Description
By: Michael Loynd
The feel-good underdog story of the first American swimmer to win Olympic gold, set against the turbulent rebirth of the modern Games, that “bring[s] to life an inspiring figure and illuminate[s] an overlooked chapter in America’s sports history” (The Wall Street Journal)
“Once or twice in a decade, one of these stories . . . like Laura Hillenbrand’s Unbroken [or] Daniel Brown’s The Boys in the Boat . . . captures the imagination of the public. . . . Add The Watermen by Michael Loynd to this illustrious list.”—Swimming World
Winner of the International Swimming Hall of Fame’s Paragon Award and the Buck Dawson Authors Award
In the early twentieth century, few Americans knew how to swim, and swimming as a competitive sport was almost unheard of. That is, until Charles Daniels took to the water.
On the surface, young Charles had it all: high-society parents, a place at an exclusive New York City prep school, summer vacations in the Adirondacks. But the scrawny teenager suffered from extreme anxiety thanks to a sadistic father who mired the family in bankruptcy and scandal before abandoning Charles and his mother altogether. Charles’s only source of joy was swimming. But with no one to teach him, he struggled with technique—until he caught the eye of two immigrant coaches hell-bent on building a U.S. swim program that could rival the British Empire’s seventy-year domination of the sport.
Interwoven with the story of Charles’s efforts to overcome his family’s disgrace is the compelling history of the struggle to establish the modern Olympics in an era when competitive sports were still in their infancy. When the powerful British Empire finally legitimized the Games by hosting the fourth Olympiad in 1908, Charles’s hard-fought rise climaxed in a gold-medal race where British judges prepared a trap to ensure the American upstart’s defeat.
Set in the early days of a rapidly changing twentieth century, The Watermen—a term used at the time to describe men skilled in water sports—tells an engrossing story of grit, of the growth of a major new sport in which Americans would prevail, and of a young man’s determination to excel.
The feel-good underdog story of the first American swimmer to win Olympic gold, set against the turbulent rebirth of the modern Games, that “bring[s] to life an inspiring figure and illuminate[s] an overlooked chapter in America’s sports history” (The Wall Street Journal)
“Once or twice in a decade, one of these stories . . . like Laura Hillenbrand’s Unbroken [or] Daniel Brown’s The Boys in the Boat . . . captures the imagination of the public. . . . Add The Watermen by Michael Loynd to this illustrious list.”—Swimming World
Winner of the International Swimming Hall of Fame’s Paragon Award and the Buck Dawson Authors Award
In the early twentieth century, few Americans knew how to swim, and swimming as a competitive sport was almost unheard of. That is, until Charles Daniels took to the water.
On the surface, young Charles had it all: high-society parents, a place at an exclusive New York City prep school, summer vacations in the Adirondacks. But the scrawny teenager suffered from extreme anxiety thanks to a sadistic father who mired the family in bankruptcy and scandal before abandoning Charles and his mother altogether. Charles’s only source of joy was swimming. But with no one to teach him, he struggled with technique—until he caught the eye of two immigrant coaches hell-bent on building a U.S. swim program that could rival the British Empire’s seventy-year domination of the sport.
Interwoven with the story of Charles’s efforts to overcome his family’s disgrace is the compelling history of the struggle to establish the modern Olympics in an era when competitive sports were still in their infancy. When the powerful British Empire finally legitimized the Games by hosting the fourth Olympiad in 1908, Charles’s hard-fought rise climaxed in a gold-medal race where British judges prepared a trap to ensure the American upstart’s defeat.
Set in the early days of a rapidly changing twentieth century, The Watermen—a term used at the time to describe men skilled in water sports—tells an engrossing story of grit, of the growth of a major new sport in which Americans would prevail, and of a young man’s determination to excel.
You may also like
熱銷中 Top Trending
![Press Start! #15 Mega Mole Girl Digs Deep! (Branches)](http://buybookbook.com/cdn/shop/files/PressStart_15MegaMoleGirlDigsDeep_Branches_{width}x.webp?v=1720090411)
Press Start! #15 Mega Mole Girl Digs Deep! (Branches)
Sale priceHK$47.00
Regular priceHK$98.00
In stock![Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (US)(Paperback)(Roald Dahl) PRHUS](http://buybookbook.com/cdn/shop/products/CharlieandtheChocolateFactory_Paperback_RoaldDahl_{width}x.jpg?v=1633797035)
![Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (US)(Paperback)(Roald Dahl) PRHUS](http://buybookbook.com/cdn/shop/products/CharlieandtheChocolateFactory_Paperback_RoaldDahl_2_{width}x.jpg?v=1633797038)
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (US)(Paperback)(Roald Dahl)
Sale priceHK$59.00
Regular priceHK$90.00
In stock![Disney/Pixar Inside Out 2: Go to Sleep, Anxiety!](http://buybookbook.com/cdn/shop/files/Disney_PixarInsideOut2GotoSleep_Anxiety_670b18f5-930c-40ef-bcdf-dcf5197fa045_{width}x.jpg?v=1721553025)
Disney/Pixar Inside Out 2: Go to Sleep, Anxiety!
