Article contributed by Laura Glassman
Fast Girls tells a remarkable story based on the lives of three young women: Betty Robinson, Helen Stephens, and Louise Stokes, who were aspiring professional runners and who ultimately worked their way towards a place on the 1936 US Olympic track team for the Olympics in Berlin. Author Elise Hooper draws readers into an absorbing novel about the lives, trials, and successes of each of these women as they overcame obstacles, worked towards their goals, supported each other, and ultimately made history.
Hooper has expressed that she is interested in stories about women in history who many people may not have heard about. She knew that she wanted to tell this story when she heard the true story of the three Olympic track stars that Fast Girls focuses on. Through Fast Girls, we learn about the lives of those athletes at a time when the country was generally highly sceptical of the idea of a woman’s ability to participate in professional athletics.
From the start, readers will feel invested in each girl’s story and how it will develop. Hooper has created three very distinct and memorable characters and the writing flows seamlessly from one character’s story to another’s as they alternate in different chapters. This is a book that is hard to put down, as each girl’s story is unique and interesting to follow. Readers are also fully immersed in the time and places that are described, during the time when women first became involved in Olympic level track and field in the United States.
Betty Robinson was initially discouraged from running. She was told by her school principal that she should not join the boys’ track team. However, her parents fought for her to be able to run, and she ultimately qualified for the Olympic trials for the 1928 Olympics. Betty was involved in an accident, after which it seemed as though she would not be able to participate in the Olympics again. However, Betty is an overcomer and a woman who is truly passionate about running.
Louise loved running; she loved the way it allowed her to stop overthinking and be focused on running alone. She was initially hesitant to commit to the sport and spend less time with her family, however, because of a terrible accident in the past which occurred when she left her siblings alone. Louise wanted to run professionally, but also worried about earning money for her family, who don’t have much. She ultimately became one of the earliest black women professional runners and US Olympians. Louise constantly faced her fears in her personal life and as she competed to run in the Olympics.
Helen lived in the countryside and initially wanted to hang out with the boys at her school, though she was warned not to. One day, she overheard a conversation and learned that her father never wanted her: he wanted a boy. From that moment on, she was determined to feel valued, to make her family and others proud. Her journey was impacted by her experiences with figuring out who she was and why she was different from some of the other girls whom she knew. Helen found a sense of identity through running, as she was fast as lightning and respected for what she did.
One compelling aspect of this book is that each of the three girls had to overcome some form of adversity on her way to the Olympics. Betty had to overcome an injury which had the potential to keep her out of running entirely. Louise had to overcome the racism of her fellow runners, her 1932 coach, and more. Helen had to overcome her own inner uncertainties about her identity as well as her father’s lack of support.
When these women and other women Olympians finally do meet, they offer each other remarkable support and friendship. Hooper paints a memorable picture of the way the women on the team stuck together, helped each other through difficulties and supported each other on their way to success in Olympic running.
Fast Girls discusses meaty topics like feminism, racism, and sexual identity as they impacted the women who ran in the Olympics. Betty’s experiences after initially winning gold in 1928 show what a hard time it was for women to start out in running. One person whom she wrote to wanted to prevent women from continuing to run, saying that running would cause them to have a “masculine physique” and that the women runners should focus on childrearing instead.
It is infuriating to read about the way women runners were treated. In 1936, an article was printed in which its author wondered whether women would be able to handle professional running if they were also mothers, or whether it would distract them. As well, the 1936 team faced threats if they behaved in an “unladylike” way, for instance, drinking at night. Louise had to face the hurdle of being initially excluded from competing because she was black, and from different treatment as a black runner. The world was not used to seeing female runners, but the United States was even less used to seeing black female runners on their Olympic team.
Eventually, as the Berlin Olympics draw close, we learn of talk that athletes considered boycotting the games due to rumors of Hitler’s actions in Germany. Fast Girls does not shy away from describing the fear and controversy surrounding the US team’s participation in an event hosted by a country responsible for terrible bigotry and unthinkably terrible policies towards Jewish people and which was rumored to be planning far worse actions in time.
It is easy to become absorbed in the stories of each of three women and their friends as they journeyed towards their goal of reaching the Olympics. Each must overcome a great deal in order to get to where she wants to be. Each has a compelling and unique story that will keep readers turning the pages of Fast Girls. As well, Fast Girls is a compelling work of historical fiction in that it does not shy away from delving into difficult and sometimes troubling issues in the world and that the runners faced at the time.
Fast Girls is available from Amazon, Book Depository, and other good book retailers, like your local bookstore, as of July 7th 2020.
Will you be picking up Fast Girls? Tell us in the comments below!
Synopsis | Goodreads
Acclaimed author Elise Hooper explores the gripping, real life history of female athletes, members of the first integrated women’s Olympic team, and their journeys to the 1936 summer games in Berlin, Nazi Germany.
This inspiring story is based on the real lives of three little-known trailblazing women Olympians. Perfect for readers who love untold stories of amazing women, such as The Only Woman in the Room, Hidden Figures, and The Lost Girls of Paris.
In the 1928 Olympics, Chicago’s Betty Robinson competes as a member of the first-ever women’s delegation in track and field. Destined for further glory, she returns home feted as America’s Golden Girl until a nearly-fatal airplane crash threatens to end everything.
Outside of Boston, Louise Stokes, one of the few black girls in her town, sees competing as an opportunity to overcome the limitations placed on her. Eager to prove that she has what it takes to be a champion, she risks everything to join the Olympic team.
From Missouri, Helen Stephens, awkward, tomboyish, and poor, is considered an outcast by her schoolmates, but she dreams of escaping the hardships of her farm life through athletic success. Her aspirations appear impossible until a chance encounter changes her life.
These three athletes will join with others to defy society’s expectations of what women can achieve. As tensions bring the United States and Europe closer and closer to the brink of war, Betty, Louise, and Helen must fight for the chance to compete as the fastest women in the world amidst the pomp and pageantry of the Nazi-sponsored 1936 Olympics in Berlin.
