Review of "Uncommon Favor"

It's not often I can post two reviews in two days, but I had enough time on my trip to Brooklyn for the basketball game between the Minnesota Lynx and the New York Liberty that I not only was able to read the Candace Parker memoir, but I was also able to start listening to another memoir by a legendary women's basketball figure, Dawn Staley.  This one was even better.  Here is my review. 

Title/Author: “Uncommon Favor: Basketball, North Philly, My Mother and the Life Lessons I Learned From All Three” written and narrated by Dawn Staley

Rating:  5 of 5 stars (excellent)

Review: Whenever a person can start with humble beginnings and succeed in nearly every aspect and goals they set out to do, that makes a wonderful and uplifting story. Dawn Staley’s life has been that kind of story and her memoir, narrated by her, is one that any reader or listener will enjoy.

Of course, since Staley’s success has occurred on the basketball court, it does help if the reader is interested in basketball, especially women’s basketball.  Staley was an All-American point guard at the University of Virginia. She played and won on US Olympic Teams, including the 1996 gold medal winning team that was the spark that created the WNBA.  Staley played in that league as well before becoming a college head coach, leading first the Temple Owls and then the South Carolina Gamecocks.  It is with South Carolina where she has won two national championship and gained not only prominence but is also noted for her advocacy for addressing racism and gender equality.

Each of these topics is addressed by Staley in the book in a powerful yet humble manner.  Yes, she speaks out proudly and loudly when needed. The best example is when she talks about some unflattering comments by the Missouri athletic director after a tense game between the two schools.  After the publication of those comments, she gave a strong rebuttal and asked for an apology.  Eventually that came from the athletic director.

Speaking of athletic director, another great example of Staley advocating for change is when she discovered how much less she was making than her male counterpart coaching the men’s basketball team.  Without disparaging her colleague, she made a strong case of how much more success and visibility she brough to the women’s program and ended up with a salary that reflected her success.

Of course, the book is more than just basketball and Staley reflects much about her mother, her (and her mother’s faith) and their upbringing in North Philadelphia.  She tells the stories of the time in North Philly with as much enthusiasm and joy as she does when discussing the 2024 basketball season in which the Gamecocks won their second championship.  This was one of those books where listening to the author telling her stories was much better than reading it on paper or with an e-reader.  I always prefer audiobooks narrated by the author and this book is a great example of why I believe that is better.

 

Link: Uncommon Favor: Basketball, North Philly, My Mother, and the Life Lessons I Learned from All Three: Staley, Dawn: 9781668023365: Amazon.com: Books

Review of “The Can-Do Mindset”

 As I always do when traveling to a sporting event, I try to read a book on the sport I am attending. This past Sunday, I went to my first WNBA game where my favorite team, the Minnesota Lynx defeated the New York Liberty. The book I chose was the memoir of Candace Parker, certainly one of best women to play the game.

Title/Author: “The Can-Do Midset” by Candice Parker.

Rating: 4 of 5 stars (very good)

Review:  Candace Parker has had a very successful basketball career.  She was a member of the Tennessee Lady Volunteers championship teams in 2007 and 2008, was the #1 pick of the 2008 WNBA draft for the Los Angeles Sparks, and won three WNBA championships - two with the Sparks and one with the Chicago Sky. After retiring from playing, she has made a successful transition tothe broadcast booth. Through it all, she has time to be a wife, mother and write this very good memoir.

The title of the book comes from the nickname she was given in her childhood. She felt she could do anything with her older brothers - she had that “can-do” attitude. However, as she explains in the book, this hasn’t always been the case. But her perseverance kept her going on whatever challenge she was facing. And there were plenty.

These included injuries in both college and the WNBA, a divorce from her husband (who was also a professional basketball player), how to raise their daughter while she played in both the WNBA and overseas and later marrying a woman she met in Russia while playing in that country. So, just from that little bit of information on her, it’s easy to see she has been through a lot, both good and bad,and she shares a lot.

As one might expect given this, she opens up about racism, LGBTQ+ issues, motherhood, people who played an important role in her life and of course, basketball. While it isn’t uncommon for professional athletes to credit past coaches for their support and lessons, Parker shows a lot of love for her college coach at Tennessee, the late Pat Summitt. That is just one example of Parker’s overall positivity throughout the book. At times the text does get repetitive, but at least it’s mostly positive,despite some of the negative things that happened to her. 

