Hope Solo thrives on competition. The post-feminist face of the modern female athlete shes driven to win & isnt afraid to say it or show it. Determined to succeed on her own terms shes never played it safe even if it cost her a starting spot with the U.S. team during the 2007 World Cup. That aggressive resolve is encapsulated in her forthright sometimes shocking & ultimately moving memoir. At the center of her story is the sweet & sorrowful relationship Solo shared with her father a philanderer & a con-man who was convicted of embezzlement when Solo was a child. Drifting into homelessness after prison he finally reunited with his daughter years later when she was in college. Reminiscent of Jeannette Walls in her acclaimed memoir The Glass Castle" " Solo" does not judge her unconventional parent. Like her teammate Megan Rapinoe bending a masterful corner kick " Solo" twists the familiar arc of the father-as-mentor theme to reveal how her dad not only taught her the game but also instilled in her the athletes mentality that defines who she is & how she plays. A woman who has repeatedly triumphed over adversity
- from suddenly losing her biggest champion her father to her battles with the U.S. national team to her recovery from painful shoulder surgery
- " Solos" story holds lessons & insight not only for her thousands of young fans but for us all."