What Is We Ride Upon Sticks Novel About?

2025-11-14 04:52:02 274

3 Answers

Uma
Uma
2025-11-17 12:47:17
'We Ride Upon Sticks' is a riotous ode to teenage rebellion and the lengths we go to fit in—or stand out. The Danvers Falcons aren’t just playing field hockey; they’re battling small-town monotony by channeling their inner witches, one illicitly obtained Claw Machine prize at a time. The book’s humor is its superpower, whether it’s the team debating the Ethics of using 'dark forces' to sabotage opponents or their obsession with '80s pop culture as a quasi-religion. Barry’s writing crackles with energy, like a John Hughes script crossed with a punk-rock zine.

What stuck with me was how the girls’ witchcraft becomes a metaphor for the messy, magical process of growing up. Their spells are equal parts desperation and creativity, and the line between 'real' magic and placebo effect is deliciously blurry. By the end, you’re cheering for them—not just to win games, but to survive the chaos of adolescence with their weirdness intact.
Ben
Ben
2025-11-19 00:22:21
Imagine if someone mashed up 'Heathers' with a sports movie and threw in a dash of Salem witch trials lore—that’s 'We Ride Upon Sticks.' it follows the 1989 Danvers Falcons, a ragtag field hockey team so desperate to break their losing streak that they turn to a handwritten 'dark power' pact (complete with signatures in blood-red Bic ink). The team’s antics range from hilariously petty (hexing rivals with bad hair days) to oddly profound, like grappling with racial identity and small-town claustrophobia. The book’s magic isn’t just in the witchcraft; it’s in how Barry captures the cringe and glory of being a teen.

I love how the story plays with history too—Danvers is the actual site of the Salem witch trials, and the girls lean into that legacy with a mix of irony and genuine desperation. The collective narration is genius, switching between individual perspectives and this chorus-like 'we' that feels like a team huddle. It’s chaotic, heartfelt, and full of moments that’ll make you go, 'Yep, being 17 was exactly that unhinged.'
Yolanda
Yolanda
2025-11-19 20:27:01
We Ride Upon Sticks' is this wild, nostalgic trip about a 1980s girls' field hockey team in Danvers, Massachusetts, who make a pact with dark forces (via a cursed notebook) to win their season. It’s like 'The Craft' meets 'Friday Night Lights,' but with way more hairspray and neon scrunchies. The team’s Desperation for victory leads them to dabble in pseudo-witchcraft, and the book balances hilarity with surprisingly deep moments about teamwork, identity, and the chaos of adolescence. The narrator is this collective 'we,' which gives it this quirky, communal vibe—like you’re eavesdropping on team gossip.

What really hooked me was how it blends supernatural silliness with heartfelt nostalgia. The author, Quan Barry, nails the over-the-top '80s aesthetic without reducing it to a parody. There’s a scene where they literally summon Emilio Estevez as a spiritual guide, and it’s both absurd and weirdly poetic. Underneath all the witchcraft shenanigans, though, it’s a story about outcasts finding power in each other. I finished it with this weird urge to dig out my old mixtapes and maybe, just maybe, sign up for a rec league.
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