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The Derby Daredevils: Kenzie Kickstarts a Team: (The Derby Daredevils Book #1) Kindle Edition

4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 63 ratings

A highly illustrated middle-grade series that celebrates new friendships, first crushes, and getting out of your comfort zone—now in paperback
  Ever since they can remember, fifth graders Kenzie (aka Kenzilla) and Shelly (aka Bomb Shell) have dreamed of becoming roller derby superstars. When Austin’s city league introduces a brand-new junior league, the dynamic duo celebrates! But they’ll need to try out as a five-person team. Kenzie and Shelly have just one week to convince three other girls that roller derby is the coolest thing on wheels. But Kenzie starts to have second thoughts when Shelly starts acting like everyone’s best friend . . . Isn’t she supposed to be
Kenzie’s best friend? And things get really awkward when Shelly recruits Kenzie’s neighbor (and secret crush!) for the team. With lots of humor and an authentic middle-grade voice, book one of this illustrated series follows Kenzie, Shelly, and the rest of the Derby Daredevils as they learn how to fall—and get back up again.

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Editorial Reviews

Review

**STARRED REVIEW**
"This a great pick about fierce young ladies coming together through sports. The book has loads of action and plenty of heart, running with themes of friendship, being a good communicator, dealing with jealousy, and even a little sprinkle of how it feels to have a crush on someone you think is just the coolest person ever. Memorable characters and frequent illustrations bring the story to life and will make anyone want to get their derby on."-- "Booklist"

**STARRED REVIEW**
"In her wonderful debut, Rosewater gives readers a look into the world of roller derby and what it entails, while depicting a relatable story of shifting young friendships... A great addition to juvenile sports fiction for school and public libraries. Perfect for fans of Victoria Jamieson's Roller Girl, and readers seeking stories about sports-loving girls supporting each other."-- "School Library Journal"

"Relatable, empathic series debut introduces readers to the fast-paced sport of roller derby and hints at interesting backstories for Kenzie's teammates."-- "Publishers Weekly"

"A lighthearted celebration of life, friendship, and rolling with the punches."-- "Kirkus Reviews"

About the Author

Kit Rosewater has a master's degree in children's literature from Hollins University. The Derby Daredevils is her debut book. She lives in Albuquerque. Find her online at kitrosewater.com or on Twitter and Instagram at @kitrosewater. Sophie Escabasse is the author-illustrator of the forthcoming graphic novel trilogy The Witches of Brooklyn. She lives in Brooklyn with her family. Find her online at esofii.com or on Twitter and Instagram at @esofiii.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B07WK6TB2C
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Amulet Books; Illustrated edition (March 24, 2020)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ March 24, 2020
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 12186 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 176 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 63 ratings

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Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
63 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers enjoy the book's fun and exciting roller-derby adventures. They find the characters vibrant and relatable, making it easy for young readers to understand the lessons of trust, hard work, and acceptance. The friendship theme is praised as wonderful and dynamic, with diverse characters.

AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

5 customers mention "Enjoyment"5 positive0 negative

Customers enjoy the book. They find it fun and exciting, with dynamic friends and roller derby adventures. Readers also appreciate the strong female characters and positive messages about friendship and confidence.

"This is a super fun read about forming a team new to roller derby and figuring out new friendships...." Read more

"...I thoroughly enjoyed them. MS...." Read more

"...Kids will love learning about the roller derby. The author dies a great job presenting the sport in an accessible way young readers." Read more

"This fun and engaging book will have readers clamoring for the next story in the series...." Read more

3 customers mention "Character development"3 positive0 negative

Customers enjoy the vibrant characters that young readers can identify with.

