Green adds authenticity to the depiction of the trial, legal procedural elements and the advice Ace gives to Robbie about the potentially painful nature of his testimony. With the focus on coaching and the nature of the relationship between a coach and a child team member, the author is spot-on, not only with the element of vulnerability as a potential for abuse, but the prevalence of sexual abuse in sports.
As the author establishes the timeline for the incidences of abuse, she intersperses these horrific incidents with the believable reactions of the parents when faced with the idea that their children were harmed, from disbelief to horror that their child was a victim. With incisive empathy, Green explores cycles of trauma, as one of the elements that acts to compel the plotline forward is the suggestion that a significant event in the past of Ace’s father, Steve, led to his possible alcoholism, fractured relationship with Ace’s mother, and to Steve’s inability to cope with either. This debut is distinguished by both Green’s legal acuity and clear-eyed humanity.
Takeaway: Emotional story of childhood sexual abuse and a quest for justice years later
Comparable Titles: Kate Walbert’s His Favorites, Vikki Petraitis’s The Unbelieved.
Production grades
Cover: A
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A-
Marketing copy: A
