Second Serve

by Renee Richards, John Ames

Relates the trials and eventual transformation of Richard--a Yale tennis captain, surgeon, Lt. Commander in the navy, and a happily married man into Renee Richards, a woman with many accomplishments in her own right

Genres: Nonfiction, Memoir, Gender, Autobiography

373 pages, Hardcover

First published June 1, 1984

Reviews

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this book would give me some good tennis tips, such as how to improve my second serve. Only trouble is that Renee Richards, formerly Dick Raskind is a "leftie." Only kidding. I knew it wasn't a sports-coaching book though she did coach Martina Navratilova .

I found this book in my beloved father-in-law's library. My father-in-law was his classmate and tennis-teammate at Yale, and close lifelong friend. Dr. Richards has other deep and abiding ties to my family. The book is definitely "R" if not "X" rated. Reading parts of the book is tinged with the fascination of driving past a multi-car pileup. That being said, the only way the book could make its point was to be brutally straightforward.

Dr. Richards describes rather graphically her adventures with gender confusion, which were not aided by certain people in her family. Dick Raskind decided a fair amount of time that he would be best served by changing genders. He had gone through years of fruitless therapy, with doctors who basically tried to convince him to, in short form, forget about his problems. Despite those problems, he had risen to great accomplishments in both the medical and athletic fields as a male.

Forgetting about a deep-seated confusion, apparently, is easier said than done. Though the book ends in 1981, about six years after the gender-changing surgery, the book gives tantalizing hints of a better, more satisfying future. This book is definitely worth reading.

[A.L. Bellettiere · Rating 5 out of 5]

I usually don't click on 'finished' on books on here until I've had time to reflect and say what's on my mind for books I read. I thought it was a fantastic read, personally. I can see why people thought Renee was a narcissistic but when someone has a talent, you just want to do it right. Renee's book reminds me so much of Caitlyn Jenner's with what they both went through. And I don't remember if i'm recollecting a review I read of Renee's here or at Amazon but I think that her sister's abuse when they were younger and her own gender dysphoria didn't lead to Renee having an easy life. I can feel sad for Renee because whatever comments she made down the road about regrets only points to the possibility that she had an end goal that she envisioned that didn't necessarily go as planned, but that's life. I know I was getting into her story when she had two times that she stood in front of a building, on the way going for "surgery" and both times she couldn't do it. I applaud you Renee for making the pathway for us.

[Deb Baron · Rating 5 out of 5]

An extraordinary life, told with honesty and courage.

Second Serve has always been more than just a memoir to me — it’s family history. Renée Richards didn’t just change the game of tennis; she challenged what the world thought it understood about identity, truth, and integrity. Reading her words now, I hear both the public voice of a pioneer and the private strength of someone who refused to live a divided life.

What I love most is the quiet steadiness of it — no self-pity, no spectacle, just relentless honesty and a kind of grace that still feels radical today. It’s not an easy story, but it’s one that keeps teaching me what courage really looks like.

I couldn’t be prouder of our history; and everyone could call themselves lucky to be able to call you “Dad”. XXOO

[Virgowriter (Brad Windhauser) · Rating 4 out of 5]

The later chapters are more interesting. Earlier chapters are filled with the standard content that are now trans tropes.

[Kathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

a strange and eventful life for Richard, MD and pro tennis player, who became, via sex-change operation, Renee Richards, ended up coaching Martina Navratilova, then became to being surgeon. A quite disturbed family of origin

[Vikki · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the story of Dr. Richard Raskind, leading eye surgeon and tennis player and his transformation into a woman, Renee Richards. A good book.