Maggie Nichols’ memoir, Unstoppable!, is an inspirational story of her journey from a child gymnast in Minnesota to a world champion and collegiate athlete in Oklahoma. She was the first victim of Dr. Larry Nassar to come forward, and she describes the response from USA Gymnastics. The primary audience for this book is young people, so there are no descriptions of the abuse itself, just “he touched her inappropriately and she felt uncomfortable.” The overall theme of the book is overcoming challenges, not the scandal.

Maggie Nichols began her gymnastics career at the age of three in her hometown in Minnesota. Following her three older brothers, she was very athletic and showed promise early on. By the time she was five years old, she transferred to another gym and was training five hours per day. At the age of thirteen she was invited to attend monthly training camp at the Karolyi Ranch in Texas alongside the US national gymnastics team. There she was shamed about her weight and put on a very restrictive diet limited to lean protein. She describes the many injuries that she incurred over the years.

By 2015 Maggie Nichols carried the team all-around at the 2015 World Championships, helping to win the team gold medal. Her next goal was to be on Team USA at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. She was looking forward to training for the Olympic along with teammates such as Aly Raisman, Simone Biles, and Laurie Hernandez.

However while she was at the Karolyi Ranch, she asked another gymnast about her interactions with Dr. Larry Nassar and his inappropriate touching. Maggie’s long-time coach from Minnesota overheard the conversation and questioned Maggie in private. Then she immediately notified USA Gymnastics officials and Maggie’s parents. The Nichols also contacted USA Gymnastics and were assured that they would notify the authorities. Instead USA Gymnastics hired someone to investigate the allegations prior to notifying law enforcement. Meanwhile Maggie was not selected for the 2016 Olympic team.

Eventually USA Gymnastics fired Dr. Larry Nassar and he was criminally prosecuted for his sexual abuse of young gymnasts. There was a fall-out among USA Gymnatics staffers over their delayed response and the systems in place that allowed Dr. Nassar to perform his “procedures” without oversight. Meanwhile Maggie Nichols enrolled at The University of Oklahoma where she became an 8-time NCAA champion and an outspoken advocate for the protection of young athletes.

Unstoppable! shares a behind-the-scenes view of elite gymnastics, the sexual abuse scandal of USA Gymnastics, and Maggie Nichols’ role as a whistleblower. Maggie tells her story of hard work, injuries, hope, emotional trauma, healing, and recovery. Her engaging writing style is easy for young readers to understand. I highly recommend this book for all readers.

I received an advance review copy (ARC) from NetGalley and Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This memoir is full of heart, determination, honesty, and SWAG! #iykyk

Thoughts: Maggie Nichols bravely shares with the world her personal journey through elite and collegiate gymnastics, and life as a survivor of Larry Nassar's abuse. Beyond the headlines, Maggie shares her whole truth and it is both empowering and heartbreaking. Maggie Nichols has been through so much, including many injuries -- one of which almost ended her career. After reading Unstoppable, I am in awe of Maggie's strength and determination, and I also appreciate that she explains so much about the gymnastics world, including how judges score routines and athletes enter elite status. Maggie Nichols' book is enlightening, informative, and inspiring, and has only made me an even bigger fan of hers!

**Thank you, NetGalley and publishers, for a DRC in exchange for an honest review.**

Wow! What a powerful story. I hate that she had to endure abuse while reaching for her goals, but the bravery she showcased then and now is remarkable. Thank you for telling your story.

Summary:
Maggie shares with you her career of being a highly acclaimed gymnast. She'll tell you the highs and struggles and how she overcame those struggles. She also is going to take you into her dark nightmare of dealing with assault from what should have been a trusted source for her- and hundreds of fellow gymnasts. Maggie tells you how the Special Olympics inspired her and influenced her personally and professionally. Read how she navigates it all and survives pivoting her career.

Maggie was like many little girls- myself included- who was bitten by the gymnastics bug. Once she found it, she found her passion. However, it wasn't always a happy journey. She was plagued by injuries. She had setbacks that forced her to have to reevaluate her passion and how she was going to achieve the goals she set out to accomplish. Within the pages of Unstoppable, she shares with you what it was like and how she did it. Injuries are a blow to any athlete, but the recovery isn't always just a physical one. Athletes have to overcome the mental aspect of any physical injury that requires a break from their routine.

