January 15, 2015
How one woman overcame numerous obstacles to become an Olympic silver medalist in rowing.Two years after Title IX was passed in 1974, 16-year-old Gilder stood on the shores of the Charles River in Boston watching rowing sculls move across the water. Though she'd never been in a shell before, she was instantly attracted to the idea of skimming across the water in fluid motion. As a freshman at Yale, she was finally able to experience rowing firsthand; by the end of the year, she had "stumbled into its demanding embrace, succumbed to its brutal glamour, and accepted its preeminence in my life. I was in a full-blown love affair with the sport. I wanted it all. I would do whatever it took to be great." Filled with lyrical descriptions of rowing on the water and detailed portrayals of the workouts she endured to build up her strength and stamina, the narrative flows with the passion the author feels for her sport. She unabashedly discusses the physical and emotional traumas she battled as she worked her way from rowing in college to national and international competitions, forever looking toward an Olympic medal to crown her career. Having seen her mother come unhinged when her father left her for a younger woman, Gilder's deepest fears centered on becoming just like her mother, but through rowing and a personal tragedy, she was able to persevere. She also openly examines her ambiguities about her sexual preferences at a time when being lesbian was not discussed in public. The author's ardent story is one of struggle and triumph, of shrugging off the naysayers to follow a dream to its end, whether good or bad, and of following the heart. A passionate memoir of a woman rower who battled numerous odds in search of becoming the best in her sport.
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April 1, 2015
Virginia Ginny Gilder graduated from Yale in 1979, won an Olympic silver medal in 1984, and currently owns a WNBA franchise. By all accounts, her story should be one of success and triumph, but in this intimate and detailed memoir, she reveals the struggles she has endured and the inner demons she has battled along the way. She fell in love with rowing from her first glimpse of the shells gliding on the water, but she was a novice rower when she joined the Yale crew team in 1974. Gilder lovingly recalls her rowing daystraining, competing, and simply being on the waterand she describes the art of rowing in wonderful detail. Out of the water is another storyshe divulges the scars of her relationship with her parents, feelings of self-doubt as to her abilities as a rower, and the inner turmoil she experienced in accepting her own sexuality. This is a compelling account of one woman's sacrifices to be an elite athlete while also coming to terms with her personal life at a time when coming out of the closet was done at considerable peril. A good choice for women's-studies and sports-history collections.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)