Carrie Soto is Back by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Carrie Soto is Back by Taylor Jenkins Reid is one of my most anticipated reads for the last half of 2022. Did it live up to the hype? Let’s take a look!
Carrie Soto is a tennis legend, claiming 20 Grand Slam titles. For years, her father, Javier, has been her coach. Now, it is 1994, and Carrie is retired. During the US Open, Carrie watches as Nicki Chan matches her record. Carrie wants to come out of retirement to reclaim her record. Will Carrie be able to affirm her place in tennis history?
First of all, let’s talk about how TJR, Taylor Jenkins Reid, is such a great author. The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, Malibu Rising, and Daisy Jones and The Six, all great books. Carrie Soto is Back is also very readable with short sentences and paragraphs. The pages were flying by, and I found the book easy to read.
Second, there is some depth to this book as we sort through Carrie’s relationships and feelings. Carrie unapologetically talks about how she is the greatest tennis player of all time and how much she works for her success. And people don’t like her outspokenness.
It really reminded me of a YouTube video that I watched recently. The commentator said that back in the 90’s, when women were asked about their success, they would often times blush, giggle, and say how they were lucky. Only until recently have more women been able to say, “I got to where I am because of hard work.”
I have also fallen into this trap before, thinking a person was successful because they were lucky. On International Women’s Day, my employer hired a wildly successful TV anchor to give us a pep talk. Like many people, I thought, “She’s just lucky.”
However, the TV anchor passed her resume around, by hand, to hundreds of potential employers. Finally, one station allowed her to cover the traffic report. She spent her week driving around and covering potholes and traffic accidents. On nights and weekends, she would wait at the station, ready to fill in for one of the TV anchors if there was a last-minute cancellation. It took her years to finally obtain her position. Luck had nothing to do with her success.
And I hope that Carrie Soto is Back inspires more of these conversations.
Third, Carrie Soto is Back definitely surprised me, and these surprises made the book stronger.
Overall, if you are looking for a captivating, engaging, easy-to-read book, pick up Carrie Soto is Back!
*Thanks, NetGalley, for a copy of this book in exchange for my fair and unbiased opinion.