The Boys in the Boat, Daniel James Brown (3.0)
I was a bit disappointed in this award-winning book. While
the story is fascinating, I was let down with the story telling. All the
elements were there: a group of scrappy athletes (many who had come through
adversity), an unlikely winning college team, and the dramatic setting of the
1936 Olympics in Berlin. I’m glad I now know the story in more detail, but on
completion I had a sense of missing a better version. The author picked wisely
in his main character. He follows the story of Joe Rantz, one of the rowers of
the 8-oar crew team from the University of Washington in the mid 1930’s. Joe’s
childhood reads today as a harrowing abandonment, although it was likely a more
frequent scenario during the Depression. His journey to get on the team and to the
great success achieved should be inspiring to all and impresses on us the type
of strong personal character he had. I think many people will enjoy this book.
While similar and as inspiring, it’s not quite ‘Seabiscuit’ or ‘Unbroken’.
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