Skating on Mars by Caroline Huntoon

Skating on Mars

Caroline Huntoon

Square Fish · Paperback · May 7, 2024

A heartwarming debut from author Caroline Huntoon about a young figure skater discovering who they are on and off the ice.

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Genres
Ice Skating Stories, LGBTQ+ Stories, Loss & Grief
Published
Square Fish, May 7, 2024

About this book

A heartwarming debut from author Caroline Huntoon about a young figure skater discovering who they are on and off the ice. Life isn’t easy on twelve-year-old Mars. As if seventh grade isn’t hard enough, Mars is also grappling with the recent death of their father and a realization they never got to share with him: they’re nonbinary. But with their skates laced up and the ice under their feet, all of those struggles melt away.

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When Mars’ triple toe loop draws the attention of a high school hot shot, he dares them to skate as a boy so the two can compete head-to-head. Unable to back down from a challenge, Mars accepts. But as competition draws near, the struggles of life off the rink start to complicate their performance in the rink, and Mars begins to second guess if there’s a place for them on the ice at all. Skating on Mars is a tender examination of grief and a hopeful middle grade tale of self-discovery. "This timely, triumphant novel about figure skating, identity, loss, and love will move and entertain readers—and it might just inspire them to find their own ways to change the world. " —Laurie Morrison, author of Up for Air and Coming Up Short

Why It Clicks

Come here for

  • warm, sustained immersion
  • hockey-adjacent winter-sports energy

Expect

  • a middle-grade feel
  • more atmosphere than plot

Where it sits

Loss & Grief88%
Ice Skating Stories72%
LGBTQ+ Stories70%

Percentages are BookFrontier’s reading of the book.

Publisher categories

  • Ice Skating Stories
  • Loss & Grief
  • LGBTQ+ Stories
Authors
Caroline Huntoon
Publisher
Square Fish
Published
May 7, 2024
Format
Paperback
Reading lane
Ice Skating Stories