What do you think?
Rate this book
The Ring
Plagued by slipping grades and a budding criminal record, at 15, Mardies heading down a path of self-destruction she cant seem to avoid. Unlike her perfect older brother Michael, who does everything right according to their father, Mardie cant measure up. But when she discovers a girls boxing club at the gym, Mardies drawn in by the fighters fearlessness and strength. Having already lost her parents trust, and shunned by her boyfriend and friends, the ring is the only place left where no one judges Mardie. Angry and hurt, Mardie cant wait to start throwing punches. But Kitty, her wise and patient trainer, a former boxer whos coached her share of troubled girls, shows Mardie that boxing isn't just about fighting it's also about strategy and mental discipline the things that make a fighter into a winner. Mardie begins to apply the lessons shes learned in the ring to her own battles, especially at home, where she finds shes not the only one struggling for acceptance. As she trains for her upcoming championship bouts, Mardie hopes to make her parents proud. Filled with exciting sports action, THE RING is the inspiring story of a girl learning to believe in herself.
254 pages, Hardcover
First published September 1, 2009
3 people are currently reading
171 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
July 17, 2025
this book was ok.
March 17, 2010
Mardie’s heading for trouble. Fast. With her slipping grades, a shoplifting incident, and the crowd she hangs out with, she’s nothing like her saintly older brother Michael.. only he has a secret of his own. Grieving from her mother, she acts out, but when Mardie discovers a female boxing club, everything changes.
Author Bobbie Pyron recommended her book to me because of the storyline of Mardie’s brother’s sexuality. I enjoyed that element of the novel, especially for its realistic portrayal of a gay student “outing” in school, but found the rest of The Ring just as compelling. Pyron’s characters are all diverse and well-drawn, but it’s Mardie who shines. We want to relate to her immediately, and Pyron makes it easy. Mardie has a troubled life. She’s experiencing peer pressured to have sex. Her boyfriend’s less than charming, and her best friend is quickly becoming estranged. When she steps in the ring though, she learns it’s her mind and heart that’s more important than her strength. She finds redemption in and out of the ring, with the lessons she gains from the boxing. And most important, she finds herself.
Two of my favorite characters besides Mardie were Amy, her stepmother, and Kitty, the boxing coach. Having a stepmother at the age of eleven, I could relate to the distance between Amy and Mardie. Amy was an unwavering positive force in Mardie’s life, and the catalyst for her life change. Kitty was such an interesting character, I almost wanted a separate novel of her backstory: how she become a boxing coach, etc.
For a debut novel, this is a great story. There’s a lot of side plots here, such as Mardie serving community service at a center for the disabled, so at times I was lost with such a large group of characters. The topics aren’t light either: teenage pregnancy, sexual orientation, etc are covered, and one incident in particular involving animals had me taken aback. Despite these, I finished The Ring and was rewarded with a great read.
Author Bobbie Pyron recommended her book to me because of the storyline of Mardie’s brother’s sexuality. I enjoyed that element of the novel, especially for its realistic portrayal of a gay student “outing” in school, but found the rest of The Ring just as compelling. Pyron’s characters are all diverse and well-drawn, but it’s Mardie who shines. We want to relate to her immediately, and Pyron makes it easy. Mardie has a troubled life. She’s experiencing peer pressured to have sex. Her boyfriend’s less than charming, and her best friend is quickly becoming estranged. When she steps in the ring though, she learns it’s her mind and heart that’s more important than her strength. She finds redemption in and out of the ring, with the lessons she gains from the boxing. And most important, she finds herself.
Two of my favorite characters besides Mardie were Amy, her stepmother, and Kitty, the boxing coach. Having a stepmother at the age of eleven, I could relate to the distance between Amy and Mardie. Amy was an unwavering positive force in Mardie’s life, and the catalyst for her life change. Kitty was such an interesting character, I almost wanted a separate novel of her backstory: how she become a boxing coach, etc.
For a debut novel, this is a great story. There’s a lot of side plots here, such as Mardie serving community service at a center for the disabled, so at times I was lost with such a large group of characters. The topics aren’t light either: teenage pregnancy, sexual orientation, etc are covered, and one incident in particular involving animals had me taken aback. Despite these, I finished The Ring and was rewarded with a great read.