There are five main topics in the book, from the letters of “can do” - Community, Authenticity, Negativity (how she dealt with it, as mentioned above), the Dash and Opportunity. Through it all, this is a very good memoir by a sure-fire Basketball Hall of Fame inductee. 

Link:  https://www.amazon.com/Can-Do-Mindset-Cultivate-Resilience-Passions/dp/1638932182/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&dib_tag=se&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.3iIFf4ymYJieQLOIpszGr4ilfi7sY5lyPDvJxFl86RH4bXL_mKm8lL_79rmA4JTEpjYcjiVF7YnaDZtOgdfpFb-P4bZaaKXSKeYgc2JNhZ8L72pCsiatqT6ycunEYezX9z0wnW_SB7BI0M7I3WYgJLdLS7P6VP6IYwbO4-Wg9ICe0vDRkb4vy3m9Pg0i2p84rA3PpP22cR6rPt8b-Jl9LEtQUst2brspnLGY6GQEUEA.pqr1PxLDso6jz6_dDyzmOhomdmlIRqejoy_eKCLXdDw&qid=1754958711&sr=8-2 

Review of "My Greatest Save"

While most will associate the 1999 Women's World Cup with the famous picture of Brandi Chastain, when I saw this book was offered for review, I picked it up right away as I remembered that Briana Scurry played just as big a role in that historic victory over China as Chastain did.  This is a very good sports memoir that many would enjoy reading.  Here is my review of "My Greatest Save."

Title/Author: “My Greatest Save: The Brave, Barrier-Breaking Journey of a World Champion Goaltender” by Briana Scurry with Wayne Coffey

Rating:  4 of 5 stars (very good)

Review: When the United States National Women’s Soccer Team (USNWST) won the 1999 World Cup, most remember the famous reaction by Brandi Chastain who, after she scored the winning goal in a penalty kick shootout, she ripped off her jersey in the celebration.  What is not remembered as much is how the goalkeeper for the team, Briana Scurry, made an incredible save on one of the kicks from China that made Chastain’s winning moment possible.  Scurry’s career was very successful, and she discusses that along with her personal life in this easy-to-read memoir written with Wayne Coffey.

I use the term “easy-to-read” because aside from possibly a few soccer terms, this is written in simple, conversational language. There is plenty of humor in snippets that may sound like “dad jokes.” No matter the topic, even during her darkest time when she had thoughts of suicide, Scurry writes with a relaxed and mostly even keeled mindset.  It seemed amazing that she could discuss thoughts about jumping off a bridge into rushing water with the same process as she did about saves made during crucial international matches.

She also writes about social issues that one might expect, given that she is a high-profile Black lesbian athlete, but she does not step into any activism or strongly worded statements.  If she has very strong beliefs, they were not present in the book.  The best example is when she realized that she was gay with this statement: “…I was awakening to the reality that I was a lesbian and was totally at peace with it.  There was no reason for me to issue some sort of declaration and have it notarized and counter signed.”  She also has similar thoughts on racism as being Black, she experienced it and expressed her displeasure but stopped short of calling for strong measures.

The best parts of the book, as one might expect, is her memories of some of the better moments of her soccer career, such as the aforementioned 1999 World Cup along with two gold medals in the 1996 and 2004 Olympics.  Goalkeepers have their own sets of training, conditioning, drills and camaraderie – and Scurry brings all of those to the reader with great recollections of game action, of interactions with teammates and opponents and the joys and sorrows of important wins and losses. 

While the title might make a reader expect a book with very dramatic passages, this book really doesn’t have those – instead, a reader will go on a journey into the world of a goalkeeper who left her mark in international and American soccer and wants to share it all with the readers.

I wish to thank Abrams Press for providing a copy of the book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. 

