[ARETE] Review of As Fast As Her

[Duncan Jamieson]

All,
Please find attached and below Alan Zaremba's review of *As Fast as
Her--Kemdall Cloyne*.
Thanks
Duncan



Review of



*As Fast As Her--*Kendall Coyne





Alan Zaremba

Northeastern University









*As Fast As Her* (Zondervan 2022) is a memoir authored by Kendall Coyne,
currently the captain of the United States Women’s Ice Hockey team.  Coyne
has won two Olympic Silver medals, has one Gold, and is a six-time world
champion.  She is also an active member of the Professional Women’s Hockey
Players Association. (PWHPA)



The book is sometimes, but not always, catalogued as a “Teen” or YA book.  The
YA cataloguing is unfortunate.  While the book can be read and enjoyed by
younger readers, the message within would be inspirational for anyone who
reads this well-written memoir.   The book compares favorably to recent
adult sports memoirs such as Megan Rapinoe’s *One Life, and *Carli
Lloyd’s *When
Nobody was Watching.  * A theme in Rapinoe’s book is the importance of
using your “one life” constructively.  Lloyd emphasizes the need to work
indefatigably at your craft in order to excel.  Coyne makes these points as
or more powerfully.



Ms. Coyne describes her evolution as a hockey player from her years as a
toddler through her staggering feat in the 2019 NHL All-Star speed
competition. In that event, Coyne, a last-minute replacement for a male
contestant, came in second with an astonishing time that startled the
hockey establishment. Those 14.346 seconds have changed attitudes about
women in sports, and women in society. It will take time to assess the
relative impact of the feat, but one could argue that the speed competition
will be, in the context of gender equity, as pivotal as any other sport
contest including the Billie Jean King-Bobby Riggs 1973 tennis match
referred to as the “Battle of the Sexes.”  Coyne devotes a chapter to the
speed skating competition. She writes: “My life exploded with e-mails,
messages, mail, appearances, speeches, and interview requests, hearing from
so many people how that moment changed their lives too.”



Coyne recounts her early battles with gender discrimination.  She played on
boys’ teams but at times was prohibited from competing because of her
gender even when her skills surpassed her teammates’.  She recounts the
derisive chatter from spectators—including parents—who did not want her to
compete with boys.  Readers learn of her industrious approach to the game
and remarkable dedication to excellence.  She was fortunate to have loving
parents and siblings who supported her ambition even when to do so was
costly and an enormous time sap.  The parental support is in contrast to
what is depicted in Lloyd’s book (not referenced in Coyne’s memoir) where
issues of family tensions for the soccer player had to be overcome.



The consistent inspirational message in *As Fast As Her* is that athletes
can achieve despite obstacles if there is sufficient energy dedicated to
the pursuit of goals.  The author speaks to all, but clearly wants young
women to see hockey as an activity not reserved for men.  She is deservedly
proud of being a trailblazer and is clear to identify women in hockey who
were role models for her.  I am many years removed from my years of sports
competition, but the pervasive message in the book made me consider how
important it is to not let obstacles stop those who desire to achieve.  I
believe it will have the same effect on most readers regardless of their
vintage or even how much they participate in sports.



There are some remarkable stories of how good fortune was a result of being
in the right place at the right time because of dedication and perspective.
Coyne was a victim of a bait and switch with a college recruiter and while
that was distressing and disappointing, she was able to take another route,
attend a different university, and find the value of the new hand she was
dealt.  A few times she arrived for a competition and her equipment did
not; each time serendipity, focus, and the largesse of others allowed her
to compete.  The sections dealing with how she and other women athletes
negotiated for wages comparable to their male counterparts provided other
examples of how energy and focus can result in success.



The writing in this memoir is conversational yet the messages are
substantive.  Pithy quotes appear throughout. There is a recurring feature
called “Golden Coyne.”  These are pieces of advice which could be
off-putting if they were simply banal platitudes, but the comments will
resonate with anyone who eschews pompous disdain and has ever competed. The
book concludes with a timeline that identifies how women’s hockey has
evolved. The events in the timeline are interspersed with Coyne’s own
activity and participation in the evolution of hockey.



Billie Jean King wrote the foreword for *As Fast as Her*.  In it, King
includes this commentary: “…in this book [Coyne] reveals her character—the
root of her inner success.”   The excerpt is an apt and concise summary of
a book that is a valuable read.  College students interested in sport, even
those who are non-athletes will enjoy the read.  Those who examine sports
history and the sociology of sport will find the book valuable as a
contribution to the evolution of women’s battle for equality.  This is not,
nor was it intended to be, an academic monograph.  It will, however,
contribute to what academics know about the evolution of women in sports.





*As Fast As Her*—(Kendall Coyne with Estelle Laure)

Zondervan (2022)










Remember to smell the roses as you recumber past

Duncan R. Jamieson, Ph. D.
Professor of History
Book Review Editor
*AETHLON: The Journal of Sport Literature*
Ashland University
Ashland, OH  44805
USA
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