December 12, 2009
This is really a very good book! It shows how a teen girl helps herself after she gets into trouble for shop lifting. She comes out a complete winner in the end, making good friends and doing good things as she struggles to find herself. There is some bad language in it, but not so much I put it down. Miss Pyron, who is a Librarian in the Slat Lake County Library System, where I work, has done a great job helping me to see the benefits of boxing in an amateur setting.
Read
July 26, 2009Great boxing scenes--plus wonderful family drama & friendship issues.
February 8, 2010
So far this book is about a teenage girl who is getting in to a lot of trouble. I can see a lot of her challenges happening to other people
March 20, 2010
This is a veryyyyy good book i recomned it to you people. It shows how when people try new things they get made fun of and the girls family doesnt like her and her mom dies when she was 3.
July 16, 2017
The story was quite good but the writing didn't pull me in.
July 19, 2025
this book was ok.
April 5, 2014
In this book, The Ring, Bobbie Pyron goes through the life of a 15 year old named Mardie. Bobbie Pyron explains the ups and downs of Mardie’s life that change her as a whole. Mardie gets arrested, gets into fights and other things, but then she decides to turn her life around through boxing. The purpose of this book in my opinion was to express the struggles of teenage life. Also to explain how, no matter how many times people bring you down, you should always be confident and get back up. She does a great job connecting with teenage life and explaining different struggles. The book taught me that, no matter what you go through, once you get back on top, “it just doesn’t get any better than this” (Pyron 252).
The book had a lasting impact on me. It influenced me to think for myself no matter how many people go against me. It has a lot to do with how gender plays into how Mardie is viewed for what she does. It also has to do with regular teenage life, which many teenagers can relate to. It left a lasting impact in the sense of that it was something I could relate to and it gave me an insight on someone going through struggles and slowly overcoming them. I would recommend this book to a friend. It relates to our day and age, from disagreements between family members, to issues at home. It’s easy to connect it and I’m friends and other teenager would enjoy it.
The book was very captivating in my opinion. I think I thought so because I could connect to it in so many ways. I connected with Mardie a lot, because she talks about conflict with family that I have been through as well. She also talks about being forced to act a certain way because that’s what they feel is best. She says, “Why do I have to be “just like” anybody? Can’t I be just like me?” (Pyron 11). It was just very interesting to read about a story, although it may not be real, that relates to teenage life at the moment. From problems with friends, to problem at school and at home, it is very captivating and interesting.
Bobbie Pyron did a very good job with the way she wrote the book. I think it is written well to appeal to the audience it was meant to address, who I believe is the teenage demographic. It was easy to understand which made me want to read more of the book. She spoke on emotions in ways which were easy to comprehend. For example, to explain how Mardie felt about a boy she said, “My knees went all rubbery. And I’m sure my face turned baboon’s-butt red” (Pyron 18). I feel like writing like that appeals to many teenagers because that’s the way they talk and it helps connect them to the book.
I think everything about this book as a whole was really good. The author did very well on the subject of connecting to the reader in my opinion. I saw it as her trying to relate to teenage life, and she did just that. The only weakness it had in my opinion would have it be the fact that I thought things went by too fast. For example, things jumped from event to event, which made it a bit confusing for me, but it was still interesting. I would recommend it to a friend regardless of that one weakness because it was just that good.
The book had a lasting impact on me. It influenced me to think for myself no matter how many people go against me. It has a lot to do with how gender plays into how Mardie is viewed for what she does. It also has to do with regular teenage life, which many teenagers can relate to. It left a lasting impact in the sense of that it was something I could relate to and it gave me an insight on someone going through struggles and slowly overcoming them. I would recommend this book to a friend. It relates to our day and age, from disagreements between family members, to issues at home. It’s easy to connect it and I’m friends and other teenager would enjoy it.
The book was very captivating in my opinion. I think I thought so because I could connect to it in so many ways. I connected with Mardie a lot, because she talks about conflict with family that I have been through as well. She also talks about being forced to act a certain way because that’s what they feel is best. She says, “Why do I have to be “just like” anybody? Can’t I be just like me?” (Pyron 11). It was just very interesting to read about a story, although it may not be real, that relates to teenage life at the moment. From problems with friends, to problem at school and at home, it is very captivating and interesting.