Link:  Amazon.com: My Greatest Save: The Brave, Barrier-Breaking Journey of a World Champion Goalkeeper: 9781419757679: Scurry, Briana, Coffey, Wayne, Roberts, Robin: Books

 

 

Review of "Hail Mary"

I like to believe that I know a lot about old defunct sports leagues, but when I first learned about this book, I had no idea there was a professional women's football league that existed in the 1970's.  Thank you to the author, Britni de la Cretaz, for writing this book to introduce the league and its player to those of us who will learn a lot about it.  Here is my review of "Hail Mary"

Title/Author: "Hail Mary: The Rise and Fall of the National Women's Football League" by Britni de la Cretaz

Rating: 4 of 5 stars (very good)

Review: When Sid Friedman, a talent agent from Cleveland, thought about creating a women's football team to do barnstorming tours and make a few bucks in the process, little did he realize that he found women who not only wanted to play the game, but play hard and compete – to do the same things that make the men's version of the sport so popular.  This led to the creation of the National Women's Football League (NWFL) that had a brief life in the 1970s but impacted many women.  This book by Britni de la Cretaz tells about not only the league, but the stories of the players and their teams.

Some of the teams featured in the book are the Detroit Demons, the Houston Herricanes and the Los Angeles Dandilions.  But far and away the most successful NWFL team, both before and during the time of the league, was the Toledo Troopers.  Their stories make for some of the best reading in the book, along with those about the best player on the team Linda Jefferson. Jefferson's story is first told early in the book and that sets the tone for what every woman wanted – to be recognized as legitimate players of a sport they loved.

As for organizing these teams into the NWFL, that wasn't done by Friedman (who attempted to form a league with teams from the Ohio and Pennsylvania areas) but instead by several businessmen left mainly by Bob Mathews.  Mathews had more foresight than Friedman in that he knew that he needed more than hype to sell the game – he needed organization, a schedule, fans, marketing, media coverage, financial backing and much more.  Sadly, he and the other owners never really obtained that to what was needed and the league was out of business soon after the 1979 season. 

Reading about the teams, the structure of the league and what eventually led to its demise was very good and it is clear that de la Cretaz did excellent research on this aspect which makes up the bulk of the book.  The only downfall to this reviewer is that when she adds in some of her opinions, it appears that she only uses facts that would support her viewpoint without the entire picture.  The example I use is near the end when she opines that the NWFL and other women's leagues would succeed if the financial backers would not bail on them so soon after realizing that they will not be profitable immediately.  That is not incorrect, but the example that she uses that this isn't the same case for men's team with the Pittsburgh Steelers is not completely accurate.  Yes, the Steelers struggled for decades both on the field and in the front office, but it should be noted that Art Rooney did not build up his fortune elsewhere – he allegedly used money won betting on horses to buy the Steelers and they became his business.  Including that information, depending on how she would use it, could make her case stronger.

There are other aspects that may make some readers uncomfortable, such as the section on the stereotypes placed on female athletes (and her section on the background of some players in lesbian bars may make some readers buy into the stereotype even further) but these are necessary for a complete picture and story of these women who risked a lot to play a sport they loved for very little money. 

Any reader wishing to learn more about women's football must pick up a copy of this book.  Football fans, including this reviewer, who have never heard of the NWFL will enjoy learning about this short-lived but fondly remembered league.

I wish to thank Perseus Books for providing a copy of the book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Link: https://www.amazon.com/Hail-Mary-National-Womens-Football/dp/1645036626/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=

 

Review of "Making My Pitch"

Having remembered when Ila Borders made her professional baseball debut for the St. Paul Saints in 1997, I was interested to read her memoir to find out what happened to her once her baseball career ended.  It was a fascinating story - this is one of those memoirs that is a better read outside of baseball - and the baseball in the book is good as well.  Here is my review of "Making My Pitch."

Title/Author:

“Making My Pitch: A Woman’s Baseball Odyssey” by Ila Jane Borders with Jean Hastings Ardell

Tags:

Baseball, memoir, professional, women, gay/lesbian

Publish date:

April 1, 2017

Length:

264 pages

Rating: 

5 of 5 stars (outstanding)

Review:

Baseball, like many other sports and occupations, is called “a man’s world.” However, one woman was determined to make a career in baseball. Ila Borders had the drive to do so within her from her Little League playing days. Her story, both inside and outside the sport, is captured in this inspiring memoir, co-written with Jean Hastings Ardell.

While Borders was not the first woman to play in men’s professional baseball, she accomplished many firsts: the first woman to be the winning pitcher in an integrated men’s professional game in the modern era when she got her first win for the Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks in 1998, the first woman to receive a baseball college scholarship, and the first woman to start and win a collegiate men’s baseball game.

