Fast Girls is a really interesting and captivating read book about 3 young women, Helen Stephens, Betty Robinson and Louise Stokes, who fought their way to be  on the 1936 Olympic track team. The injustices that these women had to face! A well researched compelling historical (fiction) account of a time in history we should all know about.

When I received the ARC of Fast Girls, I was not sure that I would become interested in a book about 3 young women who were on the 1936 Olympic track team!  I found the story about the 3 young women, Helen Stephens, Betty Robinson and Louise Stokes, compelling, fascinating and eye-opening.  Before reading I knew absolutely nothing about women in the Olympics during the pre-WWII era.  Although the book is lengthy, it was a fast read!  Thank you NetGalley and Facebook's Book Club Girls Early Read Program for the ARC in exchange for an honest opinion!

This story took me back to a time in History that has fascinated me for many years:  Prohibition, the American Depression, A. Hitler's Germany. Fascinating yet dark and humanly difficult. Helen Stephens, Betty Robinson and Louise Stokes have to defy the odds and fight tooth and nail in order to make their dream come true: join the 1936's Women's Olympic track team.  

This book was difficult to read because of its content; the injustice in many situations made me so mad at times. I felt like the protagonists has to apologize to society for being women, let alone being women of color. But I command their tenacity to pull through and not let men keep them down. I also loved Elise Hooper's writing style; emotional, gripping, romantic,.. so my type! The structure in the book was also pleasant with a particular nod to the articles describing the feats these extremely talented women had accomplished.

I totally recommend it.

Thank you Net Galley and William Morrow Paperbacks for this e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I was fortunate to receive an ARC of Fast Girls by Elise Hooper, courtesy of NetGalley. Beginning with the 1928 first women's team to participate in the Olympics, the author traces the paths of Betty Robinson, Louise Stokes, and Helen Stephens as they overcome many challenges and become recognized for their athletic strengths. These inspiring young women become members of the first integrated women's Olympic delegation, participating in the 1936 games in Nazi Berlin. . I learned so much reading this well researched historical novel!

First, I should preface this. I am a runner. I’m “one of those” people who run for fun. I’m one of those that have been asked if running had made my legs “more manly”. I am not fast, but I do have endurance. A lot of my trail races are male saturated, so it’s always a “girl power” (queue Spice Girls with the peace sign) whenever I see a woman killing it. I related to this book in 2020 so much. I have heard of  Betty Robinson (because of her 1st gold) and Helen Stephens (because of Hitler comments), but never knew of Louise Stokes. I am saddened it has taken me this long to know her

It has so neat to be transformed back to 1928- 1936. Some things today you gasp, other things were normal. Betty had her first cigarette on the boat. An Olympic runner.. smoking? 

I absolutely loved how Hooper showed how many doubted the girls. However, once they hit the “big time” they acted as though they were backing them the entire time. It’s such a real thing that STILL happens, and it was great. 

There’s a very important part in this book where Louise has a flashback to 1920. Her Uncle Freddie is at a ceremony to honor the veterans who fought in The Great War. Louise asks her Uncle if she knew some of the men who died. He responds yes and when she presses as to which ones, he says they are not on the plaque l. He begins to explain that their sacrifices are not counted the same as someone with white skin’s sacrifices. This was a conversation from 1920. Why in the world are still having this conversation literally 100 years later? We should be better than this America. 

I connected with Louise so much and enjoyed her story the most. It’s heartbreaking to know she was snubbed at her chance of gold and she is not as well known as Helen or Betty. She has an amazing backstory and I’m glad she was highlighted in such a prominent book. 

Thank you NetGalley, 

TW: Rape

I loved hearing the stories of Betty, Louise, Helen, and the other runners in this novel. Getting to know these athletes as individuals and feel the tensions they experienced preparing for and at the 1936 Olympics was such a joy. Usually in a multiple perspective novel, I have a clear favorite but I loved each of the main perspectives and can’t pick a favorite!

