I remember watching Dorothy Hamill skate and win the Olympic gold medal. I remember her wedge haircut and Dick Button pointing out the "Hamill Camel" in commentary on televised events. It's only when I read this book that I realized I knew very little about her life outside skating. I'd seen her skate in some of the professional events and shows and even vaguely remember that she once owned Ice Capades, but outside of that . . .

She seems to have come to some understanding of her parents, particularly her mother, as she's matured. I was sorry to hear about the depression that occurred in both her parents's families (as well as in both her parents) and am sorry she has to deal with it herself. This book doesn't touch at all on her cancer journey (mentioned by another reviewer)--I believe that diagnosis happened after this book was published and I did go read a little about it online--but as a fellow breast cancer survivor, I was sorry to hear about that as well. It's difficult to imagine that she had to choose between an anti-estrogen drug and an antidepressant drug, particularly since she experienced side effects with the former and problems going off the latter. I was glad to read that she'd gotten very involved with her treatment options and done research on them to find what was right for her.

The book sort of flew along for me while reading but there were times I felt like events were glossed over without much detail being given or much insight into what she might have felt at the time. ( )

As a figure skating fan I found this autobiography of Dorothy Hamel to be very interesting. I never knew that Vera Wang had competed in figure skating in the 60s. I had not been aware that Dorothy had been married to Dean Martin's son. I also learned about the depression that runs through her family. ( )

The worst book I've read in years.

I grew up loving Hamill, wanting to be a competitive skater as a kid. So I gravitated toward this book quite naturally. The writing is attrocious and Hamill breaks the cardinal rule of memoir. It doesn't sound authentic, it's market spin. The book is as neat and tidy as her classic hairdo. All of it too perfect and not a bit of it is interesting.

Not one single nugget worth reading here. Skip it.

A fascinating portrait of someone I knew very little about. A good addition to any figure skating library. ( )