Even with all of these accomplishments, and despite her constant drive to succeed in baseball until her retirement in 2000, Borders tells her story of constant worry. She is conflicted about her sexual orientation, as she is attracted to women but was fearful of coming out because of her status on men’s baseball teams. Whether it was because of anxiety about the reaction from her teammate’s wives or girlfriends, her fear that she would be a distraction to the team (especially true when she played for professional teams) or her difficulties with dating in general, her story about her struggles with this part of her personal life make for engaging reading. Between her courage on the baseball field, her courage when she finally came out, and the success that came to her after baseball with her career as a paramedic and firefighter, her story is truly inspiring.

Her descriptions of the game are those that only someone who has played and understands the intricacies of the sport can communicate.  Whether she was talking about the way she changed the speed of her pitches to keep batters off-guard or the shenanigans that would take place in the bullpen during the games, readers who love baseball will love being taken inside the game and the players.

                                                                                                                               

While the baseball scenes are well-written, this is a memoir that is even better during the sections describing the author’s life outside the sport.  While some may believe sports figures do not make good role models, Ila Borders is one that does.  Her story should be read by anyone interested in baseball or just a feel-good story in which it is proven that one can overcome many obstacles to live a happy and productive life.

I wish to thank University of Nebraska Press for providing a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

Book Format Read:

Hardcover

Buying links:

http://www.nebraskapress.unl.edu/product/Making-My-Pitch,677346.aspx

https://www.amazon.com/Making-My-Pitch-Baseball-Odyssey-ebook/dp/B01M4P8GZU/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1490464353&sr=1-1&keywords=making+my+pitch

Review of "Chalked Up"

Gymnastics is one sport that I only watch during the Olympics, but the recent news about a gymnastics coach made me want to read a book on the sport.  Remembering that I had bought a book written by a former champion a few years ago on the bargain shelf, I finally opened it up and it opened my eyes to the life that these young women live in order to be gymnasts.  Here is my review of "Chalked Up"

Title/Author:

“Chalked Up: Inside Elite Gymnastics’ Merciless Coaching, Overzealous Parents, Eating Disorders and Elusive Olympic Dreams” by Jennifer Sey

Tags:

Gymnastics, Olympics, women’s sports

Publish date:

October 23, 2009

Length:

320 pages

Rating: 

4 of 5 stars (very good)

Review:

Jennifer Sey was the 1986 U.S. Women’s Gymnastics champion and the road that she took that eventually led her to this championship was filled with drama, heartbreak, injury and eventually triumph.  Everything that she and her family went through to get to that pinnacle is chronicled in her memoir “Chalked Up.”  It is an honest look at the life of elite gymnastics, a sport in which many participants retire from the sport before obtaining a high school diploma.

Sey covers a lot of topics in the book as the title implies. While this was a book that I found as a bargain book a few years ago, I was intrigued to finally read this when the actions of a gymnastics coach toward his gymnasts made recent news.  The book read as I expected considering the nature of the topics and the fact that it was a memoir by an athlete that has long retired from her sport.

The Parkettes are an elite gymnastics team that trains in Allentown, Pennsylvania. That is a two hour commute from the Sey’s home in New Jersey, but between Sey’s obsession to be the best gymnast and her mother’s willingness to do anything to help her daughter obtain that dream,  that didn’t stop them from getting Jennifer a spot on this team.  It is there that her experiences with debilitating injuries, abusive coaches and eating disorders begin. She talks about the way coaches demean the gymnasts while the owner constantly reminds them of how “fat” they are.

How Sey continues to thrive in this environment is something she explains through the emotions she felt and her constant fear of failure. More than her competitive drive or her skills, I was taken aback by how freely she was able to write about her emotions, especially her fears.  This passage from a practice session on the balance beam while a Parkette was one of the most powerful expressions of this fear: “ The fear never abates.  It is constant, relieved only in the instant I have landed on my feet.  It surges again and again and again. Agitation and fright is my perpetual state of existence. But I ignore it as I climb back up onto the beam and begin rocking.”

This book received much scrutiny when it was published, including pushback from some of Sey’s Parkettes teammates.  While I read these reviews and comments, I felt the book was simply an honest assessment by her of her life as a gymnast, both the good and the bad.  It wasn’t the best written or most powerful memoir I read, but it was a revealing look at the world of gymnastics that paints a different picture than that shown every four years during the Olympics telecasts, which is usually the only time many sports fans watch the sport.  It is a book that is recommended for any reader who wants to learn more about the world these young girls live in in order to entertain the television viewers around the world.  

