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A review by meliaraastair
Fierce: How Competing for Myself Changed Everything by Aly Raisman
5.0
If you aren’t as big of a gymnastics fan as I am, Aly is a 6-time Olympic medalist and competed in 2 Olympic Games – 2012 and 2016. She is one heck of a strong woman. She was a victim of the disgusting Larry Nassar and has been fighting to change the culture of USA Gymnastics, especially since the trial last year. Her book gives such an insider’s glimpse into how sick the organization really was (is?) and I truly hope that there is healing and redemption. Sure, the US became incredibly successful, but it’s not worth the cost. Americans used to judge some of the Russian/Eastern European teams for the crazy training regimens those girls were subjected to and yet they cultivated a pretty rough environment here too. I know mental toughness is so important in a sport like gymnastics, but I believe there has to be a way to accomplish that without turning athletes into robots.
Anyway, if you are a gymnastics fan, or even just want a glimpse into the life of a gymnast (or the culture of USA gymnastics), check this book out! Out of the gymnast books I’ve read, Aly does a great job sharing messages of body positivity, the importance of truly balanced nutrition, and the sacrifices she had to make to make it in the sport. I hope to continue hearing amazing things about her for years to come! And while I’d love to see her be a 26 year old gymnast in Tokyo because I think if anyone has the mental toughness to make the third Olympics it’d be Aly (or maybe Simone in another 6 years…we will see!) I hope she is finding who she is outside of the identity of gymnastics and getting time to live life.
9 of 10 for enjoyment (I’m a huge gymnastics fan) and 4.5 of 5 for readability. Aly went through some tough stuff at quite a young age. Just a heads up – while she doesn’t go into details about specifics of the abuse, any young gymnastics fans out there should probably have a parent pre-read this one.
For more reviews, check out bedroopedbookworms.wordpress.com!
Anyway, if you are a gymnastics fan, or even just want a glimpse into the life of a gymnast (or the culture of USA gymnastics), check this book out! Out of the gymnast books I’ve read, Aly does a great job sharing messages of body positivity, the importance of truly balanced nutrition, and the sacrifices she had to make to make it in the sport. I hope to continue hearing amazing things about her for years to come! And while I’d love to see her be a 26 year old gymnast in Tokyo because I think if anyone has the mental toughness to make the third Olympics it’d be Aly (or maybe Simone in another 6 years…we will see!) I hope she is finding who she is outside of the identity of gymnastics and getting time to live life.
9 of 10 for enjoyment (I’m a huge gymnastics fan) and 4.5 of 5 for readability. Aly went through some tough stuff at quite a young age. Just a heads up – while she doesn’t go into details about specifics of the abuse, any young gymnastics fans out there should probably have a parent pre-read this one.
For more reviews, check out bedroopedbookworms.wordpress.com!