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Swell : a waterbiography / Jenny Landreth.

by Landreth, Jenny, author.

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London : Bloomsbury Sport, 2018.

Landreth, Jenny

Swimming for women -- History.

Women swimmers -- England -- Biography.

9781472938961 (paperback) :

1472938968 (paperback)

vi, 330 pages : illustrations (some colour) ; 23 cm

Reprint edition.

My waterbiography (part I) -- The great outdoors -- Going indoors -- Exceptional women (part I) -- The clubbable woman -- My waterbiography (part II) -- Women of the world -- In praise of lidos -- We are what we wear -- Olympic flames -- My waterbiography (part III) -- The channel -- My waterbiography (part IV) -- Exceptional women (part II) -- Why do women swim? -- My waterbiography (part V).

These days, swimming may seem like the most egalitarian of pastimes, open to anyone with a swimsuit - but this wasn't always the case. In the 19th century, swimming was exclusively the domain of men, and access to pools was a luxury limited by class. Women were (barely) allowed to swim in the sea, as long as no men were around, but even into the 20th century they could be arrested and fined if they dared dive into a lake. It wasn't until the 1930s that women were finally, and reluctantly, granted equal access. This is the story of the women who made that possible, a thank-you to the fearless 'swimming suffragettes' who took on the status quo, fought for equal access, and won. Interspersed with the text are the author's own recollections of becoming a "keen swimmer".

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