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The Girls: An All-American Town, a Predatory Doctor, and the Untold Story of the Gymnasts Who Brought Him Down
The inside story of how serial predator Larry Nassar got away with abusing hundreds of gymnasts for decades--and how a team of brave women banded together to bring him down.
We think of Larry Nassar as the despicable sexual predator of Olympic gymnasts--but there is an astonishing, untold story. For decades, in a small-town gym in Michigan, he honed his manipulations on generations of aspiring gymnasts: kids from the neighborhood, girls with hopes of a college scholarship, athletes and parents with a dream. In The Girls, these brave women for the first time describe Nassar's increasingly bold predations through the years, recount their warning calls unheeded, and demonstrate their resiliency in the face of a nightmare.
The Girls is a profound exploration of trust, ambition, betrayal, and self-discovery. Award-winning journalist Abigail Pesta unveils this deeply reported narrative at a time when the nation is wrestling with the implications of the #MeToo movement. How do the women who grew up with Nassar reconcile the monster in the news with the man they once trusted? We learn that their answers to that wrenching question are as rich, insightful, and varied as the human experience itself.
We think of Larry Nassar as the despicable sexual predator of Olympic gymnasts--but there is an astonishing, untold story. For decades, in a small-town gym in Michigan, he honed his manipulations on generations of aspiring gymnasts: kids from the neighborhood, girls with hopes of a college scholarship, athletes and parents with a dream. In The Girls, these brave women for the first time describe Nassar's increasingly bold predations through the years, recount their warning calls unheeded, and demonstrate their resiliency in the face of a nightmare.
The Girls is a profound exploration of trust, ambition, betrayal, and self-discovery. Award-winning journalist Abigail Pesta unveils this deeply reported narrative at a time when the nation is wrestling with the implications of the #MeToo movement. How do the women who grew up with Nassar reconcile the monster in the news with the man they once trusted? We learn that their answers to that wrenching question are as rich, insightful, and varied as the human experience itself.
240 pages, Hardcover
First published August 6, 2019
168 people are currently reading
3445 people want to read
About the author
Abigail Pesta
2 books33 followersAbigail Pesta is an award-winning journalist and author who has lived and worked around the world, from New York to London to Hong Kong. She is the author of THE GIRLS, which the Library Journal said "may be the most important sports title of the year." In an episode based on the book, Dr. Phil called it "a courageous, courageous book." She is the coauthor of HOW DARE THE SUN RISE, which The New York Times called a "gut-wrenching, poetic memoir." The book was also named among the best of the year by the New York Public Library, the Chicago Public Library, and many others. Abby's investigative and feature reporting has been honored with National Headliner Awards, Exceptional Merit in Media Awards, Front Page Awards, New York Press Club Awards, and many others. She writes for major media outlets including The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, New York Magazine, Cosmopolitan, NBC News, Newsweek, Marie Claire, The Atlantic, and many others. Follow her on Twitter: @AbigailPesta.
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August 14, 2019
A powerful must-read.
Like the girls in this book, I was a Nassar patient and unknowing victim for 15 years of my life, beginning when I was 12 years old. I, too, was impressed and fooled by the treatment room walls covered with photos of Olympic gymnasts who had written notes like “We love you, Larry!” in metallic sharpie next to their smiling faces and shiny medals. My mind goes back to those photos—his trophies—whenever I think of the abuse I endured at Michigan State Sports Medicine. I was convinced that it was medical treatment, that it was helping me. Watching the victim impact statements in the early months of 2018 was so powerful, and reading this book triggered a lot of painful memories, but I know that it will help me heal.
Like the girls in this book, I was a Nassar patient and unknowing victim for 15 years of my life, beginning when I was 12 years old. I, too, was impressed and fooled by the treatment room walls covered with photos of Olympic gymnasts who had written notes like “We love you, Larry!” in metallic sharpie next to their smiling faces and shiny medals. My mind goes back to those photos—his trophies—whenever I think of the abuse I endured at Michigan State Sports Medicine. I was convinced that it was medical treatment, that it was helping me. Watching the victim impact statements in the early months of 2018 was so powerful, and reading this book triggered a lot of painful memories, but I know that it will help me heal.
