It's All in How You Fall

By: Sarah Henning

Narrated by: Emily Ellet

A contemporary young adult romance about moving on, finding your place, and recovering after life falls apart.

Gymnast Caroline Kepler has three state balance beam titles, a new trick even most elites can’t do, and chronic, undeniable back pain. While she might never be an Olympian, she has dreams of leveling up to elite, making Nationals, and competing in college. But when one epic face-plant changes all that and Caroline’s back pain goes from chronic to career-ending, her dreams are shattered and her life is flipped upside down.

Enter Alex Zavala, a three-sport athlete who’s both incredibly cute and incredibly off-limits. He offers to give Caroline a crash course in all the sports she’s missed, and she has an offer for him in return: For every sport Alex teaches her, she’ll play matchmaker for him. Deal done, Caroline “dates” new sports with Alex for the rest of the summer, which is loads more fun than wallowing in despair. Just as Caroline starts to see herself as more than her past athletic successes, she picks up something she didn’t bargain for: a big fat crush on Alex.

Turns out life was way easier when it was just layout-fulls and beam burns....

Critic reviews

Praise for It's All in How You Fall:

"Sarah Henning sticks the landing with It's All in How You Fall, an unputdownable coming of age story about losing one dream and finding another, perfectly balanced with a swoony romance, family feels and deep friendships. An absolute must read!"—Jennifer Iacopelli, author of Break the Fall and Finding Her Edge

"A sweet and delightful romance exploring self-discovery, identity, and belonging among elite teen athletes. If you love comfort reads with happily ever afters, this book delivers!"—Suzanne Park, author of Sunny Song Will Never Be Famous and The Perfect Escape

Praise for Throw Like a Girl:

"Liv's major obstacle is learning to forgive and trust again: the family who doesn't respect her decisions; the teammates who keep secrets; the boyfriend with an agenda; and above all, her own flawed, complicated, driven, triumphant self. This charming sports story reflects classic tropes of the genre while still feeling fresh and relevant. A winner."—Kirkus Reviews

"Henning offers a fun romance twined with a fast-paced sports story, and a headstrong protagonist who is easy to champion. Liv's relationship with Grey is the perfect mix of heat and heart, and her acceptance by the all-male football team, refreshingly easy. [A] feel-good underdog story about a girl who refuses to quit."—Publishers Weekly

"Determination and grit mixed perfectly with sass and humor on every turn of the page. With mistakes come lessons, and this story tells it in a way that everyone can relate to."—Abbi Glines, #1 New York Times bestselling author

"Henning's Throw Like a Girl is the perfect pitch and catch! Heartfelt and funny, this story is a winner."—Justin Reynolds, author of The Opposite of Always

"Nothing beats sports romance by someone who truly knows and loves sports, and Henning is among the best of the best. Throw in a brilliant family dynamic and great friendships, and this is everything I love about contemporary YA."—Dahlia Adler, author of Cool for the Summer

"[Sarah] Henning offers up a scrappy contemporary debut in the vein of Morgan Matson. Sports fans and romance lovers unite—there's plenty to satisfy both teams here."—Booklist

Cute… but that’s kind of it

There wasn’t much character development for anyone? It was cute, and I liked that there wasn’t any rude potential boyfriends or rude friends. I liked that this book showed that a teenage guy CAN be interested in another person without being rude and just being kind. But I just wish the characters had some sort of development because I think there was a lot of potential for them! I hope Henning continues to write for the characters because they are special.