What do you think?
Rate this book
Roller Derby: The History and All-Girl Revival of the Greatest Sport on Wheels
“Thrill-seeking women leading double lives—accountant by day, hell on wheels by night—will find a great introduction to derby history here, from its early days to the ’70s RollerJam heights to its new punk-queer aesthetic in the modern revival. There are also player vignettes, rule breakdowns, definitions of derby slang and lots of pictures to accompany Mabe’s semi-fanatical text.”— Curve
Scores of American women are leading double lives. By day they are librarians, financial analysts, bartenders, teachers, and even mothers; by night their athletic alter egos assume their authority with monikers such as Helen Wheels, Dirty Britches, Anna Mosity, and Assaultin’ Pepa. They lace up their skates, slide into racy racing uniforms, and adorn a full set of protective gear. One of America’s greatest sports is back—roller derby.
In Roller Derby, readers will encounter roller derby in its various incarnations, from the original Depression-era games through the days of Roller Jam to its current revival.
What started as a dance-a-thon-style test of endurance has evolved into a unique sport that exemplifies point-scoring, body-checking, speed, blood, punches, and miles and miles of personality and style. Punctuated throughout the book are derby stories from old-school and new-school girls, the process of selecting a derby name and style, the artistic element to logos and uniforms, so-gruesome-you-just-have-to-look injuries, what’s legal during a bout and—more importantly—what’s not, and much more.
Encircling the story of roller derby are vintage promo paraphernalia and histori-cal photographs, as well as stunning, full-color and black-and-white, modern-day shots of the women, the bouts, and the sport.
Scores of American women are leading double lives. By day they are librarians, financial analysts, bartenders, teachers, and even mothers; by night their athletic alter egos assume their authority with monikers such as Helen Wheels, Dirty Britches, Anna Mosity, and Assaultin’ Pepa. They lace up their skates, slide into racy racing uniforms, and adorn a full set of protective gear. One of America’s greatest sports is back—roller derby.
In Roller Derby, readers will encounter roller derby in its various incarnations, from the original Depression-era games through the days of Roller Jam to its current revival.
What started as a dance-a-thon-style test of endurance has evolved into a unique sport that exemplifies point-scoring, body-checking, speed, blood, punches, and miles and miles of personality and style. Punctuated throughout the book are derby stories from old-school and new-school girls, the process of selecting a derby name and style, the artistic element to logos and uniforms, so-gruesome-you-just-have-to-look injuries, what’s legal during a bout and—more importantly—what’s not, and much more.
Encircling the story of roller derby are vintage promo paraphernalia and histori-cal photographs, as well as stunning, full-color and black-and-white, modern-day shots of the women, the bouts, and the sport.
160 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 2007
2 people are currently reading
251 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
March 13, 2018
I signed up to start roller derby training in a couple of weeks, and having never seen a real life game, I figured I better learn more about the sport than what I know from TV shows and movies.
This book is a visual feast, with lots of pictures of skaters both past and present, advertisements, and stills from movies and shows. It's got a great base of information about the history of the sport, the resurgence in Austin, and the people who play it.
It loses a star because it appears the rules may be outdated - this might be because the regional rules are different, or because the rules have evolved since this book was published in 2007. Regardless, some of the game play descriptions don't match what's currently happening, at least in the Dallas area.
I'm almost done with Down and Derby, which I find has a lot more useful information for someone who wants to actually play the sport. That being said, Roller Derby is still a super fun read and a beautiful book overall.
This book is a visual feast, with lots of pictures of skaters both past and present, advertisements, and stills from movies and shows. It's got a great base of information about the history of the sport, the resurgence in Austin, and the people who play it.
It loses a star because it appears the rules may be outdated - this might be because the regional rules are different, or because the rules have evolved since this book was published in 2007. Regardless, some of the game play descriptions don't match what's currently happening, at least in the Dallas area.