September 21, 2019
Audiobook... read by Elizabeth Rogers
Larry Nassar: YOU F#CK#N ASSHOLE!!!!
There ... I had my say!!
I had no idea about the depths of this story - not to the extent we learn in this book.
A few things to know...
...The Audiobook-listener connection works!!! The ‘sleepy-drifty-mind-doesn’t happen. You’ll be present/very awake!
Warning:
The nightmare graphics we learn about Larry Creepy Nassar is disgusting.
There ‘are’ inappropriate sexual graphic descriptions....around ‘
the ‘treatment’.
The doctor put his f#ck#ng hands... where they didn’t belong.... to hundreds of girls for thirty years.
...The writing itself definitely has flaws ...
The biggest obvious one was that the author kept bringing up topics - then telling us “we will get to it later”.
It’s was irritating- and ridiculously annoying.
However, the book succeeds where it matters most.
It educates - well - about how a f#ck#ng predator grooms his girls.
The entire story is just soooo baffling.
How in the hell did one man get away with abusing HUNDREDS of girls for thirty years? In some cases the mother was in the same room. How in the heck could that possibly happen? It’s a shocking story - really shocking!!
But not because the mother was to be blamed.
Many of gymnasts even shared with each other about the doctor’s ‘treatments’.
The girls/ gymnasts didn’t like it - but they felt if the team doctor was doing it to all of them... then it was normal.
...If ever an adult wondered the different ways a child ‘thinks’ compared to an adult ...
Abigail Pesta gets this point across brilliantly.
The most powerful scene comes at the end... between the courtroom judge and 200 girls.
Hallelujah!!!
Kudos to the judge... and to the girls who stepped forward.
The other place were this book succeeds is in teaching young girls how to spot red flags and have a voice.
An important read for parents- coaches -and supporting officials-
5 stars...not because it’s not with some writing flaws - but because it powerfully teaches - and offers new insights for everyone!!!!
Absolutely these women were courageous!!!!!
Larry Nassar: YOU F#CK#N ASSHOLE!!!!
There ... I had my say!!
I had no idea about the depths of this story - not to the extent we learn in this book.
A few things to know...
...The Audiobook-listener connection works!!! The ‘sleepy-drifty-mind-doesn’t happen. You’ll be present/very awake!
Warning:
The nightmare graphics we learn about Larry Creepy Nassar is disgusting.
There ‘are’ inappropriate sexual graphic descriptions....around ‘
the ‘treatment’.
The doctor put his f#ck#ng hands... where they didn’t belong.... to hundreds of girls for thirty years.
...The writing itself definitely has flaws ...
The biggest obvious one was that the author kept bringing up topics - then telling us “we will get to it later”.
It’s was irritating- and ridiculously annoying.
However, the book succeeds where it matters most.
It educates - well - about how a f#ck#ng predator grooms his girls.
The entire story is just soooo baffling.
How in the hell did one man get away with abusing HUNDREDS of girls for thirty years? In some cases the mother was in the same room. How in the heck could that possibly happen? It’s a shocking story - really shocking!!
But not because the mother was to be blamed.
Many of gymnasts even shared with each other about the doctor’s ‘treatments’.
The girls/ gymnasts didn’t like it - but they felt if the team doctor was doing it to all of them... then it was normal.
...If ever an adult wondered the different ways a child ‘thinks’ compared to an adult ...
Abigail Pesta gets this point across brilliantly.
The most powerful scene comes at the end... between the courtroom judge and 200 girls.
Hallelujah!!!
Kudos to the judge... and to the girls who stepped forward.
The other place were this book succeeds is in teaching young girls how to spot red flags and have a voice.
An important read for parents- coaches -and supporting officials-
5 stars...not because it’s not with some writing flaws - but because it powerfully teaches - and offers new insights for everyone!!!!
Absolutely these women were courageous!!!!!
August 19, 2019
One of the main benefits (solely for rapists and sexual abusers of any stripe) of living in a rape culture is the phenomenon which enables abusers to convince their victims that what is being perpetrated upon their person is not a crime or abuse but is, in fact, beneficial to them in some way. It helps when these victims are children, and it is especially effective when the abusers have the support of the community, including the victims’ parents.
