I loved this book! Why? It drew me in and I couldn't put the book down!

This memoir talks about the need to be something more after living a life of feeling like you are never enough. Gabe is looking for something that will empower her but at the same time, be competitive. She finds a roller derby league looking for new skaters and decides to give it a try. She doesn't skate well to begin with but pushes herself to become better, eventually making it on a team. Soon after, she injures herself and wonders if she will ever be able to go back to something she fell in love with and made her feel whole for once in her life.


Thanks to Random House and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Montesanti's memoir of a dysfunctional childhood, a difficult experience coming out of the closet and living an authentic LGBTQ life, and pursuing roller derby is well-written and compelling. For me, some of the portions of the book that focused entirely on roller derby dragged as I don't have much interest in the sport, though I enjoyed reading about her relationships with her teammates. The book alternates between past and present experiences, and it was her relationship with her mother that I found most interesting, and wanted to read more of. These sections are enmeshed with her experience as a lesbian; her mother (strangely) was an advocate for LGBTQ rights but thought her own daughter was "better than that." All in all, this is a good read but will be of greater interest to roller derby fans/players.

I loved the Nara groom and voice of this book. I could personally connect with with book with my own life events. For a memoir I thought it was very well written. It’s hard for me to judge memoirs since they are based on someone else’s life but I love the fact that I feel like I can relate and experience similar things. Thank you for sharing your story with the world

This memoir is gritty, intense, and raw - an eloquent, honest account of self-discovery, queerness, and the process of healing from trauma. An immersive and cathartic read!

Wow. It was a beautifully written story about hope, love, struggles, overcoming fear, and being brave enough to just be who you are. Not letting the fear and disconnect from others stand in your way of your happiness.

I loved her story and getting an inside look into roller derby. I’ve never known too much about the sport and it was fun listening to all the different aspects of it and people involved.

A touching and exhilarating memoir about a woman finding self-acceptance through joining a roller derby league, and healing emotionally as well as physically after a bad injury she sustained during a practice. The author talks extensively about her strained relationship with her mother and how her upbringing under her mother's critical gaze affected who she became as a woman.

I really liked the candor, the flow of the book, and how clearly the love Montesanti has for the sport leapt up out at the reader. It made me want to pick up my own skates that have been collecting dust in my basement since the pandemic thwarted my plans to join our local roller derby league. I wish there had been a little bit more information at the end of the book about her return to skating, but otherwise, this was a tough, yet fun memoir.

There's nothing wrong with this book, so I'm putting it down. Maybe if I knew about the author and had an interest in them before starting this book, I would have been more interested in continuing, but sadly that's not me.

DNF @10%

I loved this look into the world or roller derby! As a roller skater (who is too afraid to hurt themself to play derby), I really enjoyed getting to read about Gabe's life in the sport. I've always heard that derby is a great place to find queer community and Gabe's experience suggests this is true. It was really great to read about such fantastic community.

The thing I didn't like about the book, that I don't think the publisher's description really prepared me for, was the amount of Mom Drama it contained. Given the fact that Gabe was very young during the time she is writing about and so was still establishing herself as someone separate from her family of origin, and that her mom sounds rather horrible, it's unsurprising. However, I was not expecting quite so much terrible parent in this roller derby memoir.

Overall though, amazing book and a very fun look into the world or roller derby.

Before I started this book the only knowledge I had of roller derby was from an episode of CSI! This was a very interesting read for me.
The author takes us along for the ride through her challenges with both roller derby and her mother, of which her mother is definitely the scarier option.
I liked how her accident, that could have ended up defeating her, became the moment that defined her and allowed her to move on.
A really brilliant read, thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for allowing me the chance to read this book.

I got an ARC of this book.

Derby is one of those things that the moment I learned about it existing I wanted to be a part of. I didn’t get a chance until right after I finished reading this book. Finally have the information to join the local league as a NSO! So the reviewing of this book was delayed while I went and experienced derby for real (and because life gets complicated and busy).