I'm almost done with Down and Derby, which I find has a lot more useful information for someone who wants to actually play the sport. That being said, Roller Derby is still a super fun read and a beautiful book overall.
September 23, 2007
Earlier this year Clovis and I were invited by a friend to see his girlfriend jam in the newly-formed Hot Metal Hellions, a local roller derby team. This was a new experience for us; we were surprisingly intrigued by it and found ourselves at the rest of the jams of the season. But we had questions - are they really supposed to skate that slowly? aren't they supposed to be knocking each other down? isn't this crappy floor to be a track? I took it upon myself to try to become more acquainted with the sport, without actually putting myself on the line (although believe me, the idea of joining has crossed my mind more than once.)
It seems our library has a shortage of books regarding the history of roller derby. This DIY-dripping girl-power bling-bling book by Catherine "Jayne Manslaughter" Mabe was the best I could find. It's a recent publication and I wonder in many ways if that accounts for the repetitive nature of the rules of the game, or the rapid-fire glossing over of the initial history of the sport. Granted the subtitle is "The History and All-Girl Revival of the Greatest Sport on Wheels", but I was hoping there would be more history and the spin would be a little more interesting than a breezy (here I grossly paraphrase), "In the beginning the teams were co-ed but now they're not, yay girls."
The entire collection was a little too heavy on the girl-power for me. I believe there is a history here that is fascinating - what I could gather is it started around the Great Depression when entertainment was of the highest value, it was co-ed, and no one was afraid of knocking someone down or getting knocked down in turn. And they could skate.
The revival in early 2000 began in Austin, TX (whoda thunk it?) and that seems to be the important factor of this book. I want to know more than two pages (mostly photos) the Demon of the Derby, Ann Calvello (1929-2006) who was dying her hair purple and sporting tattoos in 1947 and being everything a lady ain't.
The glimmer of hope comes in the very end of the book in which there are references. There are at least four other books regarding roller derby, some of which seem promising for showing me the real history and not just being a literary (I use that term loosely) cheerleader.
It seems our library has a shortage of books regarding the history of roller derby. This DIY-dripping girl-power bling-bling book by Catherine "Jayne Manslaughter" Mabe was the best I could find. It's a recent publication and I wonder in many ways if that accounts for the repetitive nature of the rules of the game, or the rapid-fire glossing over of the initial history of the sport. Granted the subtitle is "The History and All-Girl Revival of the Greatest Sport on Wheels", but I was hoping there would be more history and the spin would be a little more interesting than a breezy (here I grossly paraphrase), "In the beginning the teams were co-ed but now they're not, yay girls."
The entire collection was a little too heavy on the girl-power for me. I believe there is a history here that is fascinating - what I could gather is it started around the Great Depression when entertainment was of the highest value, it was co-ed, and no one was afraid of knocking someone down or getting knocked down in turn. And they could skate.
The revival in early 2000 began in Austin, TX (whoda thunk it?) and that seems to be the important factor of this book. I want to know more than two pages (mostly photos) the Demon of the Derby, Ann Calvello (1929-2006) who was dying her hair purple and sporting tattoos in 1947 and being everything a lady ain't.
The glimmer of hope comes in the very end of the book in which there are references. There are at least four other books regarding roller derby, some of which seem promising for showing me the real history and not just being a literary (I use that term loosely) cheerleader.
March 11, 2013
Nicely produced colorful book. Good information on the current (2007) state of the sport. Written almost entirely from the point of view of female participants. I was impressed by the enthusiasm shown by the author and her fellow derby-ites, many of whom not only are mentioned but (impressively) also have commented on Goodreads.
But I'm looking at this from the point of view of an old guy who used to watch games on KTVU (San Francisco) in the "golden days". I'd have liked to see more mention of such legends as George "Run Run" Jones, Elmer "Elbows" Anderson, Bert Wall, Dave Pound, Charlie O'Connell and Annis "Red" Jensen in addition to the notes in the book on Midge "Toughie" Brasuhn, Joan Weston and my all time fave, Ann Calvello. But it may have been hard to collect such detail in the rarified atmosphere of the 21st century. Most of these pioneers are long gone and their ties to the sport were always somewhat ephemeral anyway.