As ludicrous as this sounds, this actually happens in a rape culture. It is precisely what helped Larry Nassar, the “gymnastics doctor”, get away with some of the most vile sexual abuse perpetrated on hundreds of young girls for decades. Despite the protests and complaints of dozens of young girls over the years, Nassar blithely kept molesting them, often escalating his abuse.
Sadly, the protests and complaints would fall on disbelieving ears. Coaches, police officers, parents: few, if any, did anything about it. After all, Nassar was a renowned doctor. People loved him. He also had the strongest support from his employers, USA Gymnastics and Michigan State University, two organizations that clearly held winning and image as more important than the welfare and safety of the young children under their tutelage.
Abigail Pesta’s “The Girls: An All-American Town, a Predatory Doctor, and the Untold Story of the Gymnasts Who Brought Him Down” helps to answer the question of how someone like Nassar could have gotten away with what he did for so long. Interviewing hundreds of victims, victims’ parents, friends, police officers, coaches, and community members, Pesta’s in-depth reportage strikes at the heart of why and how monsters like Nassar exist: so many people trusted, respected, and liked him, the thought that he could be doing something so horrible was simply antithetical to what they knew (or thought they knew) about him.
Nassar truly believed (or at least rationalized) that what he was doing to the girls was not wrong; was, in fact, a medical procedure that was supposed to help them. He threw around medical jargon, presented Powerpoints, and showed reams of indecipherable data to back him up, and very few people questioned any of it because, well, doctor.
If even one parent, police officer, or coach had taken the initiative to simply get a second opinion or do a little research, they would have found that Nassar was full of shit, but nobody---in the 30-plus years that Nassar was molesting girls---did any of that.
Nassar succeeded in his monstrous reign because he was able to “groom” the parents, his co-workers, his employers, and the victims with an ingratiating personality. He was a sycophant to his coaches: if they wanted a gymnast to keep performing, despite disastrous injuries, Nassar okayed them. To gain the trust of parents, he often provided his medical “services” free of charge. Sometimes he would see the girls after hours in his own home.
The most horrifying thing about many of the accounts as told to Pesta was that Nassar would brazenly molest the girls while the parents were in the room with him! How the hell was this possible? you might ask.
More often than not, the girls were too embarrassed to say anything. They assumed, as did their parents, that Nassar was a doctor and knew what he was doing. Nassar was also quite good at making small talk and carrying on conversations while performing the “procedure”, thereby diverting attention from the fact that he was actually sexually molesting the girls right in front of the parents.
When Nassar was finally arrested and put on trial, the entire nation finally heard what the girls had to say. In an unprecedented decision by the judge, Nassar was forced to listen to hours, and days, of his victims expressing their feelings of pain, outrage, disgust, sadness, and, ultimately, liberation from the overwhelming shadow cast by Nassar’s vile legacy.
If Nassar did anything worthwhile, it was to consolidate the power and strength of these women to finally overcome their fears, embarrassment, and even misplaced guilt (sadly, many girls felt as if they were the bad guy for even thinking awful things about Nassar) and face the monster. Because of them, Nassar is now serving roughly 300 years of prison. His reign of terror is over.
Unfortunately, Nassar’s story points out a frightening blindspot in the minds of many people, an almost involuntary willingness to overlook questionable and disturbing accusations because the person being accused is simply “too nice” a guy or has “too spotless” a reputation.
Thankfully, the #MeToo Movement was spawned at about this time, finally “outing” long-ignored abusers such as Harvey Weinstein, Bill Cosby, Louis C.K., Jeffrey Epstein, and others. We’ve got a long way to go, unfortunately, as people like Bill Clinton and Donald Trump, despite their horrible histories regarding sexual abuse, continue to enjoy impunity.
As ludicrous as this sounds, this actually happens in a rape culture. It is precisely what helped Larry Nassar, the “gymnastics doctor”, get away with some of the most vile sexual abuse perpetrated on hundreds of young girls for decades. Despite the protests and complaints of dozens of young girls over the years, Nassar blithely kept molesting them, often escalating his abuse.
Sadly, the protests and complaints would fall on disbelieving ears. Coaches, police officers, parents: few, if any, did anything about it. After all, Nassar was a renowned doctor. People loved him. He also had the strongest support from his employers, USA Gymnastics and Michigan State University, two organizations that clearly held winning and image as more important than the welfare and safety of the young children under their tutelage.
