Roller Girl

Fiction | Graphic Novel/Book | Middle Grade | Published in 2015

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Summary

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapters 1-4

Chapters 5-8

Chapters 9-12

Chapters 13-16

Character Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

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Discussion Questions

Chapters 5-8Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapter 5 Summary

Astrid gets ready for roller derby camp, which she finds “much less fun without a best friend (51). She briefly considers wearing the rainbow socks Nicole gave her but ends up slamming them in a drawer instead. Her mom asks if Nicole’s mother is picking them up, and Astrid pauses the story to address the reader directly. She admits to lying to her mom about Nicole, but she can’t bring herself to admit that her “best friend ditched [her] for a rat-faced jerk” (52). On the way to the camp, Astrid is worried and forlorn. She arrives and is greeted by Heidi Go Seek, one of the coaches for the camp. She sees the girls skating around, and they all look much older than Astrid. Astrid goes to get her rental gear and meets a girl her age named Zoey. They get their gear on and immediately start drills, beginning with the “50-Lap Killer” (56). Astrid falls over right away and is asked to do her laps outside the track instead. She tries her hardest and manages to get through one lap in the same time the others do 50.

Astrid’s other coach is called Napoleon Blownapart, and the other players in the camp introduce themselves. They are of varying ages and ethnicities, but everyone seems friendly. They all have their own roller derby nicknames, except Astrid and Zoey, who is torn between two theater-inspired names. Next, the girls work on learning how to fall properly as the coach shows them one-knee and two-knee falls. Heidi Go Seek also teaches the girls how to “fall small” (61) to avoid being run over in a bout. Heidi then asks Astrid to work on her crossovers, which are a way to get around corners quickly; Astrid falls repeatedly and decides to sit down for a break. Coach Heidi is tough on all the girls and wants Astrid to do well, so she continues to push her. Astrid is not physically ready for the endurance test and finds herself exhausted as they go through another drill. In this drill, one girl pushes the other around the rink. Astrid huffs her way through pushing Zoey, and then when it is Zoey’s turn to push, she goes too fast and pushes Astrid right into a bench. Astrid is seen hanging over the bench with bruises and scrapes all over and a defeated expression on her face. She begins to cry and sits out the rest of the practice. Astrid feels embarrassed and ready to give up, but Heidi tries to remind her that she will improve if she keeps it up. Astrid treks home by foot since she lied about Nicole’s mom picking them up. It’s scorching hot, and she stops at a convenience store to grab a drink and a snack and to enjoy the air conditioning, which will become a regular habit on her way home from derby camp. When she finally arrives home, she passes out on the couch. Her mom wakes her up for dinner, and Astrid again lies about having fun with Nicole. She goes to bed early, still angry about her experiences that day.

Chapter 6 Summary

Astrid feels even more nervous on her second day after performing so poorly the day before. However, she does not give herself credit for the fact that she is still going back. Zoey does notice this and gives Astrid a pat on the back for not giving up. Astrid asks if everyone cries when they first join roller derby, and the girls begin telling their stories of crying for days or throwing up on the rink. Zoey gives Astrid a “sticker of Hugh Jackman, with hand-crafted glitter hair” (77) as an apology for hurting her. The days go by, and Astrid feels like she is not improving at all. She continues walking home in the hot sun every afternoon. Then, one day, Astrid spots Rainbow Bite’s locker in the locker room and feels a renewed sense of spirit for the sport. Heidi tells her she spotted Astrid walking home the other day and suggests that she skate home for extra practice. Astrid reminds her that she still isn’t very good at skating, and Heidi tells her she will think of a way to help her improve. Astrid goes home wondering what that might mean.

Chapter 7 Summary

Heidi’s plan is revealed: she wants to take the girls outside to practice their skating. Since Astrid has been walking home in the heat every day, it doesn’t bother her as much as it bothers the other girls, so she is almost keeping up with the group. A girl stops Astrid and asks if she plays roller derby. When Astrid says yes, the girl says to her mom, “Wow. Mom, did you hear that? She plays roller derby!” (82). Astrid smiles, understanding the girl’s admiration for the sport. The group comes to a hill, and Astrid goes careening down it into a bush. Thankfully, she falls small and is not hurt. After this experience, Astrid feels much better about herself and roller derby: “I had looked danger straight in the eye—and I survived!” (84). One of the girls remarks that Astrid looked like Rainbow Bite going down the hill, and Astrid is elated. Astrid decides to take her skates home to practice even more, but before she goes she writes a quick note to leave in Rainbow Bite’s locker. Astrid writes about her admiration for Rainbow Bite and her hope to be just like her. Astrid skates home, which cuts her travel time down significantly, and spends the weekend practicing different types of stops. She even cleans the house in her skates. Astrid is confident once again.