Book Format Read:

E-book (Nook)

Buying links:

https://www.amazon.com/Chalked-Up-Life-Elite-Gymnastics/dp/0061351474

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/chalked+up?_requestid=1164230

Review of "Dust Bowl Girls"

After a 10 day cruise in which I was able to spend a lot of time on the ship reading books, there will be many upcoming reviews.  The first book completed was about a team of young women from a small Oklahoma school who provided some much-needed inspiration during the Great Depression.  Here is my review of "Dust Bowl Girls"

Title/Author:

“Dust Bowl Girls: The Inspiring Story of the Team that Barnstormed Its Way to Basketball Glory” by Lydia Reeder

Tags:

Basketball, women’s sports, amateur ,history

Publish date:

January 24, 2017

Length:

304 pages

Rating: 

5 of 5 stars (outstanding)

Review:

During the Great Depression, many in the nation wanted anything that would give them hope and lift their spirts during that trying time. One of the more unlikely sources of that type of inspiration was a women’s basketball at the tiny school of Oklahoma Presbyterian College. The dreams of their coach, Sam Babb, and their story is captured in this well-written book by Lydia Reeder, the great niece of Coach Babb.

In the book, the reader will learn about the Cardinals’ star player Doll Harris and her teammates as they took their athletic gifts and despite the concerns from the Women's Division (led by the wife of President Herbert Hoover) about the health of female athletes, they practiced, won games and then won the 1932 AAU championship (there was no NCAA basketball tourney for men or women at that time). 

There are also passages that describe the Depression-era economy of the time, some history of the area and the college as well as the many references to the scorn of women participating in non-feminine sports.  At that time, it was acceptable for women to play sports that would not necessarily make them masculine, such as figure skating and tennis.  But basketball was certainly one game that was supposed to be for the men.

One should also keep in mind that at this time the women’s game was a six-on-six sport in which three players for each team were on offense and defense and cannot cross the center court line.  These sections that explain this attitude toward female athletes make this book one that anyone interested in women’s sports a must read.  It is also recommended for readers who want an inspiring story about a team of determined young women out to show what they can accomplish.

I wish to thank Algonquin Books for providing a copy of the book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Book Format Read:

E-book (Kindle)

Buying links:

https://www.amazon.com/Dust-Bowl-Girls-Barnstormed-Basketball/dp/1616204664/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1486504010&sr=1-1&keywords=dust+bowl+girls  

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/dust-bowl-girls-lydia-reeder/1124454781?ean=9781616204662

Review of "Tri-Mom"

I stumbled across this title online, and was intrigued by the title - what the heck is a Tri-Mom? After a couple of emails to the author, I was given a copy to review. This was a quick and enjoyable read. Here is my review of Tri-Mom: 

Title/Author: 
“Tri-Mom: Swimming, Biking and Running Through Motherhood” by Debra Hodgett with contributions by Lindsay Zucco, Carla Hastert, Jennifer Garrison, Christine Palmquist, Elizabeth Waterstraat, and Jennifer Harrison 

Tags: 
Running, biking, swimming, women, memoir, advice 

Publish date: 
April 15, 2013 

Length: 
222 pages 

Rating: 
4 of 5 stars (very good) 

Review: 
When an athlete in any sport undergoes a major lifestyle change such as getting married, having a child or undergoing a career change, this will also change how that athlete trains and competes. Debra Hodgett shares her tales of what it takes to balance family life and her athletic goals in this quick and easy read. 

The book is targeted to women who are training and competing in triathlete events while trying to also be a wife, mother and friend. It is not an easy balance to maintain, and Hodgett’s stories about some of her adventures with her husband and sons will leave the reader laughing out loud. I especially loved the story about the shark bites while she was swimming and had to bring her sons to the training session. That was one of the many times I was laughing out loud while reading this book. The humor of Hodgett and her co-authors make this book fun to read.

There are many practical tips that can be adapted by any woman who is trying to balance various aspects of her life with something else, not just being a triathlete. The stories and sections that describe the triathlete lifestyle are very good, as the reader can feel that he or she is in the pool or on a bike alongside the athlete. 

