Buoyant

How Water and Willpower Helped Wella to Channel Aaron and Hayley Peirsol

Non-Fiction - Biography
184 Pages
Reviewed on 01/02/2014
Buy on Amazon

This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Free Book Program, which is open to all readers and is completely free. The author will provide you with a free copy of their book in exchange for an honest review. You and the author will discuss what sites you will post your review to and what kind of copy of the book you would like to receive (eBook, PDF, Word, paperback, etc.). To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email.

This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Review Exchange Program, which is open to all authors and is completely free. Simply put, you agree to provide an honest review an author's book in exchange for the author doing the same for you. What sites your reviews are posted on (B&N, Amazon, etc.) and whether you send digital (eBook, PDF, Word, etc.) or hard copies of your books to each other for review is up to you. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email, and be sure to describe your book or include a link to your Readers' Favorite review page or Amazon page.

This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Donation Program, which was created to help nonprofit and charitable organizations (schools, libraries, convalescent homes, soldier donation programs, etc.) by providing them with free books and to help authors garner more exposure for their work. This author is willing to donate free copies of their book in exchange for reviews (if circumstances allow) and the knowledge that their book is being read and enjoyed. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email. Be sure to tell the author who you are, what organization you are with, how many books you need, how they will be used, and the number of reviews, if any, you would be able to provide.

Author Biography

Most people have a story to tell, and I am drawn to the rich and colorful narratives of individuals sharing stories we need to know. Personal narratives often offer insight into the human condition as a whole or chronicle a particular strand of our shared human history.

I have worked in magazines; in public relations for the Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington, DC; as a technical writer; as an assistant professor at two colleges in Los Angeles; as an editor for a big publishing house; as the publisher of a very small press; and as a mother with extensive volunteer experience running writing workshops for the school.

My master's degree is in Professional Writing, from the University of Southern California, and my undergraduate work in Plan II, Liberal Arts Honors, was completed at The University of Texas at Austin.

    Book Review

Reviewed by Maria Beltran for Readers' Favorite

Laura Cottam Sajbel’s novel, Buoyant, subtitled How Water and Willpower Helped Wella to Channel Aaron and Hayley Peirsol, is an inspiring story about a mother who discovered the healing powers of exercise and in the process, raised two champion swimmers. This is Wella Hartig’s life story and it tells the story of an ordinary woman who raised extraordinary athletes, with Aaron winning seven Olympic medals and Harley placing third in world distance swimming. Married young and eventually ending up as a single mother of two, Wella certainly has her share of failures and heartbreaks. This does not stop her from dreaming big for her children. The emotional and financial strain of keeping Aaron and Harley on top of their fields could stop any mother’s resolve but for Wella, it is more than just winning those competitions - it is about facing life’s failures and successes squarely and with dignity.

There must be a number of parents out there who dream of raising world class athletes out of their children. Buoyant is a book that they should read. Faced with less that ideal circumstances, Wella Hartig succeeded in guiding her children to become the best in their chosen field of sports. Her story also reinforces the theory that exercise is good for our mental health. There is no doubt that genetics and environment determine a person’s life but still, each one of us has the capacity to determine the direction of our own lives. And here lies the greatest lesson from Wella Hartig’s life story. It is also heartening to note that it is more important for Wella that her children grow up as happy and decent human beings - with or without the numerous swimming medals that they earned in the course of their swimming careers. This makes Buoyant a must-read for everyone!