"...I enjoyed the character portrayal through lessons of trust, hard work, understanding, and acceptance...." Read more

"Dynamic and fun with a wonderful friendship theme and cast of diverse characters. Kids will love learning about the roller derby...." Read more

"...The characters are vibrant and young readers will see themselves in so many aspects of the story. Highly recommended!" Read more

3 customers mention "Comprehension"3 positive0 negative

Customers find the book easy for their children to understand. They find the lessons of trust, hard work, and acceptance in a positive way. The book is described as delightful, insightful, and fun.

"...the character portrayal through lessons of trust, hard work, understanding, and acceptance...." Read more

"...this book normalized it in a positive way and made it easy for my daughter to understand it...." Read more

"Delightful, insightful and just plain fun!..." Read more

3 customers mention "Friendship"3 positive0 negative

Customers enjoy the book's friendship theme and diverse characters. They find the story engaging with dynamic friends and roller derby adventures.

"...super fun read about forming a team new to roller derby and figuring out new friendships...." Read more

"Dynamic and fun with a wonderful friendship theme and cast of diverse characters. Kids will love learning about the roller derby...." Read more

"Love this book. Strong females. Roller derby. Friendship. Confidence. All. The. Stars." Read more

A fun and heartwarming start to a middle grade roller derby series
5 out of 5 stars
A fun and heartwarming start to a middle grade roller derby series
Thank you to the author Kit Rosewater for sending me a finished copy in exchange for review. All opinions are my own, as usual.This was such a fun and heartwarming book. I feel like I say that a lot with books but Kenzie’s story takes them to a new levelFun:Kenzie and her friend Shelly want to try out for their town’s junior roller derby team but want to make sure they end up on the same team. To do this, the girls have to come up with a 5 member team of skaters in a week. I’ve always wanted to try and skate and this book has me on Amazon looking for a pair. As someone who’s never watched a derby before, the descriptions were so well done I knew who was where and why in the matter of sentences. Watching these fifth grade girls come together as new friends to battle the other teenagers trying out was so motivational. I want to be their best friend now.Heartwarming:When I tell you my heart was actually melting, I’m not lying! The diversity in this book is so natural and normal *like it should be*. Kenzie’s father is transgender and there was one little scene with the two of them that had me feeling so sad but yet happy that kids can read this and either relate or learn from it. Kenzie is also discovering who she is and it’s so sweet how supportive her friend is. And look at this cover, the main characters are racially diverse but they also have personalities. We need more middle grade books like this.Read this book! It’s a super quick read with adorable illustrations and it’s the start of a series. I can’t wait to read the next book!
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Top reviews from the United States

  • Reviewed in the United States on August 25, 2020
    This is a super fun read about forming a team new to roller derby and figuring out new friendships. I enjoyed the character portrayal through lessons of trust, hard work, understanding, and acceptance. Each of the roller derby girls shine both in the book and on the track! I look forward to much more from Rosewater because we need more stories like this!
    One person found this helpful
    Report
  • Reviewed in the United States on December 13, 2020
    I bought the series for my niece and a copy for myself so we could discuss them together. I thoroughly enjoyed them. MS. Rose water has her finger on the pulse of pre-tween angst and it brought back vivid memories of how it feels to have an imagination, pure optimistic enthusiasm, and a dream that hasn't been tainted by life. Oh to be a 5th grader again! Well done, Kit!
    One person found this helpful
    Report
  • Reviewed in the United States on June 3, 2022
    My daughter had a roller derby birthday party so I bought this book to be used as a guest book for all of the kids to sign. My daughter started reading the book that same day and could not put it down. She loved it. We were pleasantly surprised to see a few LBTQ+ concepts in this book. We read the book together and she asked questions about it so we got the opportunity to talk about it more. I appreciated how this book normalized it in a positive way and made it easy for my daughter to understand it. As soon as she finished the book she requested I buy her the second one in the series!
    One person found this helpful
    Report
  • Reviewed in the United States on March 27, 2020
    Dynamic and fun with a wonderful friendship theme and cast of diverse characters. Kids will love learning about the roller derby. The author dies a great job presenting the sport in an accessible way young readers.
    One person found this helpful
    Report
  • Reviewed in the United States on April 2, 2020
    This fun and engaging book will have readers clamoring for the next story in the series. The characters are vibrant and young readers will see themselves in so many aspects of the story. Highly recommended!
    One person found this helpful
    Report
  • Reviewed in the United States on October 4, 2020
    Love this book. Strong females. Roller derby. Friendship. Confidence. All. The. Stars.
  • Reviewed in the United States on April 16, 2020
    A middle ages book that's full of heart and dealing with difficult feelings around friendship and liking-liking someone for the first time.

