Be in the Swim of Things
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Esther Williams died on June 6 at 91. A California native, she worked as a towel girl at the local pool so she could pay the .05 admission charge. She quickly mastered all of the strokes, including those like the butterfly that were restricted to male swimmers. She broke numerous records and won 3 national championships while a teenager. She was scheduled to compete on the US Olympic team in 1940 but the games were cancelled after the outbreak of WWII. Instead, she joined the Billy Rose Aquacade, a swimming, singing and dancing review, where she attracted the attention of MGM scouts. She retired from acting in the 1960s but became a business woman, lending her name to a line of swimsuits and pools.
If you would like to learn more about Esther Williams, check out her autobiography, The Million Dollar Mermaid. Also available in Large Print.
Swimming is a great activity and it can be enjoyed at almost any age. If you'd like to read more about swimming, try these books.
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Fiction
The Bone Cage by Angie Abdou
• eBook
A swimmer and a wrestler, both nearing the end of their careers must confront issues of identity and body image in this novel.
Non-Fiction
The Great Swim by Gavin Mortimer
In 1926, four young American women battle to become the first to successfully swim the English Channel.
Swim: Why We Love the Water by Lynn Sherr
An examination of the psychological benefits of swimming.
Swimming to Antarctica: Tales of a Long-Distance Swimmer by Lynne Cox
• Large Print
• Talking Book (restricted to Print Disabled patrons)
Cox describes her almost mystical relationship with the water in this memoir.
Swimming Studies by Leanne Shapton
Shapton's memoir about her youth as a competitive swimmer.
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