Gavin Mortimer was born in London and now lives in Montpellier in the south of France. Having spent his early twenties traveling, he began writing full-time in 1996. He has since contributed to a broad cross-section of publications, from Esquire to the Daily Telegraph and from BBC History Magazine to the Observer. His previous books on Britain's Special Air Service and the Blitz were published in the UK. He is also a distance swimmer himself.
"[Mortimer's] re-creation of Ederle's crossing you can't help but
feel cold, wet and exhausted....In fact, Ederle's time 14 hours and
39 minutes beat the male record by a full two hours. Her triumph
was as an athlete, no asterisk for gender." --Ginny Merdes, Seattle
Times..".what might be the most amazing athletic achievement of the
century....Mortimer tells this story with a verve that pulls the
reader in like a high tide....After conquering the Channel, Ederle
was an American hero, as celebrated as Jack Dempsey, Babe Ruth or
Bobby Jones; when she died in 2003 at age 97, she was all but
forgotten. Her legacy, which included the Olympic Committee's
increasing the number of swimming events for women, was confined to
a few short lines in her obituary." --Allen Barra, Washington Post
Book World"A stirring portrait of courage and endurance, but also a
bittersweet tale of the vagaries of fame and fortune." --Kirkus
Reviews"British journalist and historian Mortimer has done
Ederle--and sports history in general--a huge service in this
wonderfully written book" --Publishers Weekly"In 1926, when
legs-baring bathing suits were still considered titillating,
swimming the English Channel was a fast track to international
stardom. This engrossing book follows four American women who
competed that summer to become the first female to cross the
treacherous strait. Mortimer's descriptions of their attempts are
gripping, like the failed try of underdog Clarabelle Barrett, who
struggled in rough seas for over 21 hours before giving up. Even
more fascinating is the rabid celebrity culture he evokes: Mobs of
adoring fans in New York nearly tore one successful swimmer to
pieces, only to forget all about her the following year. A-"
--Entertainment Weekly
[Mortimer's] re-creation of Ederle's crossing you can't help but
feel cold, wet and exhausted .In fact, Ederle's time 14 hours and
39 minutes beat the male record by a full two hours. Her triumph
was as an athlete, no asterisk for gender. "Ginny Merdes, Seattle
Times" ...what might be the most amazing athletic achievement of
the century....Mortimer tells this story with a verve that pulls
the reader in like a high tide....After conquering the Channel,
Ederle was an American hero, as celebrated as Jack Dempsey, Babe
Ruth or Bobby Jones; when she died in 2003 at age 97, she was all
but forgotten. Her legacy, which included the Olympic Committee's
increasing the number of swimming events for women, was confined to
a few short lines in her obituary. "Allen Barra, Washington Post
Book World" A stirring portrait of courage and endurance, but also
a bittersweet tale of the vagaries of fame and fortune. "Kirkus
Reviews" British journalist and historian Mortimer has done
Ederle--and sports history in general--a huge service in this
wonderfully written book "Publishers Weekly" In 1926, when
legs-baring bathing suits were still considered titillating,
swimming the English Channel was a fast track to international
stardom. This engrossing book follows four American women who
competed that summer to become the first female to cross the
treacherous strait. Mortimer's descriptions of their attempts are
gripping, like the failed try of underdog Clarabelle Barrett, who
struggled in rough seas for over 21 hours before giving up. Even
more fascinating is the rabid celebrity culture he evokes: Mobs of
adoring fans in New York nearly tore one successful swimmer to
pieces, only to forget all about her the following year. A-
"Entertainment Weekly""
“[Mortimer’s] re-creation of Ederle's crossing you can't help but
feel cold, wet and exhausted….In fact, Ederle's time 14 hours and
39 minutes beat the male record by a full two hours. Her triumph
was as an athlete, no asterisk for gender.”—Ginny Merdes,
"Seattle"" Times"..".what might be the most amazing athletic
achievement of the century....Mortimer tells this story with a
verve that pulls the reader in like a high tide....After conquering
the Channel, Ederle was an American hero, as celebrated as Jack
Dempsey, Babe Ruth or Bobby Jones; when she died in 2003 at age 97,
she was all but forgotten. Her legacy, which included the Olympic
Committee's increasing the number of swimming events for women, was
confined to a few short lines in her obituary."—Allen Barra,
"Washington"" Post Book World"“A stirring portrait of courage and
endurance, but also a bittersweet tale of the vagaries of fame and
fortune.”—"Kirkus Reviews""
"[Mortimer's] re-creation of Ederle's crossing you can't help but
feel cold, wet and exhausted....In fact, Ederle's time 14 hours and
39 minutes beat the male record by a full two hours. Her triumph
was as an athlete, no asterisk for gender."--Ginny Merdes,
"Seattle"" Times".,."what might be the most amazing athletic
achievement of the century....Mortimer tells this story with a
verve that pulls the reader in like a high tide....After conquering
the Channel, Ederle was an American hero, as celebrated as Jack
Dempsey, Babe Ruth or Bobby Jones; when she died in 2003 at age 97,
she was all but forgotten. Her legacy, which included the Olympic
Committee's increasing the number of swimming events for women, was
confined to a few short lines in her obituary."--Allen Barra,
"Washington"" Post Book World""A stirring portrait of courage and
endurance, but also a bittersweet tale of the vagaries of fame and
fortune."--"Kirkus Reviews""British journalist and historian
Mortimer has done Ederle--and sports history in general--a huge
service in this wonderfully written book"--"Publishers Weekly" "In
1926, when legs-baring bathing suits were still considered
titillating, swimming the English Channel was a fast track to
international stardom. This engrossing book follows four American
women who competed that summer to become the first female to cross
the treacherous strait. Mortimer's descriptions of their attempts
are gripping, like the failed try of underdog Clarabelle Barrett,
who struggled in rough seas for over 21 hours before giving up.
Even more fascinating is the rabid celebrity culture he evokes:
Mobs of adoring fans in New York nearly tore one successful swimmer
to pieces, onlyto forget all about her the following year." A-
--"Entertainment Weekly"
.,."what might be the most amazing athletic achievement of the
century....Mortimer tells this story with a verve that pulls the
reader in like a high tide....After conquering the Channel, Ederle
was an American hero, as celebrated as Jack Dempsey, Babe Ruth or
Bobby Jones; when she died in 2003 at age 97, she was all but
forgotten. Her legacy, which included the Olympic Committee's
increasing the number of swimming events for women, was confined to
a few short lines in her obituary."--Allen Barra, "Washington""
Post Book World"
"A stirring portrait of courage and endurance, but also a
bittersweet tale of the vagaries of fame and fortune."--"Kirkus
Reviews"
"British journalist and historian Mortimer has done Ederle--and
sports history in general--a huge service in this wonderfully
written book"--"Publishers Weekly"
"In 1926, when legs-baring bathing suits were still considered
titillating, swimming the English Channel was a fast track to
international stardom. This engrossing book follows four American
women who competed that summer to become the first female to cross
the treacherous strait. Mortimer's descriptions of their attempts
are gripping, like the failed try of underdog Clarabelle Barrett,
who struggled in rough seas for over 21 hours before giving up.
Even more fascinating is the rabid celebrity culture he evokes:
Mobs of adoring fans in New York nearly tore one successful swimmer
to pieces, only to forget all about her the following year." A-
--"Entertainment Weekly"
"A stirring portrait of courage and endurance, but also a
bittersweet tale of the vagaries of fame and fortune."--"Kirkus
Reviews"
British journalist and historian Mortimer has done Ederle--and
sports history in general--a huge service in this wonderfully
written book--"Publishers Weekly"
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