I got an introduction to the sport of fencing in It’s All of Nothing, Vale by Andrea Beatriz Arango (Random House Books for Young Readers, 2025), a middle grade novel about a young women struggling to come to terms with her injured leg, which stops her from excelling in her favorite pastime. Written in free verse, All or Nothing gives an intimate look into the thoughts and frustrations of a girl trying to find a new purpose in life. As Vale returns to her fencing school, she makes a new friend who is a good fencer who does not live by an “all or nothing” mentality, thus giving Vale a new perspective on what her life can be.
All or Nothing was a quick read because of the poetic form. A few things irked me as I read. When Valentina considers becoming a friend with her “competitor,” Myrka, her brother teases her of having developed a crush. I felt like a 12-year-old shouldn’t have been given such an idea as “crush.” Why wouldn’t they be able to friends? Do friendships at age 12 already need to be anything other than platonic? It would be okay to see, in her thoughts, that maybe she is considering Myrka as more than a friend, or even to mention it to her brother. But why would mention of a friendship immediately assume to be one with romantic feelings? I’d feel similarly annoyed if this was the suggestion and Myrka was a boy. Kids need the message that being friends is okay, no matter who they meet.
The other matter was the splattering of Spanish. I know Spanish; however, I don’t know how my daughters would react to a book becoming unreadable or unrelatable for them in those parts. There are some hints around the Spanish to suggest the meanings, but not always.
It’s All or Nothing, Vale was an entertaining reader, but the writing and character development was not stand-out exemplary. This is plot-centered novel that shows an intriguing character coming of age in a unique way.
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