Abigail Pesta’s “The Girls: An All-American Town, a Predatory Doctor, and the Untold Story of the Gymnasts Who Brought Him Down” helps to answer the question of how someone like Nassar could have gotten away with what he did for so long. Interviewing hundreds of victims, victims’ parents, friends, police officers, coaches, and community members, Pesta’s in-depth reportage strikes at the heart of why and how monsters like Nassar exist: so many people trusted, respected, and liked him, the thought that he could be doing something so horrible was simply antithetical to what they knew (or thought they knew) about him.
Nassar truly believed (or at least rationalized) that what he was doing to the girls was not wrong; was, in fact, a medical procedure that was supposed to help them. He threw around medical jargon, presented Powerpoints, and showed reams of indecipherable data to back him up, and very few people questioned any of it because, well, doctor.
If even one parent, police officer, or coach had taken the initiative to simply get a second opinion or do a little research, they would have found that Nassar was full of shit, but nobody---in the 30-plus years that Nassar was molesting girls---did any of that.
Nassar succeeded in his monstrous reign because he was able to “groom” the parents, his co-workers, his employers, and the victims with an ingratiating personality. He was a sycophant to his coaches: if they wanted a gymnast to keep performing, despite disastrous injuries, Nassar okayed them. To gain the trust of parents, he often provided his medical “services” free of charge. Sometimes he would see the girls after hours in his own home.
The most horrifying thing about many of the accounts as told to Pesta was that Nassar would brazenly molest the girls while the parents were in the room with him! How the hell was this possible? you might ask.
More often than not, the girls were too embarrassed to say anything. They assumed, as did their parents, that Nassar was a doctor and knew what he was doing. Nassar was also quite good at making small talk and carrying on conversations while performing the “procedure”, thereby diverting attention from the fact that he was actually sexually molesting the girls right in front of the parents.
When Nassar was finally arrested and put on trial, the entire nation finally heard what the girls had to say. In an unprecedented decision by the judge, Nassar was forced to listen to hours, and days, of his victims expressing their feelings of pain, outrage, disgust, sadness, and, ultimately, liberation from the overwhelming shadow cast by Nassar’s vile legacy.
If Nassar did anything worthwhile, it was to consolidate the power and strength of these women to finally overcome their fears, embarrassment, and even misplaced guilt (sadly, many girls felt as if they were the bad guy for even thinking awful things about Nassar) and face the monster. Because of them, Nassar is now serving roughly 300 years of prison. His reign of terror is over.
Unfortunately, Nassar’s story points out a frightening blindspot in the minds of many people, an almost involuntary willingness to overlook questionable and disturbing accusations because the person being accused is simply “too nice” a guy or has “too spotless” a reputation.
Thankfully, the #MeToo Movement was spawned at about this time, finally “outing” long-ignored abusers such as Harvey Weinstein, Bill Cosby, Louis C.K., Jeffrey Epstein, and others. We’ve got a long way to go, unfortunately, as people like Bill Clinton and Donald Trump, despite their horrible histories regarding sexual abuse, continue to enjoy impunity.
August 21, 2019
I don’t know where to start - - having grown up in this area of the country, it could have easily been me. I can attest to how safe I felt growing up in the Lansing area. I spent undergrad and law school years at MSU. And to not know this was going on gives me the absolute chills. I went to high school with one of these courageous women but had no idea that she was going through this personal hell. Larissa, you are strong and smart and a wonderful person. You and the rest of your sister survivors did not deserve the abuse and the neglect of people in authority positions when you tried to report it. I hope above all hopes that the community and the world can learn lessons from this that help make the world a safer and better place for future generations.
August 24, 2019
Abigail Pesta worked with these girls and women to give them a voice, and they placed their full trust in her. The stories follow the experiences of survivors through many years, helping the reader to understand the complexities of abuse and the many different routes to recovery. The stories also reveal the red flags that should alert parents and anyone who works with children to the presence of a predator.
August 26, 2019
Couldn't put down. Wanted to punch something after reading these accounts.