Great story about largely unknown women who made a name for themselves by competing in the first track and field events for women at the Olympics. I enjoyed the events leading up and including the 1928 Olympics. The rest of the book kind of dragged for me. It shed a lot of light on what it was like to be female runner and especially a black, female runner. Any sports or Olympic enthusiast would enjoy this book

Fast Girls tells a story based on three real-life female sprinters, Betty Robinson, Helen Stephens, and Louise Stokes, who worked to become members of the 1936 Berlin Olympics female track and field team. These characters had to overcome numerous obstacles to achieve their goals, including sexism, racism, personal tragedy and abuse but refused to give up until they achieved their goals. 

I am not a sports fan by any means and knew next to nothing about the Berlin Olympics track and field team, but this story was extremely riveting, and I found myself cheering on all of the characters as they worked to overcome the obstacles thrown up in their way. The author had clearly researched her subjects, and I loved the way that fact and fiction were weaved together. As a reader I got frustrated right along with the women as they experienced sexism and racism in its many forms and cheered all of the women on as they worked to subvert the societal views of a woman's place in order to achieve their Olympic dreams.

I highly recommend this book to everyone who loves historical fiction, even non-sports fans like me.

I was fortunate to be given the opportunity to read a preview version of ‘Fast Girls‘, a novel by Elise Hooper, before it’s publication in July. Even before reading it I was excited by the premise; the main characters were real track athletes in the 1930s and amongst the first women to represent the USA in their sport.  
I’ve always enjoyed historical fiction and take a keen interest in women’s sport but knew nothing of Betty Robinson, Louise Stokes and Helen Stephens, the protagonists in this fascinating account of their lives leading up to the climactic 1936 Olympics (as an aside, some of what I already knew of the Berlin Games was from the film ‘Race’, a biopic of Jesse Owens). 
I was completely absorbed in the book and read the whole thing in about 24 hours, appropriately finishing today on Olympic Day! For many other reasons the book’s themes are apposite to the current socio-political conversations and perhaps because of that that the stories particularly resonated. I was already expecting to read how the women battled gender stereotypes to take their place on the starting line and aware of the historical significance of the 1936 games in pre-war Nazi Germany but there were other aspects to the book that almost took me aback. I wish I could say that reaction was of surprise by how outdated the societal norms and perceptions were but rather it was poignancy that more than eighty years on from this time we’re still blighted by racism, homophobia and gender-based discrimination in the US and Europe. 
Whilst some serious subjects were covered the book was pacy and easy to read, with plenty of lighter moments, romance and great action sequences on the track. I loved the main characters and their development; understanding how their background and experiences shaped their responses to the dilemmas and decisions they faced. 
I feel strongly that both sport and literature offer opportunities to see history and society through an alternative prism, perhaps help us to empathise and connect with others from a different time and space in ways that can help us to reach a greater understanding of ourselves and the world around us. If any ‘running book’ can be one of the many resources that form part of a wider, important conversation then I think this might be it. I would definitely recommend this book and I think it could be a good subject for a proper bookclub discussion.

While I was very interested in reading this title from its description, once I began I couldn't stay focused on the story. I was drawn in the by the historical references, and I learned a lot about women athletes in the 1928 Olympics. But there wasn't enough excitement in the plot to keep me reading. Unfortunately, I only read up to Chapter 29.

I loved that Fast Girls introduced me to a subject that I literally knew nothing about.  The author did a great job making me care about these pioneers in their sports. I love historical fiction, especially when it is a fresh idea.  Thank you to NetGalley, HarperCollins and the BookClubGirls for this ARC.

This is an enlightening, and empowering, story of a group of women who had so much to overcome in their lives to reach their goal of competing in the Olympics.  The time held many obstacles, often different for each woman: gender, race, wealth (or lack thereof), upbringing, sexuality, injury,  married or not.  Then add the world issues beginning in Berlin, where the 1936 Olympics were held.  I did not know many of these names prior to reading this story, but am interested in learning more about them after being inspired by what they each overcame to achieve their goals.

