And then it happens. There is a new kid
on the block, the new sensation - Nicki Chan - and she is threatening to break
the record that Carrie set six years previously. (Review by Fiona De Goede)
Taylor Jenkins Reid’s Carrie Soto Is Back is a book about tennis. And more tennis. And yet more tennis. It’s about greatness, dedication, determination and the sheer drive it takes to reach the pinnacle of your career. And then to stay there.
Carrie’s father, Javier, spots her talent, her natural ability at the game of tennis, when she is only two years old. He is entirely qualified to do so as he himself was a former world class tennis champion. The drills and practice sessions that he puts his daughter through will probably be way too much for any other average player to endure. But Carrie is determined to be the best. And not even the disdainful and often unflattering commentary and remarks from the sporting press can dampen her spirits. In fact, it adds fuel to her fire and her nickname, the “Battle-Axe” is probably apt.
She does very little to endear herself to her opponents, the media and the fans. Her single-mindedness in attaining her goal leaves very little room for friendship or a romantic relationship. She does not feel the need for this – tennis is her entire world. Yet, below this hard exterior shell that she has worked so hard to perfect, one senses her insecurities and vulnerabilities.
The book is set from about 1955 through to the mid-1990’s. I enjoyed the fact that it is set in a bygone tennis era rather than in the current time of the greats that we are now familiar with. Carrie achieves the greatness that she sacrificed so much for by breaking every record and being the holder of 20 Grand Slam titles. When she reaches this goal, she decides to retire from her beloved game of tennis.
And then it happens. There is a new kid on the block, the new sensation - Nicki Chan - and she is threatening to break the record that Carrie set six years previously. Carrie then decides to make a comeback – at the age of 37. She is obviously not as fast on the court, she has injury niggles and the media treats her attempt with barely concealed ridicule.
I personally enjoy watching the game of tennis – and therefore I could connect with this book. The author manages to create the suspense of the game on the court by giving a blow-by-blow account of virtually every ball. What stops it from becoming tedious is that by now, you the spectator/reader, are so invested in the comeback attempt that you find yourself rooting for Carrie. Does she succeed? Is her comeback attempt successful? Will her legacy be an ace or a double fault?
Taylor Jenkins Reid has written several novels including Daisy Jones & the Six as well as The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, both critically acclaimed. Carrie Soto is Back is a Sunday Times Best Seller so she clearly has another winner under her belt. - Fiona de Goede
Carrie Soto Is Back is published by Penguin Random House South Africa: ISBN 978-1-529-15213-5
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