- Hardcover: 304 pages
- Publisher: William Morrow & Company (1 May 2008)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0061351466
- ISBN-13: 978-0061351464
- Product Dimensions: 21.3 x 13.2 x 3.3 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
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Amazon Bestsellers Rank:
24,213 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #3 in Books > Sports, Hobbies & Games > Athletics & Gymnastics > Gymnastics
- #13 in Books > Biography > Social & Health Issues > Eating Disorders
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Product Description
Review
"A cautionary tale to not just athletes, parents, coaches, and judges but to fans of gymnastics... intense, gripping, and powerful."--Kathryn Bertine, ESPN columnist and author of All the Sundays Yet to Come: A Skater's Journey
Product Description
Published just as all eyes are on the young female gymnasts competing for a ticket to Beijing on the 2008 Olympic team, "Chalked Up" presents the story of the 1986 US National Gymnastics champion whose life long dream was to compete in the 1988 Olympics - until anorexia, injuries, coaching abuses, and parental hopes and neglect nearly destroyed her. Fanciful dreams of gold medals and Nadia Comaneci led Jennifer Sey to the sport of gymnastics at the age of six. Early success propelled her forward.Her family, seduced by the notion of their young daughter as a champion, complied with her every wish as she strove to become better. By the age of eleven, it all seemed to be coming together for her when she qualified for the nationally competitive elite level, the highest in U.S. gymnastics. "Chalked Up" is Sey's personal story in competitive gymnastics and also the story of the ways her needs were subsumed by the adults around her. It is about the meaninglessness of second place in a culture that places winning above all else. It is about the destruction waged by eating disorders. It is about a specific a culture in which underage and underweight girls are celebrated as cultural icons.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
A gripping read for anyone who's ever been driven by a goal or had low self esteem for no apparent reason
25 Sep 2008
Format:Hardcover
The story is both delightful and harrowing, because it is full of extreme highs and extreme lows - Sey taking you with her on the gymnastics journey from child through to retiring young adult, and life beyond gymnsnatics briefly at the end. You almost feel the mental and physical pain she endures, so very descriptive and detailed is Sey. It does make you realise that, easy as it looks on TV, this sport is one of the most gruelling. After reading this book book, you'll never be able to watch gymnatics again without knowing what it took for them to get there.
I could not put this book down, I normally lose interest in a book after the first couple of chapters, or it takes me 3 months to read a chapter, but I read the whole thing, all 300* pages in 6 days!!!
The story is backed up by the many videos of young Sey on youtube. After reading the book I immediately checked footage of Sey out and witnessed how good she was. I recommend you do this before or during reading as it helps picture the people mentioned, as well as Sey herself. There is a selection of black and white photos in the book but youtube is brilliant. It shows how Sey really was a world class performer, and, although the book is very self indulgent (all about her) not once in the book does she actually acknowledge how amazing a gymnast she was, clearly even as an adult she will always be one who plays down her efforts - so see for yourself - and see how skinny she was too even though she thought she was fat!
*can't remember exact no. of pages but it's around 300.
I could not put this book down, I normally lose interest in a book after the first couple of chapters, or it takes me 3 months to read a chapter, but I read the whole thing, all 300* pages in 6 days!!!
The story is backed up by the many videos of young Sey on youtube. After reading the book I immediately checked footage of Sey out and witnessed how good she was. I recommend you do this before or during reading as it helps picture the people mentioned, as well as Sey herself. There is a selection of black and white photos in the book but youtube is brilliant. It shows how Sey really was a world class performer, and, although the book is very self indulgent (all about her) not once in the book does she actually acknowledge how amazing a gymnast she was, clearly even as an adult she will always be one who plays down her efforts - so see for yourself - and see how skinny she was too even though she thought she was fat!
*can't remember exact no. of pages but it's around 300.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
As a non gymnast I found this book very inetersting and even fascinating.The book is more revealing and "outspoken" than the usual run of the mill sports autobiography. Plan to lend the book to a gymnast and see what she thinks of it.
2 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I was dying to read this book after hearing so much about it but it was hard to find in the u.k. so i was made up to find it here.I found jennifers story very intersesting,she talks about when she first started gymnastics right up till she gave it up.She does say a few things that are quite shocking such as girls being called fat bitches and being slapped by the coach for messing things up.However she admits that she had a bad time mainly due to the fact that she pushed herself all the time and was like that in all parts of her life anyway.I thought this book was really good especially if you like gymnastics (obviously!).
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