a good graphic memoir, and it's one I would definitely recommend to students: it covers a lot of things that I think middle- and high school age students would be able to relate to.

I say it's good, but I think it could've been great--it feels very much like a first work. A triumph of a first work, but a first work all the same. It relates all the vignetted memories very well, but its timeline is often hard to follow, and it's not as introspective or thoughtful as I think it would be if she wrote it in ten years. That being said, the youthfulness of it also has a lot of value, and I think it's a large part of what would make it relatable to younger readers. It also leaves you with a lot of questions--there are so few scenes with her brother, and I don't know what note they leave this chapter of their lives on. That's one of the sort of loose end details that nagged at me as the book came to a close.

However, it was charming and honest and beautifully drawn. It's a window into a world that I wouldn't otherwise have known very well--competitive ice skating--but the experiences and lessons she learned in that world are universal.

As an educator, my favorite thing about this book is that it's not so inappropriate that I couldn't recommend it to students. There's some language, but not enough that I'd be worried about a parent mob outside my classroom. It's the only LGBTQ memoir or graphic memoir that I can recall that would be ok to recommend to students, and that's a very valuable thing to have. Tillie is very honest and relatable throughout, and I'd love for students to read that in a queer female narrator.