Not all of the stories are Hodgett’s experiences. Six other female triathletes shared their stories of balancing training, competing and family life as well and the common bonds all of these ladies share in addition to being athletes was intriguing. This was the only section of the book where I had trouble while reading. The reader has to be careful and realize when one of the co-authors is now speaking and not get caught thinking that it is a story of Hodgett’s. She tells a brief story about each of her co-authors before their contributions. All of the other contributors’ stories are toward the end of the book, so that is where the reader will need to be on his or her toes to realize that this story is a little different perspective. 

By the end of the book, I realized what these amazing women have done and had nothing but admiration and respect for what they accomplished. This book is highly recommended for any woman who is looking for a way to balance participating in a sport and her family. 

I wish to thank Ms. Hodgett for providing a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review. 

Did I skim? 
No. 

Pace of the book: 
Very good. No chapter or story is very long and the writing style is such that the reader will not get bogged down in too many details. 

Do I recommend? 
Yes, if the reader is looking for a book of not only what it takes to be a triathlete, but also what some great stories about everyday situations that you make you laugh, then pick up this book.

Book Format Read: 
Paperback

Buying Links:

http://www.amazon.com/Tri-Mom-Swimming-Running-Through-Motherhood-ebook/dp/B00CDWM1OG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1397217473&sr=8-1&keywords=tri+mom 

Review of "Qualifying Times"

For the first review of 2014, I decided to make good on one of my New Year's resolutions for this blog.   When I reviewed the list of posts in 2013, I saw that I reviewed only one book on any woman or women's sport.  Therefore, I resolved to seek out more books on women's sports or athletes.  Lo and behold, I found this book on the progress made by women in sports.   So far, so good on one resolution!    Enjoy this review of "Qualifying Times."

Title/Author:

“Qualifying Times: Points of Change in U.S. Women’s Sport” by Jaime Schultz

Tags:

Sports, gender issues, politics, society

Publish Date:

March 31, 2014

Length:

351 pages

Rating: 

4 of 5 stars (Very good)

Review:

The role of women in sports has increased exponentially within the last few decades, and this insightful book by an assistant professor of women’s studies and kinesiology is a very good look into whether all these changes have really improved the status of women in both sport and society.  

It does so by examining the role of certain items in women’s sports that one would not think of researching for this topic.  The first chapter was my favorite of these – it was the role that the ponytail has played in women’s sports.  The premise was that the athletes who would wear their hair longer and in a ponytail were portraying their femininity and heterosexuality.  This was written in a nice style that was part academia, complete with references, and part anecdotal. 

This first chapter would set the tone for the rest of the book as Schultz explores the role of tampons, fashion, sports bras and the “New Ideal of Beauty” in women’s sports.   They are written in the same manner as the first chapter.  There are also discussions about Title IX, the emergence of competitive cheer (or cheerleading) as a sport and gender testing.  While Schultz does raise valid arguments about whether these developments have truly shown progress for the role of women in sport, the gender testing chapter is one that the reader will really want to absorb.  Why this is done for women and not for men is a valid question that Schultz raises and makes for great reading.

Overall, I thought that this was a very good work of research that raised serious questions about just how far the female athlete has come.  While not dismissing the advances that have been made, Schultz raises many excellent points that many of the changes have been for the sake of sex appeal (read male interests and desires) instead of truly athletic advancements.  This book will make the reader stop and think about this issue.  It isn’t written in a manner to criticize any one person or organization, nor does it criticize males.  It simply questions just how far women athletes have truly progressed.  Anyone interested in sports or women’s studies will enjoy this book.

I wish to thank NetGalley for providing an advance review copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

Did I skim?

I did skim through one section – the history of the tampon.  I did read all the parts of that chapter when its role in women’s sports was included, but for just the discovery and mass production I skimmed. 

Pace of the book: 

For a scholarly book, I felt that it read very well.   While it wasn’t like reading a fictional story or a history book, it still moved along well and didn’t drag, even if the reader

Do I recommend? 

Yes. This is a very well researched look into women’s sports and how topics like gender equality and sexuality have played an important role in this area.

Book Format Read:

E-Book (Kindle)

Buying Links:

None at the time of this review. 

