Reviews

Tough Girl: Lessons in Courage and Heart from Olympic Gold to the Camino de Santiago by Carolyn Wood

dlberglund's review against another edition

5.0

While this isn't a perfect piece of literature, it gets bumped up to five stars because the topics she covers are all so personally impactful to me. Chapters alternate between her childhood and adolescent swimming career in Portland in the 1950s and early 60s, and then 2012, when she is walking the Camino de Santiago in Spain, solo, following a devastating break up. The modern chapters are also filled with flashbacks and musings on the decades in between, decades in which she got married, had a child, got divorce and lost custody of her son because of her sexuality. She also taught English at local high schools, and spent 40 years with a woman with whom she traveled the world. The memoir is thoughtful, with a lot of name dropping in the swimming world. And since I did not actually know how the 1960 Olympics turned out for American swimmers, I was holding my breath waiting to find out!
I miss the Olympics this year. Sigh.

deepwinterodd's review against another edition

3.0

Four-star retelling of growing up in the 1950s to train as a competitive swimmer and then take part in the 1960 Olympics in Rome; two-star retelling of walking in Spain 50 years later. Luckily, the book is 80% swimming, 20% walking.

jonitaylor's review against another edition

5.0

I think I am a really hard grader when it comes to ratings. For me, if I am able to walk away from a book, and not finish it like a bowl of ice cream, and read deep into the night, then I don't give a 5 star. But this one is great, even though it took me a bit longer to get through. As an athlete and a woman, I am so thankful for Ms. Wood's story, and pre Title IV accomplishments. This story alone is worth the read. But it goes deeper. Much. And her integrity and commitment to herself, and her honesty, even when it was not easy, was such an inspiring read. I enjoyed her journey to Rome 1960. I enjoyed her back story, and coming of age. And the story of her finding her place once again, sans partner of 30 years. I knew nothing about her, but it was in my library's NEW BOOK selection. So happy I stumbled across this book.

leslielu67's review against another edition

4.0

Carolyn grew up in Portland and swam in the 1960 Olympics as a 14-year old! Interesting story of her journey, Portland in the 50's, and tapping into that strength to walk solo one of the caminos in Spain.

resaunders26's review against another edition

3.0

Couldn't finish it. She seems like a lovely person who lived an interesting life, but I just couldn't relate and it all fell a little flat for me.

readrunsea's review against another edition

4.0

Give me a story about a queer lady athlete and I'm almost guaranteed to be into it. The bonus with this book is that Carolyn Wood is a pretty great writer. The book tracks two stories in parallel: Wood's childhood from age three to adolescence, mainly building up to her participation (and gold medal) in swimming in the 1960 Olympics in Rome; and the long solitary walk she took on the Camino de Santiago in 2012 after the end of her decades-long relationship with her partner Rose. Both threads make for wonderful reading, and enhance each other by illustrating the similarities and differences between intense athletic training and a slower, longer, more deliberate journey to walk a very long way and work through the pain of a devastating breakup. The book also stays the course of the story it's trying to tell: it's not an exhaustive account of her entire life (though I would definitely read that if she were to write it), but rather about these two specific chapters in her life (with a few more details/context thrown in at the end for good measure). That's a real strength of this memoir- the reader doesn't get lost, and it makes for a more powerful and potent narrative. Highly recommend!

emmkayt's review against another edition

4.0

I really enjoyed this thoughtful, well-written memoir. Carolyn Wood was a champion swimmer in her youth in the 1950s, leading up to a trip to the 1960 Rome Olympics. She writes engagingly about her training experiences, as well as her developing sense of self as a young person. Interspersed amongst those chapters is her more recent experience walking the Camino de Santiago alone, a journey undertaken in retirement after her wife leaves their relationship. She’s never preachy or facile, but there’s a lot in there about how to live, how to persist and keep going, how to let go.

It was also very interesting reading about her time as a young swimmer. For example, it was back before women’s sports in the US were required to be funded equally at the College level, so the expectation was that a girl’s competitive career ended after high school. One Olympics and done was the aspiration, for the most part. Wood was a sassy kid with a penchant for pranks - as she was growing up in Portland, it made me think of Beverly Cleary, and perhaps a slightly more potty-mouthed Ramona. She was also growing up as a young lesbian amidst all the gender structures of the 1950s. Even in the 1970s, she lost custody of her young son due to her sexual orientation, though she and her wife maintained a meaningful, enriching relationship. Overall, a really good read.