    As a roller derby player, I was really looking forward to reading this book. And there is a lot of roller derby in it! And while the sport is the motivating factor, the heart and soul is the relationship between Kenzie and Shelly, who have been best friends forever. The emotions Kenzie feels as their relationship changes (not better, not worse, just different) over the course of the book felt true to me. As did Kenzie's confused interactions with a person who makes her feel funny things in her stomach.

    I really like the team of five they assemble - bringing three new people into their circle of friendship - and I look forward to reading the adventures of the team in the future.

    I received an ARC from the publisher for review via NetGalley.
  • Reviewed in the United States on September 15, 2020
    Thank you to the author Kit Rosewater for sending me a finished copy in exchange for review. All opinions are my own, as usual.

    This was such a fun and heartwarming book. I feel like I say that a lot with books but Kenzie’s story takes them to a new level

    Fun:
    Kenzie and her friend Shelly want to try out for their town’s junior roller derby team but want to make sure they end up on the same team. To do this, the girls have to come up with a 5 member team of skaters in a week. I’ve always wanted to try and skate and this book has me on Amazon looking for a pair. As someone who’s never watched a derby before, the descriptions were so well done I knew who was where and why in the matter of sentences. Watching these fifth grade girls come together as new friends to battle the other teenagers trying out was so motivational. I want to be their best friend now.

    Heartwarming:
    When I tell you my heart was actually melting, I’m not lying! The diversity in this book is so natural and normal *like it should be*. Kenzie’s father is transgender and there was one little scene with the two of them that had me feeling so sad but yet happy that kids can read this and either relate or learn from it. Kenzie is also discovering who she is and it’s so sweet how supportive her friend is. And look at this cover, the main characters are racially diverse but they also have personalities. We need more middle grade books like this.

    Read this book! It’s a super quick read with adorable illustrations and it’s the start of a series. I can’t wait to read the next book!
    Customer image
    5.0 out of 5 stars A fun and heartwarming start to a middle grade roller derby series
    Reviewed in the United States on September 15, 2020
    Thank you to the author Kit Rosewater for sending me a finished copy in exchange for review. All opinions are my own, as usual.

    This was such a fun and heartwarming book. I feel like I say that a lot with books but Kenzie’s story takes them to a new level

    Fun:
    Kenzie and her friend Shelly want to try out for their town’s junior roller derby team but want to make sure they end up on the same team. To do this, the girls have to come up with a 5 member team of skaters in a week. I’ve always wanted to try and skate and this book has me on Amazon looking for a pair. As someone who’s never watched a derby before, the descriptions were so well done I knew who was where and why in the matter of sentences. Watching these fifth grade girls come together as new friends to battle the other teenagers trying out was so motivational. I want to be their best friend now.

    Heartwarming:
    When I tell you my heart was actually melting, I’m not lying! The diversity in this book is so natural and normal *like it should be*. Kenzie’s father is transgender and there was one little scene with the two of them that had me feeling so sad but yet happy that kids can read this and either relate or learn from it. Kenzie is also discovering who she is and it’s so sweet how supportive her friend is. And look at this cover, the main characters are racially diverse but they also have personalities. We need more middle grade books like this.

    Read this book! It’s a super quick read with adorable illustrations and it’s the start of a series. I can’t wait to read the next book!
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