But I'm looking at this from the point of view of an old guy who used to watch games on KTVU (San Francisco) in the "golden days". I'd have liked to see more mention of such legends as George "Run Run" Jones, Elmer "Elbows" Anderson, Bert Wall, Dave Pound, Charlie O'Connell and Annis "Red" Jensen in addition to the notes in the book on Midge "Toughie" Brasuhn, Joan Weston and my all time fave, Ann Calvello. But it may have been hard to collect such detail in the rarified atmosphere of the 21st century. Most of these pioneers are long gone and their ties to the sport were always somewhat ephemeral anyway.
April 1, 2018
I would have given the book a lot more stars if it weren't for the layout of the book. So many of the pages are black ink on a dark blue background, making it nearly impossible to read the text. Also, there are many roller derby stars highlighted in the text, but the layout does not indicate when the actual narrative is continuing or if it is one of these inset pieces.
November 29, 2020
This is a delightful look at the history and present state of Roller Derby. My only complaint is that there are a few pages that are hard to read because the background is very dark and the black ink doesn't show up very well. (It's still readable, but I had to put it IN the light to read those pages.)
January 27, 2008
My parents gave me this book for Christmas because I started doing roller derby this past summer and it has quickly become a major interest of mine. The best part of the book is probably the history of derby past. It does a decent job of explaining derby today, but it seems to skip around between banked track and flat track derby, which might confuse some. It seems that the target reader for this book is someone with a general interest in derby rather than a derby girl (even a rookie), coach, ref, etc. The explanation of the rules straddles the fence between a detailed list and an attempt at an overview...for a short little informative book, it is a bit monotonous in that area. This book is about derby girls and written by a derby girl, which is cool...however, reading it taught me two things: Anyone can write a book, which I think is rad. And...Not everyone can write a book, haha. It's not very well written in terms of linguistics. I often got the impression that the author didn't feel comfortable with some of the wording or sentence structure. It seemed forced and unnatural as if, well, she wasn't really a writer. Hate to say it, but it's the truth. She also laid it on a little thick with the whole feminism and empowerment bit. Really, she came across as more of a cheerleader than an informer in this book. Still, I found the book charming...it had it's moments and there are a lot of cool pictures.
March 16, 2008
Sure it's short, but it definitely packs a punch. It would make a great "baby's first derby book". I don't mean to say that it's a pop up (some great pictures and art throughout, though) or childish, just that it's the perfect introduction to the sport, especially for derby skaters themselves. I honestly wish that every new skater could receive a copy of this as soon as they join their league to get both the history of the game, and a glimpse of what they're becoming a part of.
It tells the tales of the original roller derby's inception, rise and then downfall, and gives proper attention and credit to the legends of the sport. The chapters on the modern-day derby revival are more or less an overview of the current climate in the sport and lifestyle. There's even a page of terms for the newbies. Though brief, it gets what needs to be said said. Rollergirl covers most of what Roller Derby breezes over, and vise versa, and together they make for a pretty comprehensive primer for any roller derby fan or participant. With any luck there will be either another chapter or expanded edition in the years to come!
It tells the tales of the original roller derby's inception, rise and then downfall, and gives proper attention and credit to the legends of the sport. The chapters on the modern-day derby revival are more or less an overview of the current climate in the sport and lifestyle. There's even a page of terms for the newbies. Though brief, it gets what needs to be said said. Rollergirl covers most of what Roller Derby breezes over, and vise versa, and together they make for a pretty comprehensive primer for any roller derby fan or participant. With any luck there will be either another chapter or expanded edition in the years to come!