Sale priceHK$115.00
Regular priceHK$180.00
In stock![The Epic Guide to Dragon Masters: A Branches Special Edition (Dragon Masters) (正版) (Tracey West)](http://buybookbook.com/cdn/shop/files/TheEpicGuidetoDragonMastersABranchesSpecialEdition_DragonMasters_TraceyWest_{width}x.webp?v=1720118963)
The Epic Guide to Dragon Masters: A Branches Special Edition (Dragon Masters) (正版) (Tracey West)
Sale priceHK$75.00
Regular priceHK$120.00
In stock![Murdle: Solve 100 Devilishly Devious Murder Mystery Logic Puzzles (Murdle Puzzle Series) (G.T Karber)-Activity: 益智解謎 Puzzle & Quiz-買書書 BuyBookBook](http://buybookbook.com/cdn/shop/files/MurdleSolve100DevilishlyDeviousMurderMysteryLogicPuzzles_1_{width}x.webp?v=1713022396)
![Murdle: Solve 100 Devilishly Devious Murder Mystery Logic Puzzles (Murdle Puzzle Series) (G.T Karber)-Activity: 益智解謎 Puzzle & Quiz-買書書 BuyBookBook](http://buybookbook.com/cdn/shop/files/MurdleSolve100DevilishlyDeviousMurderMysteryLogicPuzzles_2_{width}x.webp?v=1713022400)
Murdle: Solve 100 Devilishly Devious Murder Mystery Logic Puzzles (Murdle Puzzle Series) (G.T Karber)
Sale priceHK$119.00
Regular priceHK$195.00
In stock![Dragon Masters #26 (正版) Cave of the Crystal Dragon (Branches) (Tracey West)-Fiction: 歷險科幻 Adventure & Science Fiction-買書書 BuyBookBook](http://buybookbook.com/cdn/shop/files/DragonMasters_26_CaveoftheCrystalDragon_Branches_TraceyWest_{width}x.webp?v=1712741516)
Dragon Masters #26 (正版) Cave of the Crystal Dragon (Branches) (Tracey West)
Sale priceHK$42.00
Regular priceHK$69.00
In stock![Wings of Fire Graphic Novel #07 Winter Turning (Tui T. Sutherland)-Fiction: 歷險科幻 Adventure & Science Fiction-買書書 BuyBookBook](http://buybookbook.com/cdn/shop/files/71PFp5FWpHL._SL1200_{width}x.webp?v=1712764615)
Wings of Fire Graphic Novel #07 Winter Turning (Tui T. Sutherland)
Sale priceHK$88.00
Regular priceHK$130.00
In stock![Pearson Longman Level-up! English Test Papers (with Online diagnostic assessment^破解常犯錯誤)-Supplemental: 英文科 English-買書書 BuyBookBook](http://buybookbook.com/cdn/shop/files/e1a_{width}x.webp?v=1712704159)
![Pearson Longman Level-up! English Test Papers (with Online diagnostic assessment^破解常犯錯誤)-Supplemental: 英文科 English-買書書 BuyBookBook](http://buybookbook.com/cdn/shop/files/e1b_{width}x.webp?v=1712704165)
Pearson Longman Level-up! English Test Papers (with Online diagnostic assessment^破解常犯錯誤)
Sale priceHK$63.00
Regular priceHK$73.00
In stock![Percy Jackson and the Olympians 5 Book Paperback Boxed Set (w/poster)](http://buybookbook.com/cdn/shop/files/Percy_Jackson_and_the_Olympians_Collection_5_Book_3cff5df8-fe7d-4bd3-b22b-707c03d6b7d7_{width}x.jpg?v=1719467367)
![Percy Jackson and the Olympians 5 Book Paperback Boxed Set (w/poster)](http://buybookbook.com/cdn/shop/files/Percy_Jackson_and_the_Olympians_Collection_5_Book_-5_d7a1823a-248b-4229-b85b-bc220e008346_{width}x.jpg?v=1719467367)
Percy Jackson and the Olympians 5 Book Paperback Boxed Set (w/poster)
Sale priceHK$287.00
Regular priceHK$450.00
In stock![Harry Potter (正版) Children Edition #1-7 (7 Books) (J.K. Rowling) (printed in UK) - 買書書 BuyBookBook](http://buybookbook.com/cdn/shop/products/HarryPotter_ChildrenEdition_1-7_7Books_J.K.Rowling_printedinUK_1_{width}x.jpg?v=1662716295)
![Harry Potter (正版) Children Edition #1-7 (7 Books) (J.K. Rowling) (printed in UK) - 買書書 BuyBookBook](http://buybookbook.com/cdn/shop/products/HarryPotter_ChildrenEdition_1-7_7Books_J.K.Rowling_printedinUK_11_{width}x.jpg?v=1662716295)
Harry Potter (正版) Children #1-7 Collection (7 Books)(J.K. Rowling)(printed in UK)
Sale priceFrom HK$449.00
Regular priceHK$799.00
In stock![Heroes of Olympus Paperback Boxed Set, The-10th Anniversary Edition](http://buybookbook.com/cdn/shop/files/HeroesofOlympus_Collection_5Books_10thAnniversaryEdition_RickRiordan_{width}x.jpg?v=1721547583)
![Heroes of Olympus Paperback Boxed Set, The-10th Anniversary Edition](http://buybookbook.com/cdn/shop/files/Heroes_of_Olympus_Collection_5_Books_10th_Anniversary_Edition_{width}x.jpg?v=1721547583)
Heroes of Olympus Paperback Boxed Set, The-10th Anniversary Edition
Sale priceHK$319.00
Regular priceHK$500.00
In stock