Leanne Shapton is an artist and writer who once competed for a slot on
the Canadian Olympic swim team. She didn't make the squad but was good
enough to get close, which meant she spent hours and months and years
swimming and training and thinking -- deeply -- about what it all meant
to her life. With the XXX Olympiad and the names of Michael Phelps, Missy
Franklin and Ryan Lochte fresh on our minds, and 100+ temperatures out
there now, it's a good time to dive into Leanne Shapton's refreshingly
cool memoir.
Swimming Studies is a physically lovely book whose narrative is
accompanied by the author's sketches, paintings, and an unusual
photographic archive of her swimsuits. And it's an excellent read, a
provocative and pleasantly understated memoir with casual, elliptical
references to art and literature and unpretentious utterances of
occasional wisdom -- a friendly, welcome companion for any reader who wishes
to think about what is, has been, or may become of one's life. RH
Vintage high-neck psychedelic one-piece suit, no label, used for recreational swimming, 2003-2010.
(Swimming Studies)
(Swimming Studies)