I adored this book. It felt like both a love letter to derby and a finally being able to exist by Montesanti. Emotional abuse and control take many forms, but the way that her mom was is very much an abuse I can understand and have lived through. It was intense at times. There were graphic eating disorder passages. Montesanti never claims to be perfect or to have healed, but it is clear that she is finally getting a voice and has supports.

A great deal of the book focuses on derby. It is a fascinating behind the scenes look at a sport that a lot of people don’t get to experience. I am forever grateful that I read this book before going to experience things. I felt like I knew a bit more. I knew what a derby wife was, I knew some basics of the rules. I knew some skate brands to avoid. I was accepted immediately by the NSO crew and by the team members I talked with. There is a lot of derby talk though, so if you have no interest in derby, this really isn’t for you.

The emotional stuff blindsided me multiple times. I just wasn’t expecting this to get that deep or that personal. It was the perfect combination for me. I have been telling everyone to read it. You get sports, you get queer, you get emotional intimacy. It just works so wonderfully. You are never bogged down with too many emotions at once. you have to be let in first. It really works.

I enjoyed every second of reading this, even when I was concerned. There is just so much to say about a found family.

This book had me thinking of roller derby names even though I avowedly have no need for speed or wheels on my feet. But that’s just how well Gabe Montesanti wrote about this sport and the part it played in her embracing her queerness. The book is a beautiful and challenging memoir about leaving the abuse of her family of origin and choosing a queer found family. It was hard to read at times, but it has a happy ending, which may be good to know going into it. In this case, the title of the book, Brace for Impact, is also instructive for the reading experience.

My biggest takeaway from the book was how derby players support each other:
“Outsiders often assumed that roller derby players were messy and disorganized because our look was so different from the uniformity of baseball or football players; in fact, it was the exact opposite. Every scrimmage, every class, every social event, and every participant had a place. Derby was about inclusion, and real inclusion required organization.”

I received an digital advance reader copy of this book from NetGalley and Random House (The Dial Press) in exchange for an honest review.

This is an incredible and frankly, quite cozy memoir. Check out the content warnings, but this is a story of resilience and ultimately joy. Also it takes place in the Midwest, and at least partly in Michigan! Four stars. I enjoyed my time with it.

Brace for Impact is a great story about roller derby and is a memoir of how one of its greatest became involved in this life. It is a story of sisterhood and acceptance for others and looking for that which can't be found elsewhere. It's about finding a sense of community and belonging and creating a family other than the one you were born into. It is a great book for those looking for affirmation and inspiration in being able to accept who who are, overcoming obstacles, and being able to embrace that. Well written, this book gives great insight.

"Brace for Impact" by Gabe Montesanti was an intense, powerful memoir, about a young woman, with a painfully critical, unsupportive mother, finding her strength and confidence through roller derby. Enduring excruciating recovery from devastating injuries, with the love and devotion of her wonderful partner and supportive, generous peers. Gripping, and very well told, I very much appreciated this story. Thank you NetGalley, the author and publisher for the review copy. All opinions are my own.

I really enjoyed this memoir about growing up queer in a small town and finding a community and sense of self through the competitive sport of roller derby! The author does such a great job bringing that world to life. Perfect for fans of the Ellen Paige movie Whip it!

The book also touches on what happens when the life you love is not longer an option due to physical limitations and I found that aspect of the author's story equally compelling. Highly recommended especially for fans of My greatest save by Briana Scurry! Much thanks to NetGalley and the author for an advance review copy!

I enjoyed this book a lot, it’s not my typical genre at all. It felt very honest and raw and personal, like talking to a friend. That said, not necessarily my cup of tea and I struggled through some parts.

I know that there will be [and are] people who love this book; unfortunately, I am not one of those people. For me, this was a huge slog and every day I struggled to get through my set reading of it.

