Tumble: 12/27/22

Tumble by Celia C. Pérez (2022) is set in a rural New Mexico town where wrestling is a big deal. Addie Ramirez's stepfather wants to adopt her but she wants to learn about her biological father before she makes a decision.

As you can probably guess from the cover, Addie's father is a professional wrestler, from a family of wrestlers. Over the course of a few months, she finally gets the chance to get to know a family she didn't know she had.

I'm not a fan of professional wrestling but Celia Pérez presents enough of what a reader needs to know to keep the story going. She presents well rounded, interesting characters, and a sense of place that is as much a character as the people who live there are.

My favorite character is Addie's grandmother. She is an ex-wrestler and the matriarch of her family. She has made a second career for herself as an artist. She specializes in turning tumbleweeds into figures — and snowmen in the winter. She also helps Addie understand the tough decisions her mother has had to make, because she had to face similar problems in her past.

The novel also happens to sit on the Road Narrative Spectrum. As this is a story of family, the family is the traveler (33). Their destination is uhoria (CC), looking both to their shared past and to wonder about their future. Their route there is the Blue Highway (33) that connects their homes.

Five stars

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