August 9, 2019
I've been following Abigail Pesta for years now; she writes for magazines about women's rights, people fighting back against injustice, and many inspiring topics. So I was really excited to read her book about the Larry Nassar scandal, and this book did not disappoint! Pesta writes about the many, many young girls, mostly aspiring gymnasts, who were abused by Nassar over the years. And she also gives you an amazing sense of how the system failed these girls, and how the world of gymnastics made them easy prey for this horrible person. Pesta interviewed about 25 different survivors, not just the famous ones but the people who get overlooked by the press, the many regular people who also fell victims to the predator. Her beautiful prose tells you what it was like to be in the world of gymnastics and lose your sense of personal space and even, sometimes, sense of self-worth. And she also inspires you with the story of how they eventually brought down this evil man and sent him to prison. Its an inspiring story but also a disturbing view of the world of sports. But its also a must-read for anyone who wants to understand the scandal, and an amazing tale of strength and courage. Highly recommended!
August 22, 2019
Summer Reading Challenge 20/27
Stranger than fiction - “Read a nonfiction book published this year.”
Just going to give a quick review even though I feel like I could write a whole essay on this book. I don’t think I have quite the eloquence to do that so I’ll just say, excellent book. It is so well written even though it is an absolutely horrendous story. It made me so angry but also so proud of the women who came forward and fought to take this terrible man down. Definitely worth the read.
Stranger than fiction - “Read a nonfiction book published this year.”
Just going to give a quick review even though I feel like I could write a whole essay on this book. I don’t think I have quite the eloquence to do that so I’ll just say, excellent book. It is so well written even though it is an absolutely horrendous story. It made me so angry but also so proud of the women who came forward and fought to take this terrible man down. Definitely worth the read.
August 21, 2019
An excellent book about the horrendous abuse Larry Nassar perpetrated on American women gymnasts and other elite athletes. Some of the details are graphic, but serve to highlight the depths and depravity of his abuse. Recommended reading if you want to learn how these brave women overcame their fears and sent this monster to prison—for life.
August 30, 2019
Ugh. Finished this and now I can breathe again.
Unbelievable that this abuse went on for DECADES to hundreds of girls.
It went unnoticed and multiple times IGNORED.
A hard read but I am amazed by the resiliency of the human spirit.
Unbelievable that this abuse went on for DECADES to hundreds of girls.
It went unnoticed and multiple times IGNORED.
A hard read but I am amazed by the resiliency of the human spirit.
August 28, 2019
This is such an important but horrifying read.
September 2, 2019
30 years. Over 200 testified in victim impact statements in court. 499 total victims. Larry Nassar left quite a trail. 25 victims have helped in the writing of this book. So when I say the book was repetitive, it is in no way a reflection on the author. It is sadly repetitive with different victims, different lives over 30 long years at different athletics institutions. Unforgivable.
September 5, 2019
A must read for everybody. I can't tell you how many times I wanted to punch something while reading this book. The number of times girls were ignored or silenced when they spoke up is unreal and made me furious. We need to all learn more about how this happened so that we don't let it happen again.
August 17, 2019
Horrible story of Larry Nassar and just some of the girls he abused while serving as a volunteer doctor for USA Gymnastics and a Michigan university.
August 23, 2019
Beautifully written. Couldn't put it down. I hope every parent and child reads this book.
August 23, 2019
‘The Girls” is the story of Larry Nasser, the Olympic gymnast predator, and his downfall at the hands of his victims. I always find myself attracted to books like this just when I’m just starting to regain my belief in humankind. It covers the story of the ‘events’ without going into any psychological depth, which is just about right, but I was left wondering not only how someone could do this, which is the obvious first response, but also how come there were so many people over so many years who were not listening to the girls or possibly even covering for him. I was also struck by the thought of why so many young girls are pressed into the world of high level gymnastics when, to paraphrase one of the gymnasts in the book, for every girl who makes it to the top level, ten others are crushed and destroyed. Just a thought!
October 21, 2019
A story that needed telling but unfortunately this writer did not do it justice. The writing was very repetitive and did not flow well. I listened to the talking book and there were times that, due to the way it was written, it was hard to tell which person she was talking about as the author didn't refer to the victim by name after they were first mentioned. Yet, conversely, there were other times that a person was reintroduced the same way multiple times - the first victim, the last victim, the local lawyer... If I had to hear "But we'll get to that later when we return to her story." again...!