Unstoppable isn't just the telling of her career. Within it's pages, you're going to read some disturbing things that not only happened to Maggie, but too many of her fellow gymnasts. I've always known how disturbing the much acclaimed Karoli camp is. I've known how the athletes are treated there and the methods used to get the athletes into the "best condition for competition". I've never agreed with it and was angry with every story I read about it. Maggie shares hers with you and it will upset you. The way they altered her diet for the "better" and pushed her to the breaking point isn't uncommon to anyone who's walked the property. I had a hard time reading about what was overlooked and allowed for the sake of medals. This book reminds the reader that this facility is focused on winning at the expense of athletes' long term health.

The hardest parts to read within the book are those involving the sexual abuse she suffered at the hands of Larry Nassar. Long before he was charged and sentenced for anything, the abuse occurred. Maggie is just one of the hundreds who came forward to tell their story. Maggie tells you how that came to be and how the process was for having him put behind bars. It's not an easy read to see how many trusted adults turned a blind eye or even covered up what was happening to the very athletes they should have been protecting. It was a victory I celebrated when it finally was done and it was a victory I celebrated as Maggie takes you on that journey.

I loved reading how her transition was into college gymnastics. I loved reading how she was treated by teammates and coaches. I loved how they became a family. I loved how they were able to comin in and undo the unhealthy eating and training habits instilled, in party, by the Karoli team. By the time you finish the last page of Maggie's book you will have read how she pursued her dream and overcame the nightmares she encountered along the way.

Unstoppable is a great book that any young adults could pull lessons from. She explains the technical aspects of gymnastics, so starting out gymnasts can have extra knowledge. I thoroughly enjoyed reading Maggie's story and I hope you do, as well.

As a former gymnast, I followed the proceedings for Larry Nassar. To have an inside account of her life, the abuse that she suffered, and ultimately her success in Oklahoma with college gymnastics was one to read.

I appreciated Maggie Nichols' vulnerability and strength. This book sheds light on the sexual abuse scandal that ran through US Gymnastics under Larry Nassar and Steve Penny, including how USAG and even the FBI mishandled the investigation and tried to sweep it under the rug.

Even though Nichols' Olympics success was hampered (in part due to her accusations against Nassar), she had an outstanding career at Oklahoma University that was fun to hear her detail as well!

Trigger warning of sexual abuse, of course, but she tells an important story with advice for young athletes.

Thank you, NetGalley, Macmillan Children's Publishing Group, and Roaring Brook Press for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

I have always been a fan of gymnastics and of Maggie Nichols so I could not wait to read her memoir. And we can truly get to see and experience the trajectory of her career throughout this book. The writing is honest and accessible to readers and the sections it is split into truly highlight who she is as an individual. The love she has not only for the sport but for those who were part of her journey is so clear throughout the book. But she also does not shy away from talking about the various types of pain it has caused her. She is a true champion of the sport and for her fellow gymnasts.

At one point in the book, Maggie states that she sees this memoir and the “Athlete A” documentary as companion pieces and I think that they complement each other so well and highly recommend them both.

I remember when Maggie Nichols was competing, so I was interested to read this book. A large part of it was, of course, about her gymnastics career, especially at the Elite level and for the NCAA. I found it interesting to read about her training and competitions as well as the coaches who helped and supported her along the way.

The other main element in the book was Larry Nassar. It was heartbreaking to read, not only about the abuse, but also about the inaction after he was reported. The point of the book was a hopeful one: keep moving forward. Don't let hardships sidetrack you.

There was an even higher purpose to this book. Maggie seeks to help those who have suffered abuse and even tries to help prevent it.

Thank you to NetGalley and to Fierce Reads for the early read.

Maggie writes a powerful memoir about her gymnastics background and finding her voice at unstoppable power despite having been abused by Larry Nassar.
I als0 enjoyed hearing about Maggie's NCAA journey as this is often overlooked as elite gymnasts see the Olympics as their highest accomplishment.
I would recommend this for fans of sports and especially gymnastics.

I loved Maggie Nichols' account of her rise to Olympic aspirations and her tenacity in and out of the gym. Her positive spirit really shines through the book and made me want to watch a gymnastics competition! I really enjoyed learning about the ins and outs of sports, and she gave an inside look to the problems with USA Gymnastics. Further, she was Athlete A in the case against Larry Nassar and she learned that speaking out may have cost her a spot on the Olympic Team. Nonetheless, she did what was right and was able to continue her gymnastic legacy in college. I highly recommend this book for anyone who enjoys sports and is looking for a positive role model.

Thank you Roaring Brook Press and NetGalley for an arc of Unstoppable! by Maggie Nichols, in exchange for my honest review. This story is raw, emotional and honest. Maggie Nichols was an elite gymnast who one of the first to come out about Larry Naser and abuse. The book starts out reading like children's book, but then get in to the investigation and more like young adult. I don't think I learned anything that was not already out there in the news. However, I have a lot of respect for Swaggie Maggie and respect that she wrote this very truthful book. This book comes out Jan. 16, 2024 and would be a great preorder book present for the holidays for a teenage gymnast.