Although this book is historical fiction, most of the story is factual--I know I looked it up because i could not wait until the end to discover how the Olympic Games of 1936 came out for the women.  I had always heard about Jesse Owens, but did not know that the women had embarassed Hitler also.  As noted the book is written as a story, but as with real life not everything is perfect in it.  Spoiler Alert: Louse does not get to win a medal--she doesn't even get to race and even though Ms. Hooper made us want her to win, she did not change history just for a happy ending.  I thought the book did a really wonderful job of informing the reader of some little known, but important personages, in the early days of track and field and the Olympics.

I love to read books that are fiction, but rich in history. This book is about three young ladies that are athletes going to compete in the 1936 Olympics in Berlin. This is an adventure about how they got as far as being picked to go to Berlin, the travels to Berlin, and the adventures once arriving in Berlin. Traveling to Berlin with no family must have been a bit frightening and exciting. A wonderful read of endurance and the pioneering spirit. I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a great adventure!

Review for Netgalley

Fast Girls is an inspiring delight!  Consider it a fictionalized Boys in the Boat for young women athletes.  Focusing on real-life track and field elites like Betty Robinson, Louise Stokes, Babe Didrickson, and Helen Stephens, Elise Hooper weaves an engaging story of the hopes, dreams, and struggles these young women faced on their to journey to the Berlin Olympics.  Issues of overcoming severe injury, poverty, sexual assault, and racial injustice are covered through the interwoven stories surrounding these remarkable women.

I found this book to be very good.  This book follows the lives of three very determined female athletes who compete in the 1936 Olympics in Berlin.  A lot of people did not want women or blacks competing in track & field at the Olympics as they said it was too hard for women.  These women fought to compete and made history in the 1936 Olympics.

I received and advanced reader copy of Fast Girls from Harper Collins. Great historical fiction about the first women that raced in track and field in the Olympics in the 1920s and 30s. Interesting historical backdrop and well developed characters representing several aspects of society—women, men, urban, rural, LGBTQ+, and various races. At first there were many parallel story lines with different women and I wasn’t sure how they were going to intersect but eventually they did and did well. Easy read that I had trouble putting down!

I was so excited to read this book and really wanted to love it. I love the Olympics and, as an Ohioan, Jesse Owens' prowess at the 1936 games looms large. So I was extremely interested to read about the women involved in the 1936 games. The author picked three fascinating women, all real athletes, to tell the story. Betty Robinson, Helen Stephens, and Louise Stokes were captivating people and I enjoyed learning about them and following their roads to the 1936 games. I am especially grateful that the author included Louise as a main character and Tidye Pickett as a secondary character, two Black female athletes, because their inclusion allowed the reader to see how racism still influenced the American team at the Olympics despite the achievements of the Black male runners. And highlighting this inequality in light of the Nazi State's own discriminatory practices certainly prompts the reader to think.

As good as this story could have been, I felt that it fell short of the mark. The main characters were all likeable but it took too long for the story to climax. We first meet Betty eight years before the Berlin Games. In fact, the story doesn't even begin to focus on the 1936 Olympics until 80% through the book. As interesting and necessary as it is to understand the background of each of the runners, especially the experience of Louise and Tidye at the 1932 Los Angeles Games, the set-up took too long. Additionally, the writing was flat and uninspiring. I never hit that point where I HAD to know what happens next. I spent most of the book wondering when we were going to get to Berlin. 

Overall, this book was a 3.5 for me. I didn't love it, but I certainly learned a lot about the women who broke barriers and records in the 1920s and 30s.

Wow I just finished Fast Girls by Elise Hooper and it was a fabulous read.  It is about the girls that ran in the Olympics 1928 - 1936.  At first it seemed to jump around too much and was hard to keep track of all of the characters.  But by rhe end I was rooting for each of the characters.  I did peek at Google to see if the cgaracters were real, but held back from looking at the results of the races.  Great book.
This was an ARC copy from Netgalley and The Book Club Girls.

Fast Girls is an incredible novel based on the first female runners to make it in the Olympics It's something I've never given much thought to but the writing was beautiful and kept me wanting to know even more about them!