Hopefully someone else will write about what happened in a more meaningful, and insightful way and with a better editor.
Hopefully someone else will write about what happened in a more meaningful, and insightful way and with a better editor.
August 27, 2019
Powerful book, very well written and engaging. Highly recommend to all athletes and families.
September 23, 2019
This is such a well written and powerful book. I couldn't put it down. I had no idea about what really happened here until I read these women's stories. Wow. This guy was diabolical, but the women ultimately WON.
October 6, 2019
Extremely difficult subject matter, but such an important read. If you've followed the Nassar case in any capacity and ever found yourself wondering how his abuse spanned decades unnoticed and unchallenged, I urge you to read this book so you will understand. From the isolating and abusive culture of elite gymnastics itself, to this monster's mastered manipulation and grooming techniques that earned him the trust of nearly all of his victims and their coaches and families even after the allegations began to come out, to the colossal failure of the adults and institutions who enabled this predator - this story is a tragedy on so many levels but these voices that were silenced far too long deserve to be heard.
September 25, 2019
This book was hard, emotional, and terrifying, but it needs to be read. I don't know how to adequately review it except to say that it takes a great amount of bravery for these women and girls to stand up and share what they have. I'm proud of these survivors.
October 25, 2019
This is a book about what the gymnasts went through in regards to their trainers and also Larry Nasser. It shows the underbelly of what most Americans would consider to be a clean sport. The outside world may think that the girls are young and so cute but so did predators who used that to the predator's advantage!
I was appalled by the lack of help the girls' received when they told their stories to the people they thought would protect them--the coaches, MSU, the police department, all failed these girls miserably and allowed Larry Nasser to continue for decades!
I am so very proud of the young women who stood up to all of them and said that they were not going to fail the new gymnasts coming into the sport! Good for them! Good for them growing up into the mature women they are and speaking out about an unspeakable abomination that was done to them in the guise of "medical treatment".
I think that this book should be required reading of anyone who loves their children. It describes how the abuser was allowed to continue because he got away with one thing after another and no one ever told him no. The girls who told him were told that they were misunderstanding the medical procedure he was doing to them. It also shows how a predator can groom and mislead the children as well as the parents as he sexually assaults them.
I can't find the place where one of the survivors told Larry that the children that he hurt grew up to be young women who would be the death of him (or something like that) because they finally realized what had happened to them.
I think that the institutions (including MSU, the Olympic Gynmastics, and Gymnastics USA as well as the coaches, etc should be held liable and punished for allowing these men to abuse these little girls for decades!
It's now 2019 and still some of the players have not been brought to trial. I hope when they do, they are convicted and made to do jail time and pay reparations to the girls they harmed. I believe that MSU should be liable for their mental health expenses also--for the rest of their lives if that is what it takes and that they should be banned from those sports for years like Penn State was for the abuse that Sandusky heaped on the children and everyone turned a blind eye.
I was appalled by the lack of help the girls' received when they told their stories to the people they thought would protect them--the coaches, MSU, the police department, all failed these girls miserably and allowed Larry Nasser to continue for decades!
I am so very proud of the young women who stood up to all of them and said that they were not going to fail the new gymnasts coming into the sport! Good for them! Good for them growing up into the mature women they are and speaking out about an unspeakable abomination that was done to them in the guise of "medical treatment".
I think that this book should be required reading of anyone who loves their children. It describes how the abuser was allowed to continue because he got away with one thing after another and no one ever told him no. The girls who told him were told that they were misunderstanding the medical procedure he was doing to them. It also shows how a predator can groom and mislead the children as well as the parents as he sexually assaults them.
I can't find the place where one of the survivors told Larry that the children that he hurt grew up to be young women who would be the death of him (or something like that) because they finally realized what had happened to them.
I think that the institutions (including MSU, the Olympic Gynmastics, and Gymnastics USA as well as the coaches, etc should be held liable and punished for allowing these men to abuse these little girls for decades!
It's now 2019 and still some of the players have not been brought to trial. I hope when they do, they are convicted and made to do jail time and pay reparations to the girls they harmed. I believe that MSU should be liable for their mental health expenses also--for the rest of their lives if that is what it takes and that they should be banned from those sports for years like Penn State was for the abuse that Sandusky heaped on the children and everyone turned a blind eye.
