Young Woman & the Sea, by Glen Stout, started slowly (like an easy swim warm-up). Honestly, I was not hooked by the first few pages of the book. I was not looking forward to reading the rest of it. But as I kept reading, it drew me in to the world of a young Gertrude (Trudy) Ederle, and how she went from a non-swimmer to the greatest swimmers of her time, the first woman to swim the English Channel. I recommend this book for swimmers and for those interested in learning more about the early struggle of women and sports. The story of Gertrude Ederle's swim across the English Channel is well worth reading; it is an important chapter in the history of swimming, and Glenn Stoudt captures it in an exciting and revealing way.

(Photo of Gertrude Ederle from George Grantham Bain Collection/Library of Congress)

On the final day of competition at the 2009 FINA World Cup Swim Meet in Stockholm, USA swimmers took home two gold, one silver and one bronze medal. Michael Phelps earned a silver medal in the men's 200m IM, while National Teamers Jessica Hardy and Peter Marshall each took home gold medals and broke world records in their respective events. In addition, the 2009 National Youth World Cup Team advanced eight swimmers to finals. The National Youth World Cup Team and Michael Phelps will now head to Berlin for the next stop of the 2009 FINA World Cup Swim Meet series. The two-day competition begins on Saturday, November 14.