I am all about the non-fiction and hope to read some interesting topics this year. First up is Fire on the Track: Betty Robinson and the Triumph of the Early Olympic Women. This book details the history of the early USA women track in the 20s and 30s at a time when women’ participation in the sport was controversial.

It primarily focuses on Betsy Robinson, who was the first women ever to win a gold medal in an Olympic track event, but also introduces us to Stella Walsh, Babe Didrikson, and many other players in the sport. I enjoyed learning about the history of American women’ contributions (and wins) in women’s track and field. These athletes faced massive discrimination due to the social-cultural environment during that time. They were judged on their looks- too fragile or not feminine enough. Normally, “Fire on the Track” wouldn’t be on my radar but I’m glad I made it through to the end. It’s a piece of history I am glad I took the time to learn.

Unfortunately, this book was a slow burn for me. It went high then dipped low and back high again as the story ends with the American women’s gold in The 1936 Olympics (ahem Nazi Germany). The first few chapters, written more like a novel, had my attention. However, having been introduced to an overload of names and important figures, my excitement for the story dwindled in the middle. My brain could not hold onto this many players in a single book. The writing style worked for some parts but often times felt like a script from a moving documentary. Except it was missing the most important element-the visuals. To feel more connected to the story I even went online to look up vintage footage of the athletes. There’s something satisfying seeing Hitler muttering under his breathe when Germany lost to the USA. What also failed for me was the lack of dialogue. We are told what Betty Robinson, Stella Walsh, and Helen Stephens said in interviews but often times the “dialogue” were strictly quotes from newspaper articles or radio shows. It felt passive and stopped me from fully engaging. Thus, I needed to take numerous breaks from the book.

I would pick this up if you want a true inspirational story but keep in mind that it might be one you’ll stop and return to numerous times.

*Thank you Crown Publishing Group for the galley in exchange for an honest review

When you watch the Olympic games there are always those few events that you really enjoy watching. I've always admired runners, the sprinting events are just incredible to watch, and I've always wanted to know more about the sport as a whole, which is why I was so excited that I found Fire on the Track by Roseanne Montillo.

When I first started this book I thought it was going to focus mostly on Elizabeth "Betty" Robinson, the first woman to win an Olympic gold medal, but Ms. Montillo went above and beyond, focusing not only on Ms. Robinson but numerous other Olympic women and the struggles that they faced not only during the 1928, 1932, and 1936 Olympics, but also in their personal lives.

Extremely well researched and written, the author takes you to a time where a woman's place was in the home. Women were not supposed to be athletes or even educated for that matter. Every woman was supposed to be content being a house wife and having a family but this was a time of change in America. We had made it through World War I and were about to be thrusted into the throws of Great Depression. Everything was changing.

The first woman participated in the Olympic games in Paris in 1900, and even then they were only allowed to participate in "safe" events like lawn tennis and golf. The 1928 games was the first Olympics that women were allowed to compete in the track and field event. This came with a lot of opposition because it was feared that women participating in track and field events would either deem them unattractive to men or actually turn them into men. After a struggle between the International Olympic Committee and the Fédération Sportive Féminine Internationale women were allowed equal entrance into the Olympics.

Fire on the Track gives a detailed background into many of the women athletes that competed in track and field. You get a clear picture of the events that took place and the people that were there to experience them. Some of the details are incredibly personal and graphic but it helps you gain an understanding of that individual and appreciate what all they had to overcome to compete at such a high level. They had to endure prejudice as well as family opposition, their own personal trials and tribulations, and personal demons on the road to the Olympics. All of these women paved the way for all female athletes today and I am honored to now know their story.

This was such an interesting biography and a subject I now find myself fascinated with, not only with women athletes in the Olympics, but the Olympics as a whole. It is extremely well written and with such incredible attention to detail that at times you find yourself getting lost in that world.

The book is divided into three sections: the 1928 Olympics in Amsterdam, the 1932 Olympics in Los Angeles, and finally the 1936 Olympics in Berlin. While I enjoyed the book as a whole the details of the 1936 games were the most intriguing to me, especially knowing what Hitler and the Nazi party were up to at that time, and seeing how much they kept covered up while hosting the games. It's sickening but it also gives you another dimension into this tumultuous time.

I highly recommend this wonderful resource and promise you will not be disappointed!

This was right up my alley. It delivers what we expect from classic sports films: triumph, tragedy, and recognition... except it has a female protagonist!

The story of Betty Robison, an Olympic gold medalist and fastest woman in the world in 1928. Feminists today think they have it tough? Consider women during the earlier years of the Olympics, where women weren't considered strong enough or fast enough to compete in track and field. Imagine the obstacles they had to overcome. It wasn't just the lack of interest in women running, but also the unbearable heat that led to low attendance at this event. With little training and even less encouragement to pursue running as a sport, Betty pushed to prove herself to everyone around her, including her father. I can identify with that mindset. Don't ever tell me I can't do something because I'm likely to do it just to spite you. I don't see the "you can't" as a slight due to my gender, but rather just someone who doesn't truly know me. And my proving them wrong isn't an attempt at feminism. More like a stubborn child that wasn't to prove a parent (or peer) wrong.

