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In January 2014, UPenn freshman and student athlete Maddy Holleran ended her life. Written by an ESPN journalist, this book takes a look at Maddy’s life in the year or so leading up to this.
Unfortunately, a book wasn’t really the right way to publish this information. It surely could have been condensed into some articles or perhaps joined as supplementary information to a more comprehensive investigation. The author clearly has passion but it just felt rushed and disorganized.
That being said, there was some amazing stuff in here about the insane pressure put on college athletes. To a outsider like me who has zero athletic abilities and no sense of team spirit, I’ve never thought too much about the dynamics of student athletics except to judge them to be cult-like.
This exposes the disturbing side of things. Put simply, the pressures of being a student athlete and being a college freshman simply aren’t compatible. Holleran, though a star who saw herself going far in university track, didn’t even have a scholarship riding on her athlete status. So why, when she entered a deep depression which she judged to be mainly caused by the pressures of track, did the adults in her life encourage her to stick with it? Although Fagan is sensitive to these people, I saw the side eye. They failed her. A chilling look at what these values can lead to.
Unfortunately, a book wasn’t really the right way to publish this information. It surely could have been condensed into some articles or perhaps joined as supplementary information to a more comprehensive investigation. The author clearly has passion but it just felt rushed and disorganized.
That being said, there was some amazing stuff in here about the insane pressure put on college athletes. To a outsider like me who has zero athletic abilities and no sense of team spirit, I’ve never thought too much about the dynamics of student athletics except to judge them to be cult-like.
This exposes the disturbing side of things. Put simply, the pressures of being a student athlete and being a college freshman simply aren’t compatible. Holleran, though a star who saw herself going far in university track, didn’t even have a scholarship riding on her athlete status. So why, when she entered a deep depression which she judged to be mainly caused by the pressures of track, did the adults in her life encourage her to stick with it? Although Fagan is sensitive to these people, I saw the side eye. They failed her. A chilling look at what these values can lead to.