It’s All or Nothing, Vale
by Andrea Beatriz Arango
Middle School    Random    272 pp.
2/25    9780593810927    $17.99
Library ed.  9780593810934    $20.99
e-book ed.  9780593810941    $10.99

After suffering serious injuries in a motorbike accident, Valentina Camacho is determined to resume fencing and qualify for the Summer Nationals. As seventh grade begins, Vale is motivated to get back into training (“This leg thing? / Just a tiny obstacle for me to conquer / on the path to being / a worldwide champ”), but her recovery is slow going. She is frustrated by pain flare-ups and concerned about what classmates will think if she limps or uses a cane and how she will be perceived if she is no longer the champion athlete she once was. Her competitiveness leads to tension with other fencers, including her ex-best friend, and jeopardizes a nascent friendship and crush on new student Myrka. Secondary characters include Vale’s parents and teenage brother, who offer different modes of support, while a growing friendship with a classmate outside the fencing world provides genuine understanding and respite from all the pressures. Arango’s accessible verse strikes at Vale’s emotional core as she considers her worth and identity in the face of her challenges. Chronic pain, disability, and finding the autonomy to self-identify are prominent themes, and the depiction of a brown-skinned, queer girl in the world of fencing is noteworthy. Myrka, who is Cuban, and Vale’s Puerto Rican family communicate bilingually throughout the book.

From the ">May/June 2025 issue of The Horn Book Magazine.