Swimming Pretty
The Untold Story of Women in Water
19 July 2024
Territory Rights — Worldwide.
Description
From vaudeville tank shows to the Olympic arena, a ground-breaking history of how women found synchronicity—and power—in water
Since the nineteenth century, tensions between beauty and strength, aesthetics and athleticism have both impeded and propelled the careers of female swimmers—none more so than synchronised swimmers. In this deeply researched history, Vicki Valosik traces a century of aquatic performance for the first time, from Victorian variety theatre and carnival shows to the 1984 elevation of synchronised swimming to Olympic status. Writing in eloquent prose, Valosik shows how early starlets like Lurline the Water Queen and Annette Kellerman boldly challenged restrictive codes set for women in water; more than just bathing beauties, they influenced lifesaving and physical-education programmes, dropped drowning rates and paved the way for new generations of female swimming athletes. Brimming with reverence and mesmerising detail, Swimming Pretty finally foregrounds an essential sport.
Reviews
"[An] enlightening, well-researched history . . . As [Valosik's] book reveals in fascinating detail, although women’s access to the water has been mired for centuries in gender politics . . . women have transformed swimming for everyone in fundamental ways." — Sarah L. Kaufman, Wall Street Journal
"Journalist Vicki Valosik, herself a master synchronized swimmer, knows that the sport involves more than waterproof makeup and spangled costumes. Her new book, “Swimming Pretty: The Untold Story of Women in Water,” traces the history of the sport with the precision and grace of an Esther Williams tableau . . . As the 2024 Games begin next month in Paris, “Swimming Pretty” can be a great primer on a spectacular, strenuous sport." — The Los Angeles Times
