Rowing

Glynn A. Leyshon is a professor of physical education at the University
of Western Ontario, a former weekly columnist for the London Free Press,
and author of 18 Sporting Stories.

This coffee-table book is an excellent trance de vie of the sport of
rowing. The linchpin of the publication is Cullen’s outstanding
photography, with text by Laumann on “why” and by King on “how.”
The authors are/were champion rowers.

The book is divided into chapters on training, coaching, race day,
etc., and ends with a 30-page history that includes thumbnail sketches
of outstanding athletes and coaches. Of these, perhaps the most telling
is “A Sport for Everyone,” which details why some of our most famous
rowers (Ned Hanlan, Marny McBean, and Silken Laumann among them) started
competing in the first place.

Librarians and sports enthusiasts searching for a beautiful and
motivational tome about a sport that draws those of all ages and
genders, and is devoid of the stigma of commercialization and
professionalism, need look no further. This is the book.