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4.33 AVERAGE
4.33 AVERAGE
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
Content Warnings
Moderate: Eating disorder
hopeful
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
reflective
medium-paced
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
What a gift! I listened to this on Libro.fm which means I listened to Billie Jean King tell me the history of women's tennis and sports (Title IX, equal pay), social justice movements, gay rights, women's liberation, and of her life. To use one of her words—amazing! She not only was the best tennis player in the world for more than a decade, not only did she beat Bobby Riggs in the Battle of the Sexes, but she was an activist—and led women's tennis to where it is today. She has met, talked, and worked with Barack Obama, Nelson Mandela, Gloria Steinem, and Arthur Ashe, to name just a few. And had great friendships with Chrissy Evert and Martina Navratilova and so many other players.
She tells, with a crack in her voice, the story of being outed in the 1980s and how it drove her deeper into the closet—and how at 50 years, she finally faced the question of her own sexuality head-on. There is so much to learn from her. And how perfect that I finished the book the day before the U.S. Soccer Federation took a major step regarding equal pay concerns for its men's and women's national teams.
This is an autobiography, not a memoir so it is comprehensive. Billie Jean King is careful to dole out credit where credit is due. To name names of the people who contributed to her game and the game in general (including the people who chipped in for her to travel to play in the early days). She has no axes to grind—and is mostly interested in talking about the change that still needs to happen, and her legacy. I will now forever have her voice and her laugh in my head. What a gift that is.
As an aside, Billie Jean King talks about the movie, Battle of the Sexes—and because she was pleased with it (some parts are fictionalized—"but that's entertainment," she exclaims) and talks about its impact on star Emma Stone, I watched it and loved knowing all the people I had learned about from her book. Read the book first!
She tells, with a crack in her voice, the story of being outed in the 1980s and how it drove her deeper into the closet—and how at 50 years, she finally faced the question of her own sexuality head-on. There is so much to learn from her. And how perfect that I finished the book the day before the U.S. Soccer Federation took a major step regarding equal pay concerns for its men's and women's national teams.
This is an autobiography, not a memoir so it is comprehensive. Billie Jean King is careful to dole out credit where credit is due. To name names of the people who contributed to her game and the game in general (including the people who chipped in for her to travel to play in the early days). She has no axes to grind—and is mostly interested in talking about the change that still needs to happen, and her legacy. I will now forever have her voice and her laugh in my head. What a gift that is.
As an aside, Billie Jean King talks about the movie, Battle of the Sexes—and because she was pleased with it (some parts are fictionalized—"but that's entertainment," she exclaims) and talks about its impact on star Emma Stone, I watched it and loved knowing all the people I had learned about from her book. Read the book first!
The emotions this book made me feel!! Having Billie herself reading the audiobook made this a thousand times more emotional! I have known about her story all my life bc my mom has played tennis her whole life so I grew up watching her a commentator but I didn’t know all of Billie’s life details. I relate to so many of the situations she has gone through and feel inspired by how open and raw she was in the book about all aspects of her life. This has become one of my favorite books and it will always have a place in my heart!
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
You don't need to be into sports to enjoy this. It is so powerful, just read it.
informative
inspiring
slow-paced
hopeful
informative
reflective
medium-paced
I read this book for the BookTube prize.
I would have gotten to it eventually, but I'm glad the prize pushed me to read it in March. It was the perfect time to have a chunky memoir on the go, since I needed to read it while I was moving to New Jersey. It was like having Billie Jean in the front seat of my hatchback with me, telling me stories while I drove my cat and several plants across the country.
Billie Jean King has a great voice. The audiobook was the perfect route to go for this one. She radiates warmth and empathy, as well as her passion for her sport and for women and queer representation and equality. I learned so much about the history of women's sports in the 20th century, as well as Billie Jean King's legacy, which I previously knew nothing about. She truly changed the sports world, paved the way for so many talented athletes, but also opened up conversations about women's worth across the United States. I felt like she became my friend while I was listening to this book, even though that sounds absurd. I walked away from this reading experience with a new personal hero. I am so grateful that she shared her story with the world and that I had the privilege to read it. She should be a feminist and queer icon recognized by everyone, not just people in the sports world. I feel like I learned an important part of women's and queer history. I would recommend this for anyone who loves learning about a strong woman and/or who loves a good memoir.
I would have gotten to it eventually, but I'm glad the prize pushed me to read it in March. It was the perfect time to have a chunky memoir on the go, since I needed to read it while I was moving to New Jersey. It was like having Billie Jean in the front seat of my hatchback with me, telling me stories while I drove my cat and several plants across the country.
Billie Jean King has a great voice. The audiobook was the perfect route to go for this one. She radiates warmth and empathy, as well as her passion for her sport and for women and queer representation and equality. I learned so much about the history of women's sports in the 20th century, as well as Billie Jean King's legacy, which I previously knew nothing about. She truly changed the sports world, paved the way for so many talented athletes, but also opened up conversations about women's worth across the United States. I felt like she became my friend while I was listening to this book, even though that sounds absurd. I walked away from this reading experience with a new personal hero. I am so grateful that she shared her story with the world and that I had the privilege to read it. She should be a feminist and queer icon recognized by everyone, not just people in the sports world. I feel like I learned an important part of women's and queer history. I would recommend this for anyone who loves learning about a strong woman and/or who loves a good memoir.