Young Woman and the Sea - How Trudy Ederle Conquered the English Channel - The Story of Gertrude Ederle's English Channel Swim

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)