September 2016: The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold in the 1936 Olympics (Brown)

Post date: Sep 16, 2016 5:56:34 PM

Katherine Gavzy kindly hosted the book club this month, and so a group of about nine of us wound our way up to her home in the Berkeley hills on September 8 to discuss Daniel James Brown’s book The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold in the 1936 Olympics. Everyone seemed to enjoy the book. We were surprised to learn how popular and influential collegiate rowing was in the first half of the twentieth century. Thousands of spectators showed up to watch races and tens of thousands more followed along on the radio. The growing success of the crews of the University of Washington and their main rivals, UC Berkeley, helped to build the reputation of West Coast institutions in a country still focused on the East Coast and the Ivy-League. One of the main themes of the book is the contrast between the mostly poor and working class rowers from the University of Washington and the privileged students and programs of their competitors. We were impressed by the hard work and perseverance displayed by the “boys in the boat.” In particular, the book centers on the story of one of the rowers, Joe Rantz, a young man who was abandoned by his family while still a boy. Getting himself to the University through an admirable combination of grit and determination, Rantz struggles to find the sense of trust and belonging that will allow him to succeed as part of the crew team.

The book’s descriptions of life in the Pacific Northwest during the depression were fascinating, and the stories of the young men’s struggles and triumphs were inspiring. However, many of us were most taken by the accounts of the elegant beauty of rowing and of the incredible effort and co-ordination required to create and sustain that beauty.

Of course, the book ends with the tale of the team’s gold medal winning race in the 1936 Berlin Olympics. Even though you know that they win from the beginning of the book, it is amazing how suspenseful many of us felt in reading the account of that final race. You can see the race on-line on YouTube. In fact, if you have time, I recommend the PBS American Experience film based on the book’s events: The Boys of 36’ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OEb7rVADZso

- Karen