"She simply could not, would not lose."

When arrogance gets in the way, Betty fails to perform as expected. Her response was full of excuses, yet included a dose of humility and the promise to work hard for the Olympics. Sports athletes should take that to heart. While they may have talent, humility goes a long way compared to arrogance.

Fire on the Track primarily tells the story of Elizabeth Robinson, though it does cover key individuals around her including Stanislawa Walasiewicz (Stella Walsh), Catherine Maguire and Delores Boechmann. It covers the spirit and determination of the women that competed at the Olympics in Amsterman in 1928. The novel included moments such as when some women Olympic contenders decided to go on a shopping spree in Paris.  Though it was only those involved in the swimming category, the stereotype affected women across the board. Basically, women preferred shopping over the Olympics. Insert facepalm here.

The writing makes it easy for the reader to imagine themselves there, next to Betty as she prepared for and eventually took off down the track. Her first race, the nervousness of the other runners, even the weather, all descriptions added to the moment of that day. Even the victory when Betty won as the first women's gold medalist in track and field. The history of women in the earlier years of the Olympics track and field would be of interest to anyone that enjoys reading about historical events as well as for those that like reading about the trials and triumphs of athletes. When the book reached the part where it covered the 800m, that caught my interest enough to search and read about it more.

But the story doesn't end with her victory in Amsterdam. It continues with the amazing story of her survival after an airplane accident, being brought to the mortuary as she was thought to be dead, only to have the mortician discover she was barely breathing. Betty was told she'd never walk again, but her love of running pushed her not only to regain use of her legs but to sore even farther with the goal of the 1938 Olympics.

Stories continued to include the accident with the discus throw. Yiks. Stella had been arrested after the discus slipped from her hand and hit a spectator. The man fell unconscious and was sent to the hospital with a possible skull fracture. That moment of unknown strength from a woman surprised the public. This is what I found interesting about this book. There are lots of stories like that one. For readers that enjoy a bit of history, this would be an excellent gift. I received a complimentary copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

It’s early 1928. Sixteen year-old, Betty Robinson is sprinting for a bus at the end of the school day. On the bus is the high school track coach, who is impressed with Robinson’s speed. He talks her into running time trials after school the next day, and is astounded when she comes close to breaking an indoor track record.
Robinson agrees to join the track team as its only female member. Four months later, she qualifies for the Antwerp Olympics, and wins the 100 meter dash, becoming the first woman to win an Olympic gold medal in track.
But Robinson’s life took a tragic turn a few years later, when she was almost killed in a plane crash. Upon wakening from a coma, her doctor told her she might never walk again. She not only learned to walk, but against all odds, qualified for the 1936 Olympic team. In Berlin, she won her second gold as part of the relay team.
Robinson’s inspiring story was told, just three years ago in Joe Gergan’s book, The First Lady of Olympic Track. So it may seem odd that another Robinson biography is appearing so soon. But Roseanne Montillo’s Fire on the Track, paints a broader portrait, telling not just Robinson’s story, but those of her competitors, all of whom had to overcome indifference or outright hostility.
There was Babe Didrikson, the foul-mouthed Texan, whose athletic skills were only matched by her ego. It was Didrikson’s abrasive personality and arrogance that, ultimately proved her undoing.
Helen Stephens, the six-foot tomboy from a farm in Missouri, whose 100 meter gold in the 1936 games led to her being groped by Hitler. After the Polish team accused her of being a man in disguise, she was forced to strip in front of officials to prove her gender . Stephens kept her lesbianism a secret from all but her diary.
Tidye Pickett, the first African-American woman to compete in an Olympics, but who was kept off the sprint relay team by her racist coach.
The Polish-American, Stella Walsh, whose masculine appearance led to bullying as a kid. It was only upon her death in 1980 that she was discovered to be a hermaphrodite, leading some to call for her records to be erased.
All of these pioneering track stars had to face opposition from authorities who believed it was unfeminine for women to run. Pierre de Coubertin, the founder of the modern Olympic Games, tried to ban all women athletes. Pope Pius XI and President Hoover’s wife condemned the idea of women competing in track events.
But their victories led to a gradual acceptance and expansion of events for women in the Olympics.
To compare Fire on the Track and The First Lady of Olympic Track, Gergan’s book is more focused on the athletic events, providing more details on the Olympics. His account is written in a slightly drier, more scholarly voice. He makes extensive use of quotes from interviews Robinson gave before her death in 1999. .Montillo’s account is more concerned with the personal lives of the athletes off the track and their struggles against sexism. Fire on the Track is written in a more lively, popular style.
One quibble: Montillo tends to invent thoughts and insert them into the minds of the athletes. We are told exactly what Betty Robinson was thinking as she lined up for her first race. Something that it is impossible for us to really know.
Both books are recommended for those interested in Olympic sports, early 20th Century American history, or those looking for an uplifting story.