Review of Sum It Up

I hope everyone had a happy Memorial Day and took the time to reflect on why we celebrate this day.   I spent some time this weekend with the autobiography of my favorite college basketball coach and the review of this book follows.  Enjoy!

Title/Author:

“Sum It Up: 1,098 Victories, a Couple of Irrelevant Losses, and a Life In Perspective.”  By Pat Summitt with Sally Jenkins

 

Genre/tags:

Basketball, autobiography, college, women’s, coaching

 

Published:

March 5, 2013

Length: 

416 pages

Review:

Pat Summitt’s autobiography is written in the same manner as she coached. When she learned that she was diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s she didn’t let the disease knock her down.  She was determined to keep coaching and while she privately wept, she kept up her work, her spirit and her life.  

 

This book shows that this is typical Summitt.   Whether it was her childhood on the farm in Tennessee with her parents and brothers, as a player at the University of Tennessee- Martin, on the 1976 Olympic team, or the head coach of Tennessee, she has always approached each task and challenge head on.   The writing and recollections in this book illustrate this characteristic well.

I found the beginning of the book very interesting as she starts out with memories as “I remember” and other items that she doesn’t have clear recollection as “I don’t remember.”  It was sobering when the reader remembers why she is no longer coaching.

I also liked how Summitt addressed subjects that would be troubling to her personally and also how she addressed matters that would be considered controversial at the time.   For personal matters, not only did she write about learning of her diagnosis with grace, she also wrote about the end of her marriage, her miscarriages and her other medical conditions without any anger or bitterness.  She simply wrote about what took place, what she was feeling, how she dealt with it and what came next.  

As for controversial matters, the best example would be her writings on the feminist movement in the 1970’s.   She never sounded bitter about being “in her place” especially as it related to her childhood.  While she certainly worked toward the goal of women’s equality, she was not a rabble rouser or radical when it comes to this issue.  She realized that her program at Tennessee benefitted by Title IX, the ground-breaking legislation that required schools and other institutions that received federal funding to ensure that programs for each gender were equal.  In the world of college sports, that meant that many women’s sports programs had to now include better facilities, scholarships for athletes and other such improvements.  Summitt realized what this meant, and wrote about it as someone who graciously accepted this, but also knew it was long overdue.

 

Summitt has won the most games in college basketball history, male or female.  She has made the Tennessee Lady Volunteers one of the premier basketball programs in the country.  But through it all, she has never forgotten that family is important, whether it her parents, siblings and son, or whether it is her players who grew up while playing for her at Tennessee.   “Sum It Up” an outstanding book that anyone will enjoy, whether or not the reader is a sports fan.

 

Did I skim? 

No

 

Did I learn something new?

Yes.  Too many to list each of them, but I would place at the top of the list learning about the coach’s childhood upbringing on the farm in Tennessee.   She was certainly “one of the boys” on the farm, and despite the roles each gender played at that time, she was one who broke the mold early.  

 

Pace of the story: 

Good.  It never dragged and progressed in chronological manner, as autobiographies usually do.

 

Positives: 

Through all of her ups and downs, the reader never really feels negativity through Summitt’s words.  This is not to say she never expresses any sadness or anger – she states these in a manner that is more of the line that “this is what happened, this is how I felt, this is how I dealt with

 

Negatives:

There are no glaring negatives or weakness in this book.   Summitt covers every aspect of her life, both personal and professional, without pulling any punches or leaving out chunks that would make readers feel like something is missing.

 

Do I recommend?

Yes!  This is an excellent book for not only basketball fans, it is also a great read for anyone who is looking for a role model, a source of inspiration or for finding out how to do things the right way. 

 

 

Book Format Read:

Hardcover.  I was fortunate enough to receive a copy autographed by Ms. Summit.

 

Author Media Links:

 

Pat Summit:

 

http://www.amazon.com/Pat-Head-Summitt/e/B001HD44HE/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1

 

Sally Jenkins:

 

http://www.washingtonpost.com/2011/02/24/ABAfeyI_page.html

 

https://twitter.com/sallyjenx

 

Buying links:

 

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/sum-it-up-pat-head-summitt/1113244441?ean=9780385346870

 

http://www.amazon.com/Sum-Ninety-Eight-Irrelevant-Perspective-ebook/dp/B00985E9HS/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1369701121&sr=1-1&keywords=sum+it+up+by+pat+summitt