The premise of this book is misleading - I was ready to be immersed in the world of Roller Derby and all that it entails and then some event that causes the author to reflect on her life. Instead, I was immersed in the world of the author and her life and struggles [which are many and real and I felt for her for most of the book] and there were side-blips of Roller Derby. I was so hoping to learn more about Derby [NOT that I would ever be able to participate being the Queen Klutz, but I do love the IDEA of it.] and I feel really disappointed about that [though just reading about the hard work that goes into actually becoming a Roller Derby Person was exhausting; I cannot even imagine doing it in real life]; I just wanted so much more [I will say that what I did learn was amazing. I loved the culture and the openness and the acceptance. As someone who has been a weirdo and on the peripheral her whole life, this was very appealing to me and the way that group surrounded the author after her accident was amazing and lovely to see. THAT part of the story I just loved and save the book from being a total loss for me].

I will say that reading this book made me grateful for many things in my life; my parents always supported me 100% in everything I have ever done, even when they didn't understand *OR* like what I was doing. They also let me make mistakes and then helped pick me up from said [spectacular]mistakes with very little recriminations [never in my life did they say "I told you so" to me and I am the most grateful for that, because it did seem for a few years there I made a BILLION mistakes]. I am also grateful for Doctors and Nurses who were [and are] compassionate and fought/fight for me and my well-being; that the good outweighs the bad [and there was PLENTY of bad]. I felt that a lot during the recovery part of this book. Even as I struggled with her relationship with her parents and her own healing, my heart also broke for her. It was such a weird feeling and really contributed to me not loving this book in spite of me wanting to love it. I am disappointed.

I was invited to read and review this book by Random House Publishing Group - Random House/The Dial Press and I want to thank them, NetGalley and the author, Gabe Montesanti, for providing the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

It's kind of strange to review someone's life story... but anyway, I really enjoyed reading about Gabe's life in Brace for Impact.

In this book, we get insights into roller derby, injuries, queerness, and toxic family situations. Is it strange to say I enjoyed reading about this? Maybe. But it was wholly captivating, unapologetically queer, and taught me more about what roller derby is, which I loved.

Gabe writes so beautifully, really drawing the reader in, & making it feel like we are experiencing everything too. Which makes for a very intense read. It's written non-linearly, with both present-day events and flashbacks to past events, but done in a way that makes complete sense and flows very well together.

It was such a great experience reading about how Gabe grew as a person, became more herself, and found a community. I also appreciate the candidness about the bad parts - the struggles and falling back into the toxic family dynamic. It shows life as it is.

I really think anyone in the queer community would enjoy this memoir like I did, keeping in mind the heaviness of some of the topics broached.

CW: emotional abuse, toxic family, disordered eating, injury, doctor's offices, hospital/ER stay, self harm, anxiety, vomit, unwanted touch, pandemic, HP references

Rating system:
5 - absolutely love, little-to-no dislikes that did not impact my reading experience

4 - great book, minor dislikes that did have an impact on my reading experience

3 - good/decent book but for some reason did not hook me or there were some problematic things that just were not addressed or greatly impacted my reading experience

2 - is either a book I did not click with and did not enjoy, problematic aspects are not addressed and severely impacted my reading experience, or I DNF'd but think it has potential for others

1 - is very problematic, I would not recommend the book to anyone

When I saw the gorgeous cover art on this book, I knew I wanted to read it. I’ve been doing some roller skating lately with my kids after a 20-year hiatus, so I was compelled to pick it up. I knew very little about roller derby before reading it, and I wanted to know more.

What I got was an education about the world of roller derby and so much more. Montesanti expertly weaves her derby experience with her personal exploration of who she is as a friend, girlfriend, daughter, sister, and most importantly, who she is as an individual. The author had faced immense pressure in her early life both from competitive swimming and from strong familial influence to act in a certain way. Over the course of the book, Montesanti is able to be who she wants without second-guessing herself.

Essentially, it is a book about being true to yourself with a wonderful cast of characters and the exciting action of roller derby. I recommend it for those who are interested in memoirs, sports, or mental health awareness.

This book had a lot of heart. I loved Montesanti's writing style. This was a painful memoir about being queer, unlearning toxic mentalities you were raised with and finding community in roller derby. I found Montesanti's stories and experiences with her mother to be deeply personal and infuriating. It was so satisfying to see Montesanti's journey in roller derby help change her for the better.

Having broken my leg roller skating at the end of 2020, I related to her journey of derby injury recovery and the uncertainty being handicapped can bring.