Lev is devastated when he hears he’s been matched with Mikayla. There, she’s partnered with a dedicated young wrestler named Lev Sofer. Mikayla’s used to prejudice and unfairness, though, and she persists, joining the Eagles’ rival team, the Gladiators.

Until the Eagles’ coach refuses to let her in, because she’s a girl. By now, she’s worked so hard that everyone expects her to make the traveling team, which will be her chance to qualify for the State Youth Wrestling Championship. So Mikayla plunged into it, heart and soul. Mikayla Delgado (called “Mickey” on the mats) learned after her parents’ divorce that the only way to get noticed by her wrestling-obsessed father is to be a real contender at the sport, like her two older brothers. Sometimes, you may even have to do both at the same time, like Mikayla and Lev, the two Middle-Grade narrators of this fresh, surprising story. But you may also wrestle with the bigger questions of life: who you hope to become someday, who your family and friends want you to be…and who you really are. In Middle Grade, you can wrestle on a big red mat, in a gym, surrounded by the smell and slick feel of sweat, hearing the yells of coaches and the roar of spectators. So let’s begin this review by pointing out a salient fact: there’s more than one kind of wrestling. However, fans of her last novel might be surprised to learn that the new one is about…wrestling. It isn’t surprising that author Laura Shovan, who won several distinctions for her thoughtful novel-in-verse, THE LAST FIFTH GRADE OF EMERSON ELEMENTARY, has a new book out this week.

Takedown by Laura Shovan