My Corner of the Ring is a story of hard work and putting in effort to gain skills beyond raw talent. It is about overcoming obstacles and putting forth dedication to hone a craft.
Jesselyn tells this story through a ghost writer; however, her feelings, thoughts, and experiences are vivid. This is a non-fiction book that reads like a novel. This book is easy to read and follow along as Jess gives an introduction to boxing and the history of boxing alongside her own journey to compete in the Junior Olympics.
This book would appeal to girls who like the Goodnight Stories for Rebel Girls series as it is full of girl power amidst obstacles. It would also appeal to those who love the underdog or Rocky.
I feel like this is an unfinished story. I want to follow Jess and see what happens next in her story. Throughout this book she has told the reader about her goals and her work to accomplish them. Some of those goals she completed in the book. But there are still some left to be accomplished. I look forward to seeing her accomplish the rest of her goals.
Review of an Advance Reading Copy
This book was sent to Compass Book Ratings for review by Penguin Group
Content Analysis:
Profanity/Language: None
Violence/Gore: Blood from taking out a tooth; threat to get trounced; reference to busted noses; extended fighting scene: jab, 3 punches, overhands, hard punch, hits, jabs – 11 pages; threat of entire face being smashed in; reference to Romans and Greeks fighting; body aches and pains following a fight; minor punched adult in gut; reference to a leg floating by secondary to shark attack; fear of parent dying; punched so hard wrist were red; extended scene: punches, uppercut to stomach, body bows, punches to face – 2 pages; reference to grandparent ending up dead on the streets; cartoon put horseshoe into boxing glove before match; reference to boxer who put railroad spike in glove; ready to give blood; extended scene: punch, jab, uppercut to jaw, a few uppercuts, jabs, power shot, hits, punch for punch, solid blow, body shot, right hook, cross to ribs, counter punches and jabs – 3 pages; sore from fight; reference to female boxer who likes to punch people; beat people up and make cry; get in ring and punch each other; tackling and shoving in football; reference to a boxer who’s strategy was to try and punch bone into brain; reports of deaths; reference to boxer training by having rocks thrown at him; bruises from the rocks; threat to beat up boys; report of fights; reference to a fight: right hook, knocked down, knock out, black eyes; report of knock out; scuffle extended scene – minor tried to grab legs of minor, minor tried to push down another minor, fell down; pushed into bookcase, books feel down onto minor; thought about punching; extended scene: strong pinches, punch to stomach, uppercut, thrown around badly, jab, cross, left upper cut cross, punch, hooks – 3 pages; report of adult being killed in motorcycle accident; extended scene: shots landed, aggressive punching, hard punches, 4 to 1 punches, counter punched, struck hard, eight count; bodies heaving and bruised; come for blood; extended scene: too hard punch – 1 pages; strained muscle pain; threat of her breaking her nose; reference to noses exploding with blood; reference to her being the one doing the exploding; hurt ankle; fall on steps; report of family death; threat to beat him up today; go for total knock out; kicked a table almost took out a parent; extended scene: feel punches, hard right , few solid uppercuts, 8 count, dodge punches, 8 count, solid hits, shot or two, crazy with punches, 8 count – 1.5 pages; kill or be killed; eyes saying: I’m gonna kill you; extended scene: punches felt smooth; punch, jab, softballs; punches; jabs, crazy punches – 4 pages; Many (67) additional boxing references throughout the book not listed above (i.e. hit, punch, jab, etc.); violence does not include terminology in the glossary section.
Sex/Nudity: None
Mature Subject Matter:
Divorces, Single Parent, Parent in Jail, Death, Violent Sport.
Alcohol / Drug Use:
None