December 21, 2019
Five stars for the stories, two stars for the writing
I chose this book, and continued to read this book, because of the survivors’ stories. Although I had followed the hearings, being able to read the testimonials of so many girls, to see the pattern of abuse, to internalize the pain of being disbelieved, was powerful. The stories were repetitive, as they often were in real life, making it even more maddening that this abuse was allowed to continue for so long. I applaud everyone who has come forward to speak out against Nassar and USAG.
The writing, on the other hand, was atrocious. Perhaps it was only me, but I felt this book needed a better editor. There were a lot of unnecessary sentences. I felt the writer was trying to hit a page number. The “teasers” used to keep you reading to the next chapter were unnecessary; I kept reading because of the women. There were typos, which could have been forgiven if not for the overall irritation this book gave me due to its writing style. I should have been irritated by the forces that perpetuated this abuse, and I was, but I also found myself consistently irritated by the writing style. At times I wanted to quit the book altogether, but these women’s stories were too important to leave unread.
It’s important that this book was published, and these stories told. However, they deserved a better story teller, or editor, or something. The writing didn’t do them justice.
I chose this book, and continued to read this book, because of the survivors’ stories. Although I had followed the hearings, being able to read the testimonials of so many girls, to see the pattern of abuse, to internalize the pain of being disbelieved, was powerful. The stories were repetitive, as they often were in real life, making it even more maddening that this abuse was allowed to continue for so long. I applaud everyone who has come forward to speak out against Nassar and USAG.
The writing, on the other hand, was atrocious. Perhaps it was only me, but I felt this book needed a better editor. There were a lot of unnecessary sentences. I felt the writer was trying to hit a page number. The “teasers” used to keep you reading to the next chapter were unnecessary; I kept reading because of the women. There were typos, which could have been forgiven if not for the overall irritation this book gave me due to its writing style. I should have been irritated by the forces that perpetuated this abuse, and I was, but I also found myself consistently irritated by the writing style. At times I wanted to quit the book altogether, but these women’s stories were too important to leave unread.
It’s important that this book was published, and these stories told. However, they deserved a better story teller, or editor, or something. The writing didn’t do them justice.
December 12, 2019
Well Done, Ms. Pesta!
Fascinating detailed recounting of the wide-reaching damage done by Larry Nasser. Quick, definitely not easy or fun to read, but worth living through and standing with Nasser's victim. Not sure I'd EVER allow a daughter--or son--to take up gymnastics after reading this detailed account of the dynamics of predator behavior and its outrageous toll on the predator's victims.
Fascinating detailed recounting of the wide-reaching damage done by Larry Nasser. Quick, definitely not easy or fun to read, but worth living through and standing with Nasser's victim. Not sure I'd EVER allow a daughter--or son--to take up gymnastics after reading this detailed account of the dynamics of predator behavior and its outrageous toll on the predator's victims.
September 23, 2019
Very well-written story of how this predator evolved and how the girls he preyed on grew up and took him down. There are many voices in this book telling very personal stories, and the author guides you through them artfully, telling the story chronologically to create an engaging and insightful account. A must-read for parents, athletes, coaches, teachers, police and anyone who knows a kid!
November 13, 2019
Devastating the quantity of horrible episodes 1000s if not 10s of thousands. The powerful, successful, rich taking advantage of the vulnerable. Vulnerable in this case aspiring young gymnasts driven to succeed at all costs.
The many questions of how one could be so "successful" for more than 30 years, thanks for a peek into this Abigail Pesta.
The many questions of how one could be so "successful" for more than 30 years, thanks for a peek into this Abigail Pesta.
August 16, 2019
Shocking and not shocking at the same time. We need to teach children that it is alright to question adults, authorities, the famous and the powerful. I am sure there are still many Larrys out in the wild. Let's hope that this case serves as a wake-up call for the parents and authorities.
November 10, 2019
Very well-written, well-reported story of the women who ended Nassar's awful reign of abuse. The author does a good job of storytelling and reminding readers who the various people are as she revisits their stories throughout the book. Highly recommend.
November 10, 2019
Powerful must-read book. Beautifully written. Could not put it down.
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