Jessica Ennis: Unbelievable - From My Childhood Dreams to Winning Olympic Gold [Hardcover]

I am a big fan of Jessica Ennis and I am so hopeful she will continue to rack up the titles and UK records (and maybe world records) but I think this account just does'nt do her justice. On the one hand there are some inspirational snippets from her life to Olympic Champion but on the other hand the brevity of the book and how some topics are skimmed over left me disappointed.

As others have highlighted, the padding out of the book with double margins, blank pages and several pages devoted to her tables of record , the reader is left with a scant commentary. I read the book in four days of bed-time reading.

It felt like the book was rushed out which may be unfair but compared with other Christmas releases this lacks depth. To deal with Jessica's experience of providing drug samples in a few pages and the Olympic experience in such brevity is short changing the experience.

That said, still worth a read to get to know her better but if only Broadbent had imposed himself more on the content you may have a more in-depth account of some really interesting topics.

Jessica Ennis was undoubtedly the poster girl of London 2012 and this book plots her journey to Olympic glory. Ennis comes across as driven yet likeable, grounded in her Sheffield upbringing and training. There isn't much controversial here - the relationship with her coach Toni Minichiello seems to be a bit fractious but it helps to bring out Ennis' competitive side, and there doesn't seem to be too much love lost between Ennis and Kelly Sotherton. Other than that, Ennis concentrates on describing her athletic career up to winning the Olympic gold. It's certainly a quick read - the publishers have done their best to pad it out to 276 pages by including 30 pages of career stats, several blank pages/chapter headings and using a large font and big line-spacing. Personally, I'd have preferred to hear a little more about Ennis' childhood, entry into athletics and a bit more about the London 2012 experience to fill those blank pages.

Jessica Ennis was born in Sheffield in 1986. She describes herself as 'an ordinary girl from a run-of-the-mill street in Sheffield'. At primary school she spent her nights crying over her diary knowing that she would be met at the school gates next day by bullies. She was taunted for her size and background status. Her father, Vinnie, had arrived from Jamaica aged 12. He married her 'rebel mother', Alison after meeting her in 1984. 'Small and scraggy', Jessica not surprisingly had no self-confidence. Moving to secondary school took the bullies with her but her saviour turned out to be sport. Following a summer sports' camp , and when aged 13, she was 'spotted' by Toni Minichiello (Chell), who became her life-long coach despite a love-hate relationship accompanied by the inevitable tears, pain and joy. She went to Sheffield University to study psychology, gaining an honours degree.

Chell was moving Jessica carefully through the junior pentathlon and heptathlon scene at international meetings into the seniors' forum. Kelly Sotherton was British number one and a bronze medallist in Athens. A blunt woman who spoke her mind and was not afraid of the media. She approached Jessica at a meeting and said, "I've just called you tadpole to the press". Annoyed to say the least, the name stuck for several years, but fired up the competitive gene in Jessica. She candidly reveals her feelings behind the smiles and tears.

Surrounded by experts in their respective fields, 'Team Ennis' took on the very best heptathletes in the world with Jessica becoming European and World champion and MBE. The gruelling training and never-say-die attitude took its toll. Ankle and foot fractures forced her out of the 2008 Beijing games. Her recovery was a difficult and depressing time but her family and team worked hard to prepare her for the major goal, London 2012. Chell told her 'success has many friends but failure is an orphan'.

Sponsorship and 'glamour shoots' with media attention began pouring in as fame and popularity increased. This did not distract Jessica from her ultimate objective. The preparation for competitions and the games themselves are vividly described by Jessica in the book with the inevitable swings of confidence and fear of failure. 16 years of sacrifice, dedication and endeavour led to the ultimate prize. Much of her progress regarding measures of personal athletic standards are presented in detail. More of her personal life in and outside athletics with anecdotes, of which there must be plenty, would have added to the overall picture of Jessica to accompany her focussed athletic experiences.

A true inspiration and example to young people to overcome setbacks to achieve whatever their aim. A wonderful athlete, recently voted Sportswoman of the Year. Engaged to Andy Hill who she met at school. A fitting time in the post-Olympian 'feel good factor' hangover to produce an enjoyable read. Full of colour photographs ending with a career summary of major achievements in the appendix. The reader knows at the end, Jessica's achievements and the story leading to them. Excellent autobiography. Read the book and it becomes achievable and believable.