I didn't do gymnastics as a kid but I love following gymnasts and gymnastics. I have enjoyed reading other gymnasts memoirs and I thought another one would be super fun. Honesty, I hate to say this because it is a big deal for Maggie to share what happened to her, but I didn't love this book. The book jumped around so much and circled back and was just so disorganized. A lot of the book was superficial and full of filler sentences, like everything was amazing, felt great, was just so exciting. I know she isn't a professional writer, but she should have been working with an editor who helped make this book more cohesive. The Larry Nassar stuff was done well, but felt like it was written for a older audience than the beginning of the book. Overall I am glad I read the book and got to know more about her and her story but I think the book could have been put together better. Thank you for the ARC!

Maggie is such a phenomenal athlete and a survivor of Larry Nasser. I really appreciated her telling her story in this book! Can't wait to see all the wonderful things she does in her future.

Anybody who knows me knows how much I love gymnastics, so I was ECSTATIC to receive an arc for Maggie Nichols' memoir. I have been a huge fan of Maggie since I was a kid and it has been so wonderful to watch her grow as a gymnast and a person over the years. I remember the shock I felt when she released her statement that she was Athlete A, and I have been in awe of her courage and resilience as she and other prominent gymnasts have made it their mission to seek justice and answers for the abuse they faced from Larry Nassar, and the many systems and adults that failed to protect them. This memoir did such a great job of showing Maggie's journey through gymnastics, starting with her entrance into the sport as a very young kid, and ending with her graduating from OSU. I really enjoyed how she managed to explain the different mechanics of the sport, including the different skills and scoring at the various levels of youth, elite, and collegiate gymnastics, in a way that the average person who doesn't know gymnastics can understand. I loved how the story focused on her love and appreciation for her coaches and the different adult role models she had, that gave her strength and support throughout her career. I appreciated how much dedication she has given to fighting for the youth in gymnastics today to never experience the abuse and horrific coaching that she experienced at the hands of USA Gymnastics. I thought Maggie did a great job of explaining the different stages of the lawsuits and proceedings she has been a part of to get justice against Larry Nassar, USAG, and the FBI, while also tying these legal experiences to the traumatic personal experiences she had. Most of all, I admired Maggie's overarching theme of resilience, trusting your instinct when something is wrong, and her dedication to being an excellent role model for younger children getting into the world of sports and especially gymnastics. I highly encourage this read to anyone interested in gymnastics or the events surrounding Larry Nassar.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan's Children's Publishing for providing me with this advanced reader's copy in exchange for an honest review!

For the majority of the book, it felt too young for the audience, but then the later chapters when describing the investigations, it was more on the level for 16-18 and above. I would say it’s a cross between motivational and memoir and a little informative but also feels a bit narcissistic at times.

When I first started reading, I felt like it was supposed to be for 9-12 year olds, but when I looked at the promotional material in the front it said 14-18.

I suppose it would be a good read for any young girl who’s interested in gymnastics and what it takes to get to the top in that sport, but then the later chapters would be hard to slog through for them.

Beyond excited to acquire, review, and share this book especially with our young readers. I remember reading so many gymnastics and figure skating biographies growing up and how much they inspired me. I'm so happy to be able to do that with Maggie's story for this generation. Especially with everything she's been through with the abuse allegations from the Gymnastics Co. What an inspiring and beautiful story of strength determination and perseverance

As a longtime fan of elite gymnastics, I thought this was really good. Maggie's inclusion in the Olympics is always up for debate and she was treated unfairly. Whether she should've made the team or not is irrelevant - it is how USAG handled her standing up for herself and others that was truly reprehensible. This was an interesting memoir in that typically you can tell that the celebrity told their story to someone else who then wrote or edited it for them. In this case, you can tell it is truly Maggie's voice for most of the writing, as it is slightly unpolished and personable. I appreciated this - it was more like hearing an interview or a podcast.

I had so much fun reading this! As a long time Swaggy Maggie fan, I was so excited to read this e-arc. I loved learning more of Maggie’s story, and I felt like I went through her gymnastics career with her! She pulled me in from page one.

Maggie is so strong and brave, and she is such an encouragement to fans, gymnasts, and readers. I recommend that anyone looking for a wonderful role model should read Maggie’s book! It’s written for younger readers (maybe 12-16?), but I think everyone can learn something from Maggie’s story. ❤️