Oregonian

Championship figure skating, despite its glamorous facade of elegance, is a fiercely competitive sport beneath the surface - full of bitter rivalry and personal antagonism. For so many, Olympic glory means everything: fame, money, and the admiration of millions.

Every skater who goes for the gold certainly has the desire to win and a tremendous competitive spirit, but few more so than Tonya Harding. In Fire on Ice, you will learn about Tonya's hardscrabble childhood - a childhood racked by abuse, money problems, and unceasing pressure and constant belittlement by her mother. And you will learn how Tonya Harding made herself into one of America's best skaters.

This is the story of a young woman for whom ambition may, in the end, be her downfall. Her story is a tale of sacrifice and overcoming obstacles, of the strength of competition and the blindness of ambition. On the thinning ice over which Tonya Harding now glides - and perhaps has always glided - we cannot help but see an 'American Dream' type of story, and all of America is watching it.

This was an excellent book, in my opinion, I was also pleasantly surprised that the book portrayed Tonya Harding in a more sympathetic and vulnerable light than most of the news coverage of the Nancy Kerrigan knee-clubbing scandal in 1994. Not that Fire on Ice seeks to exonerate Tonya in any way for her actions, but this book does illuminate Tonya's health, marriage and financial difficulties.

By delving into Tonya Harding's background, the story portrays her as more of a flawed woman, blinded by her ambition, instead of a ruthless monster who orchestrated the destruction of her rival's career. I give this book an A+!… (plus d'informations)