Swimming for My Life: A Memoir
Kim Fairley
(Author)
Description
Interweaving a tumultuous family tale of eccentric parents and five kids left to fend for themselves with an eye-opening view of the often-hidden dark side of competitive swimming, this compelling memoir provides a glimpse into the isolation as well as the backbreaking and sometimes soul-crushing work necessary to achieve elite status in the competitive swimming world.
Product Details
Price
$24.95
$23.20
Publisher
She Writes Press
Publish Date
October 11, 2022
Pages
352
Dimensions
5.8 X 8.7 X 1.3 inches | 1.25 pounds
Language
English
Type
Hardcover
EAN/UPC
9781647422950
BISAC Categories:
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About the Author
Kim Fairley was born in Plainfield, New Jersey, and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio. She attended the University of Southern California and holds an MFA in Mixed Media from the University of Michigan. Her first book, Boreal Ties: Photographs and Two Diaries of the 1901 Peary Relief Expedition, chronicled the Arctic expedition of her great grandfather, Clarence Wyckoff. Kim lives in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Reviews
2023 International Book Awards Finalist in Sports
2023 Independent Press Award, Distinguished Favorite for Memoir
2022 Finalist for the Hearten Book Award for Inspiring and Uplifting Nonfiction "Swimming for My Life gripped me from the first chapter. Kim Fairley has an important story to tell, and she tells it beautifully as well as accurately. I am impressed by her willingness to revisit her life choices, seeking to understand, not justify, her decisions. The struggles she faced in the pool barely compare to the challenges she faced out of the water, and the lessons she learned are important ones for all of us." -John Naber, Olympic swimming champion, broadcaster, and author of Awaken the Olympian Within "Swimming for My Life is a memoir of a childhood riddled with events most would never speak of. Fairley's pure, raw honesty keeps you wanting to read, page after page, as she starts to question whether she is living her dream or someone else's." --Dara Torres, twelve-time Olympic medalist in Swimming and author of Gold Medal Fitness and Age is Just a Number ". . . a must-read for all parents who every day leave their children in the care of others." --Donna de Varona, Olympic Gold medalist, author, broadcaster, and member of the Executive Board of the USOPC "Kim Fairley has drawn a poignant and vivid portrait of how her eating disorder developed in the perfect storm: neglectful, demanding parenting and the harsh, grueling, pressured atmosphere of competitive swimming. This compelling book will make you squirm, pray, and applaud Kim's resilience." --Judith Rusklay Rabinor, PhD, consultant for The Renfrew Center Foundation and author of The Girl in the Red Boots: Making Peace with My Mother "Thank goodness there is a writer like Kim Fairley who has the skills, talent, and heart to bring us into the world of ultra-competitive sports for children. Pulled along by her propulsive writing style, with an eye for emotionally evocative details, you experience her plight. . . . Five stars and highest praise for this page-turning book, I couldn't put it down!" --Lindsay C. Gibson, PsyD, author of Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents and Recovering from Emotionally Immature Parents
2023 Independent Press Award, Distinguished Favorite for Memoir
2022 Finalist for the Hearten Book Award for Inspiring and Uplifting Nonfiction "Swimming for My Life gripped me from the first chapter. Kim Fairley has an important story to tell, and she tells it beautifully as well as accurately. I am impressed by her willingness to revisit her life choices, seeking to understand, not justify, her decisions. The struggles she faced in the pool barely compare to the challenges she faced out of the water, and the lessons she learned are important ones for all of us." -John Naber, Olympic swimming champion, broadcaster, and author of Awaken the Olympian Within "Swimming for My Life is a memoir of a childhood riddled with events most would never speak of. Fairley's pure, raw honesty keeps you wanting to read, page after page, as she starts to question whether she is living her dream or someone else's." --Dara Torres, twelve-time Olympic medalist in Swimming and author of Gold Medal Fitness and Age is Just a Number ". . . a must-read for all parents who every day leave their children in the care of others." --Donna de Varona, Olympic Gold medalist, author, broadcaster, and member of the Executive Board of the USOPC "Kim Fairley has drawn a poignant and vivid portrait of how her eating disorder developed in the perfect storm: neglectful, demanding parenting and the harsh, grueling, pressured atmosphere of competitive swimming. This compelling book will make you squirm, pray, and applaud Kim's resilience." --Judith Rusklay Rabinor, PhD, consultant for The Renfrew Center Foundation and author of The Girl in the Red Boots: Making Peace with My Mother "Thank goodness there is a writer like Kim Fairley who has the skills, talent, and heart to bring us into the world of ultra-competitive sports for children. Pulled along by her propulsive writing style, with an eye for emotionally evocative details, you experience her plight. . . . Five stars and highest praise for this page-turning book, I couldn't put it down!" --Lindsay C. Gibson, PsyD, author of Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents and Recovering from Emotionally Immature Parents