February 28, 2014
A fairly decent book, both in content and design. However, with each passing day the facts of modern roller derby evolve beyond the roots of its nascent revival years, thus whole sections of this are now history more than the derby primer it was intended to be. It features a fairly well-developed account of historic roller derby, although lacking sources, and expansively white-washing the fact—both in text and in photographs—that there was always a male and female component. And the captions throughout are somewhat weak.
That being said that it was a solid book when first published. It should never be reprinted without extensive revision—either to update it, or frame it in a historical context—but if read with the right understanding of context, it's a quality work.
Given that it is currently available as an ebook, it's a shame that it hasn't been updated with a foreword at least.
That being said that it was a solid book when first published. It should never be reprinted without extensive revision—either to update it, or frame it in a historical context—but if read with the right understanding of context, it's a quality work.
Given that it is currently available as an ebook, it's a shame that it hasn't been updated with a foreword at least.
June 1, 2012
I started reading this book to get pumped before joining my local derby league. At that time I was the perfect audience: a non-player who wanted to find out more about the history of the sport and inner-workings of modern roller derby. After training for a couple months, I went back to finish the book and the contents reinforced what I had already learned about comradery, league operations and gameplay. Still, the photos are great and the timeline through the 20th and 21st century is thorough. Besides, someone had to immortalize this awesome sport in a book!
August 22, 2008
It is a quick informative read for any roller derby fan, or even someone just interested in learning about this new sport sweeping the nation. If you are a rollergirl, you will love this little book, for the information and the pictures, it confirms the fact that you are a part of something unique.
July 20, 2009
This book is awesome. Especially the part on page 93 where they talk about me.
This is a great coffee table, roller derby 101 book. Gorgeous photographs, simple explanations, and interesting historical details. I highly recommend this to anyone, but especially everyone who sees Whip It or any other fictional depiction of roller derby and wants to know what the real thing is like.
This is a great coffee table, roller derby 101 book. Gorgeous photographs, simple explanations, and interesting historical details. I highly recommend this to anyone, but especially everyone who sees Whip It or any other fictional depiction of roller derby and wants to know what the real thing is like.
February 22, 2011
I read this book before I joined the Roller Derby and thought it was pretty good. It does a great job of giving you all the basics about derby: the history, rules, etc. It doesn't ever really get into much detail though. It would be a good read for someone interested in the derby or thinking about joining the derby.
Read
January 20, 2008A bit light on the contemporary revival, which hasn't been going on for that long, but a good primer on the game's boom-and-bust history. Its current notables includes one woman who put off law school for derby! Highly stylized, very athletic camp, and great fun!
August 28, 2009
The history is very interesting -I had no idea about any of this until a short time ago. Talk about sheltered... Of course, I think I'll still be confused at the next bout I attend, but I'll have a better grasp of the culture, and of the rules.
February 9, 2010
A good consise overview of the history of roller derby and how it got to where it is today. Solid athleticism without dramatics. As a skater I really enjoyed the optimism portrayed throughout regarding the potential for our brothers and sisters on the track.
February 7, 2017
Relied too much on the "dual personality" trope AND needed a better editor. Flare/flair errors as well as others. Formatting choppy with interruptions in the copy.
Also, by now out of date regarding technical aspects of the sport.
Also, by now out of date regarding technical aspects of the sport.
January 27, 2008
More to it than short skirts and bruises.
Read
April 15, 2008Jill, the WFTDA nationals will be here in November.
http://wftda.com/
Should we expect to see you then?
http://wftda.com/
Should we expect to see you then?
Read
February 24, 2009Hard to rate this one. You have to want to know about the sport - if you do, then I give it a 5. If you are just looking for a curious read, maybe a 3.
October 1, 2010
I mainly skimmed. Didn't really have a whole lot of time to read it at that moment.
February 14, 2015
Interesting look at the history of roller derby, as well as the rules. It also spotlights some of the current derby girls.
August 9, 2015
My picture is on page 116!!!
February 24, 2010
I need to do Roller Derby. Just that pesky school in the way, for now...
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews