A memoir of hope solo pdf

Out back we played Red Light! Green Light! Inside the house, my mother, a budding photographer, set up a darkroom to develop film, as well as a workout room where she practiced karate. I snuggled with my parents in their bed and watched TV.

The cozy kitchen was where we had family spaghetti dinners. But as with so much of my life, the truth is a little more complicated. Clutter—plastic toys, yard equipment, bikes, an old jalopy—filled up our side yard. The neighbors complained, so my parents were forced to put up a fence to hide all our crap. How did we all arrive there, in a tract house on Marshall Street in Richland, Washington?

My mother came for the same reason most people settled in Richland: because of the nuclear reactors. Richland, Washington, looks like a normal American town, with neat rows of streets along the banks of the Columbia River. But behind that unremarkable facade is a complex history, a town created in the dark shadows of the American dream.

They found what they were looking for in an arid stretch of emptiness two hundred miles southeast of Seattle. It had water, electricity, and not much else. The U. Workers were imported and housed in tent barracks, and later, in small tract houses in nearby Richland. Within a few months, the workforce swelled to 51,, and three nuclear reactors were producing the plutonium that, once shipped to Los Alamos, was used to build some of the first atomic bombs.

Most workers had no idea what they were helping develop. Residents had phony mailing addresses in Seattle, hung blackout curtains at night, and spoke in whispers inside their own homes. There were signs posted in public places: Careless Talk Costs Lives.

Old-timers tell stories that have been handed down over the years, of neighbors seen chatting in public before abruptly disappearing without so much as a good-bye. The secretive origins of Richland seem to have filtered down into the dusty riverbanks of the Columbia and infiltrated our ordinary lives. Ours was a patriotic place. The bomb dropped on Nagasaki, Japan, on August 9, , was filled with Hanford plutonium. Around most of the globe, that victory, manufactured on the banks of the Columbia River, is viewed as an apocalyptic moment for mankind.

But in my hometown, that incineration is still celebrated. Their oldest daughter, my aunt Kathy, lasted only a few weeks. She left Richland as soon as she turned eighteen. My mother, the second oldest at sixteen and about to start her senior year of high school, was so distraught about the move that she had tried to run away beforehand, concocting an adolescent fantasy of escaping with a boyfriend. But the plan only lasted a few hours—the boyfriend was interested in someone else.

My brother, Marcus, was a toddler at the time. Overwhelmed, my mother had no choice but to move in with her parents in Richland. My father followed after his release. Why should she? She is an Olympic gold medalist — more than once, and the greatest goal keeper in the world. In her autobiography, you, as the reader, gain an insight into what made Hope into the person she is today. When you think of star athletes, you think of fame, fortune maybe, and having a life where everyone looks up to you.

For Hope, the story did not go that way. She has had to face much adversity to get to the place she is today. Her books takes you through stories about her personal family life, some of which could be really hard to share with people. The stories are filled with emotion, and gives you a pretty good insight into the type of person she is, which does not include selfish.

But, the writing in this book was full of intelligence and class. Hope has faced many issues with her team and with the media, she explains how every one of those events came about. It will have you crying one minute, then laughing the next. I guarantee, if you ever had a negative opinion about Hope, your mind will instantly be changed after reading this emotion-filled memoir.

Beautifully written, and had me hooked from the very first page. Sep 09, Susanna rated it it was amazing Shelves: non-fiction , memoir , sports , books-i-own. I debated docking this a star for the occasional moments when Hope's perspective doesn't really allow her to accept other viewpoints or see the negatives of some of her own actions. But this book is a memoir- of course it's biased, of course Hope calls things exactly as she sees them. Every story has at least two sides, and Hope never claims to present more than one of them.

I feel the onus is on the reader to read her accounts of events with a critical eye. I was surprised by how moved I was r I debated docking this a star for the occasional moments when Hope's perspective doesn't really allow her to accept other viewpoints or see the negatives of some of her own actions.

I was surprised by how moved I was reading Hope's story. She has always seemed very tough and impermeable, and it was fascinating and sad to read about her internal struggles and difficult childhood.

I've always had a lot of respect for her as an athlete, and I now respect her much more as a person for making it through all of that intact. A lot of what Hope had to say about women's soccer and the national team was depressing, particularly regarding the World Cup incident. If all of what she says is true, I can't quite look at some former players the same way. Regardless, it seems clear that the lineup decision and the aftermath of Hope's interview were handled badly by all, particularly Greg Ryan.

Hope pulls no punches and isn't afraid to name names or point fingers where she feels they are deserved. I'd suggest this to anyone who likes reading contemporary memoirs. Even for those who don't particularly care about soccer, or sports at all, this is a fascinating read. Hope and co-author Ann Killion write in a very direct style that nevertheless manages to get across a great deal of emotion.

You can really feel Hope's pain and anger at being ostracized by her teammates. It's not quite a scathing expose, but there is still plenty of drama, too. Oct 18, Regi Smith rated it it was amazing. I was blown away by the honesty and openness of this book. I have always seen Hope Solo as a wonderful athlete, but I truly see her as an amazing woman. I am glad my daughters see her as a role model. Oct 28, Katrina rated it it was ok Shelves: non-fiction. After reading this book, I am not sure if I am a fan of hers anymore.

Yes I admire her ability to rise up and become one of the greatest goalies ever. She makes it seem as if her family was the worst and she had the worse childhood.

She had an entire community rally behind her to make sure her dreams came true. The book was a little boring and read like a gossip magazine. There wasn't a whole lot of substance. Yes we understand your life was rough, but the fact that she stated that 50 thousand t After reading this book, I am not sure if I am a fan of hers anymore.

Yes we understand your life was rough, but the fact that she stated that 50 thousand times in the book pissed me off. Also no one needs to know who you have dated so stop telling the reader about the amount of men you have dated. Ugh it was a frustrating read. It got good around the middle, but only because she trash talked her old teammates. Although what they did to her seemed incredibly petty and drawn out for no reason.

SO yeah not my favorite book, but I am glad I read it. Aug 19, Brittany McLaughlin rated it it was ok Shelves: biographies. A good deal of Hope Solo's identity is an outspoken competitor and fierce athlete. She is definitively one of the greatest living athltes of any gender alive today. Few people will be able to relate to more than just tiny commonalities shared with Solo's story because it is a pretty mad-whack one to hear and tell. But there is plenty to admire and even aspire to as far as personal strength and character-building is concerned.

Astonishingly, Hope Solo has managed to deliver her memoir about her A good deal of Hope Solo's identity is an outspoken competitor and fierce athlete. Astonishingly, Hope Solo has managed to deliver her memoir about her crazy life in a realistic yes-I-recognize-how-crazy-this-sounds manner while still coming out the other side a deeper public figure and solidly-grounded personality.

Though sometimes reading like a middle-school diary as excerpts of her diary are in fact included and often revealing its dual-purpose of public venting of past injuries, the writing is crisp enough and the dwelling short enough to make reading this memoir an engaging conversation throughout. Also, the reader gets to witness authentic personal growth from her youth to young adult to established professional veteran, in the condensed period of simply reading her memoir.

Many memoirs are entirely retrospective and mature from the beginning. Solo seems to grow and progress in maturity along with the pages turned by the reader. Still just as often as not, Solo's actions and comments seem just as unjustified as before she made her case which can often be boiled down to if this was in a man's arena it would be a non-starter. But few people would not have felt the injuries leading to her backlashes as keenly. Her approach to such obstacles has been a 'why-the-hell would I not say my piece'?

Of course, retrospectively, the reader will often wonder whether she would not have come out on top more often had she kept her mouth shut and allowed things to work themselves out. Her best counter-argument to this questioning comes late in the book, when she makes a clear point about the rapidity of successful team change engendered by the backlash she fomented post Brazil Olympics. This book should be on the to-read list of anyone who has ever been the least bit curious about Hope Solo's life.

Like Solo herself, her memoir has few rivals among sports-stars or public figures alike. View all 3 comments. Jul 27, Ben rated it it was ok. Hope Solo provides a look at her life, which is filled with much conflict and complication from a young age. She also provides a look into her rise in soccer and other notable moments i. Case in point: The book came out in mid-August Not more than 3 months after the book Hope Solo provides a look at her life, which is filled with much conflict and complication from a young age.

Not more than 3 months after the book's release, she was married to Jerramy Stevens Yet, when Solo talks about her college years she doesn't even talk about how they met. As of my reading in early February , the book almost feels out-of-date -- not more than 6 months after it was published. Various parts of the book AND the acknowledgments even contain glowing praise and the declaration of love!

Solo points out in the author's note at the beginning of the book that this is her story told from her perspective. But, at numerous points in the book, I couldn't help but wonder "How was this perceived from someone else's point of view? While an interesting read in which I learned a few things about Solo, in the end, it all just seems like her story is missing one big thing: Complete honesty.

Apr 18, Donna rated it really liked it Shelves: non-fiction , autobiography-memoir. I didn't know much about Hope Solo before reading this.

She is a very strong person, not just athletically, but also in every other way. I like that she was a fighter and truly stood strong in every thing she believed in. She put her best self out there and was a loyal friend and expected all of that in return. When here expectations weren't met, that sometimes led her into impulsive decision making and not all of those were quiet and understated. She was in proverbial 'hot water' on more than o I didn't know much about Hope Solo before reading this.

She was in proverbial 'hot water' on more than one occasion. I loved the honesty in this. She threw some people under the bus, but she went right along with them herself. We all have our reasons for doing and saying the things we do, and I enjoyed reading about her reasons. Feb 08, Michael rated it really liked it. Fun, quick read. Love these women and lov Hope, too. I've followed avidly since ' But ya know, Hope, at the point where people continue to treat you unfairly and disrespect you and otherwise hold you back, when it keeps happpening, it's probably on you, not them.

Hope uses this memoir to defend herself and her freedom of speech. Yes, we all have freedom of speech, but none of us have the right to expect a safe zone when expressing our controversial opinions. I'd love to read about the next 4 Fun, quick read.

I'd love to read about the next 4 years and the Zika controversy, and more recently, her bid for the soccer presidency. She crazy. Sep 24, Sarah rated it really liked it. One of my favorite books of the year. Apr 10, April Fell rated it really liked it. Name: April M. A Memoirof Hope: Solo. New York: Harper Collins. Selection Process: Goodreads. Cast down but Name: April M. Cast down but not destroyed. This was a favorite biblical passage that her Grandma Alice liked to share with Hope as she struggled through many difficult times during her soccer career.

We do not guarantee that these techniques will work for you. Some of the techniques listed in Solo: A Memoir of Hope may require a sound knowledge of Hypnosis, users are advised to either leave those sections or must have a basic understanding of the subject before practicing them.

DMCA and Copyright : The book is not hosted on our servers, to remove the file please contact the source url. If you see a Google Drive link instead of source url, means that the file witch you will get after approval is just a summary of original book or the file has been already removed. Loved each and every part of this book.

I will definitely recommend this book to non fiction, sports lovers.