Chapter 8 Summary

Monday morning rolls around, and Astrid is ready for camp with bright spirits and a big smile. Her mother notices that her shirt stinks and points out that Astrid needs to start wearing deodorant before junior high starts. Astrid’s mom also wants to take her clothes shopping, which Astrid is not thrilled about. Astrid gets to roller derby camp and sees a note on Rainbow Bite’s locker addressed to “Rose Dud,” which is the name Astrid used on the note she wrote Rainbow Bite. The note reads: “Hang in there, and repeat after me. Tougher. Stronger. Fearless!” (93). To add to Astrid’s excitement, Coach Heidi announces that the junior derby team is going to perform a half-time bout at the Rose City Roller game next month. The girls will be split into two teams and assessed for their performance beforehand. Next, Heidi announces that they will be practicing hitting today. She pulls Astrid aside to let her know that she may not be ready to play at the game next month, but they have not ruled her out just yet. Astrid hears nothing Heidi says, telling herself, “I’m going to play in my first bout!” (95). As the girls practice hip checks, Astrid continually falls. The day ends with a game of Last Woman Standing, and Astrid is the first one to be hit and fall. Every few frames, Rainbow Bite’s mantra “tougher. Stronger. Fearless” (99) is written, as if Astrid is reminding herself constantly to press forward.

Astrid decides to dye her hair to look tougher like the other girls, and Zoey offers to do it for her. The girls skate to Zoey’s house together after practice, and Astrid is nervous about being with a new friend, but Zoey is outgoing and does most of the talking. She takes Astrid to a pharmacy to buy hair dye, and a montage of Astrid with a plethora of different hair colors and styles is shown. Each look is inspired by the name of the dye color, such as Red Scare or Violet Attack. She settles on Blue Thunder, and the girls buy the hair dye and some candy and head to Zoey’s house. Zoey has four rowdy brothers, but the girls find solace in her bedroom. Zoey’s room is full of movie posters and memorabilia, and Zoey hopes to go to drama school in New York. Zoey asks Astrid what her “thing” is, and Astrid realizes her only “thing” was simply being Nicole’s best friend. Zoey loves musicals and decides to put on West Side Story while they wait for Astrid’s hair to bleach. After what seems like forever, Zoey applies the blue dye, and Astrid’s hair turns a dark, shiny shade of blue. Astrid feels like a new person, and a picture of Astrid with long, blue hair, skating fiercely, and a shooting star rainbow accent the page. Though Astrid loves the color, it dawns on her that her “mom is going to kill [her]” (116), so Zoey fixes up Astrid’s face with fake piercings and dark make-up to distract her mother from the hair. Zoey says that once Astrid’s mother realizes the piercings are fake, she’ll be so relieved that the hair won’t seem that bad in comparison.

Chapters 5-8 Analysis

Astrid’s character strengths begin to emerge as she starts roller derby camp alone. She is absolutely dreading it: “Not-so-fun fact, preparing for roller derby boot camp is a lot less fun without a best friend” (51). Astrid also lies to her mother about Nicole not attending and says Nicole’s mother will drive her home. Instead, Astrid walks home in the blazing sun exhausted from camp every day. With each passing day, Astrid feels more and more like giving up. She does not feel like she is improving at all, and she has not made any friends yet. However, Coach Heidi Go Seek pushes Astrid constantly and does not let her give up easily. Astrid also pushes herself, going back to camp day after day. When Astrid breaks down in tears, her teammates confide that they felt the same way when they began roller derby. This reassures Astrid, and hope begins to return for her. She also starts talking to Zoey, a girl on the team.

Astrid’s character truly starts to shift when she accidentally loses control going down a hill while the team is skating outside. She falls small into a bush and manages to avoid getting hurt. Afterward, she feels like a new person: “I can’t really explain it…but I felt great after that! I had looked danger straight in the eye- and I survived!” (84). Then, adding to Astrid’s newfound sense of hope, the girls are amazed by her performance, and Zoey even says she looked “like Rainbow Bite” (85), Astrid’s roller derby hero and the woman who inspired Astrid to try the sport. Astrid wants to get better and feel like the other girls on the team, so she lets Zoey dye her hair blue and gives herself a new mantra, “Tougher. Stronger. Fearless.” (93), which she got from Rainbow Bite’s note. Astrid repeats this mantra to herself every time she is afraid, and it stops her from backing down or giving up.

Astrid still has moments where she is discouraged, however, and this discouragement isn’t just about her skating. While Zoey dies her hair, the girls chat, and Astrid realizes she doesn’t really have much of an identity outside of being Nicole’s best friend. Everyone she knows has a “thing,” and she can readily label everyone at her school, but she can’t come up with a label for herself. Now that she and Nicole are not getting along, Astrid doesn’t have an identity. While she does eventually find herself through her time at roller derby camp, she still has a long way to go and many trials to work through along the way at this point in the story.

Jamieson’s comic artistic style includes the use of emanata to emphasize emotion, volume, and importance. For instance, when Astrid breaks down at the end of her first day, the word “WAAAAHH!” (69) is drawn in big black font, emanating all around her. When Astrid falls while skating, the word “AAAAAGHHHHH” (68) is shown in a similar fashion. Minor thuds are annotated with the onomatopoeia “thunk” (64), which is framed by jagged edges and purposely located underneath Astrid to show the source of the noise, and injuries are indicated with little stars and wavy lines. Jamieson’s use of emanata allows the graphic novel to retain its artistic origins within the comic strip art style. It also provides a source of humor and tension relief for the reader.