Blindsided: A Contemporary Sports Romance by T. Christensen
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Friends, loves, enemies – the path friendship can take when we are teens is twisted. In this book, a girl by the name of Kirsa is friends with the boy next door, Brock. They are inseparable, until one day the “third wheel” of a friend, Victoria, is caught in a compromising position with Brock. Teenage hormones got the best of those two and was the first factor towards ruining the friendship between Kirsa and Brock. A lack of communication snowballs into the two becoming enemies throughout all of high school. However, it wasn’t just being enemies, Brock vowed to make Kirsa’s life a living hell for all of high school and he didn’t disappoint. In the end, the truth always comes out, it just sucks that so many lives had to be cut down and ruined to get there.

Well, this book produced many different feelings for me in relation to my past and present. As a mother of a teen, there were parts of this book that were scary. No one person should have to go through what Kirsa had to deal with. My heart felt angry, hurt, and just wanted to reach out and hug her. However, thinking of Brock’s position, I remember being a teen and not knowing who was trustworthy, my real friend, wanted something from me, etc. All in all, I thought I enjoyed this book.
While the content hit close to home, it also was realistic and provided a lot of teaching moments: communication is key to any relationship – that means listening too; everyone needs a friend and is entitled to one; and there will always be someone who rises above the bullies and takes a stand. My most favorite lesson in this book, however, is you are stronger than you think. When things seem like they can’t get worse, if you keep going, believe that you are worth it, those thoughts can lead you to get through anything, and in return you might just come out on top.

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