Review: The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics

The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics by Daniel James Brown
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I picked this book up due to a mention as a book to build leadership qualities by Microsoft’s Satya Nadella. It’s what you’d expect in a feel-good story about the growth of the rowing teams in pre-war University of Washington, culminating in a victory against all odds at the Olympics in Berlin hosted by Hitler. The way author Brown told this story was to focus first on one teammate, through a difficult childhood and into college. While building this hero, the author also introduces other team members, the enigmatic coach, and the unlikely guide, a boat builder from England. You follow the teams through the years, seeing disappointment with poor results, but showing growth in skills and in finally coming together as a team. The author makes rowing races exciting. The sporting action consists of a few races that are very well described. I listened to the audiobook, narrated by Edward Hermann. When you get to the final race, the narration has sped up to a frantic pace to match the story. I found this went beyond normal audiobook narration to performance, and it really worked well. I’d say this is one of the best non-fiction audiobooks I’ve heard. This book works well on many levels. As a sports book, the sporting scenes are well described and intense. As a history book, the author covers the story of the rowing team, but also provides plentiful background on the people, on the sport, and on the politics behind the sport. And as a leadership book, it provides a story of a team coming together from mostly humble beginnings to be formed into a cohesive unit. You will understand how the coaches and “guide” influenced the team, the impacts that their actions had, and you will feel the growth of the team as they come together. After such an involving book, the reader wants to know what happened to the individuals of the rowing team after their win. Brown includes an extensive history of the team mates and others through the present day, including even the winning boat. Very nice story.

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