Girl of the Year 2020: Joss: Touch the Sky

Published: 2020. Author: Erin Falligant. Illustrator: Maike Plenske.

Summary


Joss and her friends Brooklyn and Sofia are preparing for the school talent show. Joss's brothers both made it to the Wall of Fame during their tenure at the elementary school, and this is her last chance to join them. She's got to come up with a great act!

And also learn to be a flyer on her cheer team after another girl sprains her ankle. Joss is excited for the opportunity, but also nervous. The big competition is less than a month away.

Time is growing short all around. Soon, it's only five days to the talent show. Sofia's painted a skateboard ramp with waves to resemble an ocean, and Joss and Brooklyn are going to pretend to surf while they skateboard--with Murph the bulldog! Frustratingly, Murph is less than cooperative. And word's gotten out about her, so Joss is feeling extra pressure for her dog to wow everyone, now that the school is anticipating it. While Joss is able to finally be successful doing an elevator as a flyer, she can't seem to talk Murph into performing. It takes a team effort from her, Brooklyn, Sofia, and a bag of dog treats to even make slight progress. Joss hopes it will be enough.

The day of the talent show, things start out okay. Bribed by the promise of treats, Murphy skates up and down the ramp after Sofia graces the stage. But before Joss can take a turn, the crowd noise spooks Murph, and the dog bolts. Joss runs after Murphy and catches her, but knowing her hopes of living up to her brothers' legacy are dashed, she can't bear to return to the talent show and face the jeers of the audience. But to her utter shock, Joss and her friends win the talent show...as a comedy act. Joss is conflicted; she worked so hard practicing and never got to show off her moves, she's still embarrassed by how Murphy ran off...but she won...but not the way she wanted to. She doesn't really feel like she's earned the prize.

After a spat with Brooklyn (who thinks it was all funny, not embarrassing) maybe a day surfing with Sophia will clear Joss's head. But no--she tries to surf a wave that's too big for her skill level, and gets knocked underwater long enough to scare her. She ends up not badly injured, but embarrassed and shaken again. When the next cheer practice rolls around, Joss is determined to put it all behind her and focus on doing things well. But she just can't do it; she's letting her team down. Joss's confidence is gone.

On the way home from practice, a lightning storm pops up. Liam calls Joss's mom with the news that the storm scared Murph, who's run away. The family starts searching in the driving rain. It's Joss who finds her, cowering under a boat rack. While Joss waits for her family to meet up there, she pours her heart out to her dog. She feels like no one even wants her on the team anymore, and that she can't trust them or herself.

And that's just it. She doesn't trust herself. Joss has heart-to-hearts with Sofia and Brooklyn. She also talks to Reina, who convinces the cheer coach to let the team have a sleepover before the big competition. All the girls bond as they talk about their worries and play games. They come together as a team, better than they have before.

When the big day arrives, the team is confident enough to do the trickier stunt they'd hoped to do. They pull it off, but their rival comes out next with a tougher routine. Then halfway through, their music cuts out. Joss, now understanding that her talent show win feels tainted and unfair because she wasn't able to do her best, starts clapping a beat. Soon, the whole audience joins, keeping the rival team on track. When the results are in, Joss's team comes in second and the rival team is first. But Joss feels on top of the world. Her team didn't win due to a technical problem with the music, and they worked together and competed better than they had before. That's something to be proud of.


Misc

Dedicated to "my cheer team, Elizabeth, Jennifer, Darcie, and Katie, with gratitude." Special thanks is also given to the various experts who gave advice for accuracy: Crystal de Silva, winner of several shortboard titles including the 2009 and 2013 World Deaf Championships; Dr. Sharon Pajka, English professor at Gallaudet University; Julie Peterson and Sara Jo Moen, owners of Fury Athletics in Madison, WI, and coaches of award-winning competitive cheer teams; Jennifer Richardson, AuD, educational audiologist and founder of Hearing Milestones; and Bianca Valenti, professional big wave surfer and co-founder of the Committee for Equity in Women's Surfing.

Joss describes Liam as her oldest brother rather than older, meaning she should have at least three brothers. But she only has one other brother, Dylan--so Liam is her older brother.

Joss's cheer coach has a special microphone that connects directly to Joss's hearing aid, and also uses hand signals. It's unclear whether they're cheer-specific, ASL, or a mix of both. For example, at one point the coach counts out "Five, six, seven, eight" and the narration says she holds up her fingers. That could mean she's signing the numbers, holding up the same number of fingers as the number she's saying, or that she's uses some sort team signal.

I wonder why Joss's mom finger-spelled hawk, rather than signing it. Maybe for emphasis? To be sure it wasn't misunderstood as the sign for eagle?