Bobbie Pyron did a very good job with the way she wrote the book. I think it is written well to appeal to the audience it was meant to address, who I believe is the teenage demographic. It was easy to understand which made me want to read more of the book. She spoke on emotions in ways which were easy to comprehend. For example, to explain how Mardie felt about a boy she said, “My knees went all rubbery. And I’m sure my face turned baboon’s-butt red” (Pyron 18). I feel like writing like that appeals to many teenagers because that’s the way they talk and it helps connect them to the book.
I think everything about this book as a whole was really good. The author did very well on the subject of connecting to the reader in my opinion. I saw it as her trying to relate to teenage life, and she did just that. The only weakness it had in my opinion would have it be the fact that I thought things went by too fast. For example, things jumped from event to event, which made it a bit confusing for me, but it was still interesting. I would recommend it to a friend regardless of that one weakness because it was just that good.
April 9, 2011
I can recommend this book to the few girls who are in Sports Literature, especially when we're reading The Contender. I like the idea of intense training and physical activity helping one escape life. I wrote a story, very similar in idea, about 30 years ago and submitted it to Redbook. The note I received back said something to the effect that it was too unbelievable, no one could get on a different track by being physically active. Way to go!
September 3, 2010
15 year old Mardie finds a way to forget about her troubles when she starts boxing with other girls. Quite an interesting premise is bogged down by pedestrian writing and flat characters. Too many teen "issues" packed in as well.
May 18, 2011
I really enjoyed the characters in this book,especially Madie the teen who was on the verge of getting in trouble. But when she finds a boxing club that trains girls, she finds a new world of physical challenge and competition.
This is a good read!
This is a good read!
November 16, 2015
i think this book can relate to alot of young teens lifes and it can give them a glimps of what can happen when you get threw what ever thats going on with them. It shows that its gonna get wrose before it gets better but at the end of that dark tunnel their is always light.
March 24, 2010
Very enjoyable
April 21, 2010
A great book about a teenage girl who learns to box and changes her life for the better. Very well done.
August 2, 2010
The negative emotions of female teenage angst certainly rang true. Boxing was an interesting and positive twist.
July 1, 2011
This book was really great. I liked the setting, the characters, and the real emotions that happened between those characters. A very real story and a very real outcome.
Bottom line: Recommended.
Bottom line: Recommended.
April 21, 2014
My 14 year old loved this book...couldn't get her to do her work...she was too busy reading...woo-hoo!!
Read
June 6, 2016Find it at JMRL: http://aries.jmrl.org/record=b1255558~S9
August 23, 2010
had to force myself thru the beginning...got a lot better after that!
Currently reading
May 20, 2011Good book and realistic to a teeenager .
Read
May 24, 2017Alliya Mady,
The first book I read was The ring by Bobbie pyron who wrote the book with heart in my perspective. A section in the book that helped me understand challenges was when Mardie was in the ring with a fellow classmate, when mardie lost her first match and made her regain the strength to keep trying and doing what she wanted to do and learn so she could win. You win some, you loose some. Mardie was the main character because she was the whole topic of the book and really showed she was more capable of trying her butt off instead of just letting her grades keep dropping and parents doubting her. Now the society from 2010-2017 has changed drastically & one of those changes are the diversity & judgement because mardie was always dragged down by her parents & comments of others such as "Oh your a girl, why are you in a man sport?" ect. My reaction on that wasnt as great because if a comment like that in this generation would either be considered bullying or be engaged with other rude comments or conflict. From this the book teaches us not to give up for what we want in life and you can make the choice to make that comment negative and make it positive which would be more motivation to your motive. This book was a great read & very enjoyable for a uprising downfall.
The first book I read was The ring by Bobbie pyron who wrote the book with heart in my perspective. A section in the book that helped me understand challenges was when Mardie was in the ring with a fellow classmate, when mardie lost her first match and made her regain the strength to keep trying and doing what she wanted to do and learn so she could win. You win some, you loose some. Mardie was the main character because she was the whole topic of the book and really showed she was more capable of trying her butt off instead of just letting her grades keep dropping and parents doubting her. Now the society from 2010-2017 has changed drastically & one of those changes are the diversity & judgement because mardie was always dragged down by her parents & comments of others such as "Oh your a girl, why are you in a man sport?" ect. My reaction on that wasnt as great because if a comment like that in this generation would either be considered bullying or be engaged with other rude comments or conflict. From this the book teaches us not to give up for what we want in life and you can make the choice to make that comment negative and make it positive which would be more motivation to your motive. This book was a great read & very enjoyable for a uprising downfall.
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews