Push Dick's Button

Author: Dick Button

Rating: ⭐ 3/5

Date Read: 2014/03/26

Pages: 254

I’ve been skating for as long as I can remember, and, while I lost my double axel sometime in the early 2000’s (double axel, you are a demon mistress, but maybe I’ll get you back one of these days), I never lost my love for the sport. Growing up in the skating world, during the height of skating’s popularity in the U.S., I was fortunate enough to see (and, occasionally, skate with) some incredibly talented skaters. I mean, have you ever watched Michelle Kwan perform an artistic program dressed like a Disney princess? You can imagine how much 12 year old me totally geeked out about that.

Anyway, Dick Button is a legend: he’s pretty much the voice of figuring skating. And, while he can be opinionated, he obviously cares deeply about skating. This book seems cobbled together, which is too bad: as others have mentioned, it could use a ghostwriter or at least a better edit. But, once you get past that, it’s pretty fun.

One of the major things Dick Button has been vocal about is the need to maintain the artistry of figure skating. He talks about legendary performances, such as Katarina Witt’s long program at the 88 olympics at Calgary and Torvill and Dean’s dance to Bolero in 84; these types of performances wouldn’t fly amongst the technique-rich but artistry-poor programs we see today. And I agree that that’s a bad thing. There’s a reason why people got so up in arms about Adelina Sotnikova’s gold medal performance in 2014: while it was technically demanding, I (and others) felt it lacked in artistry. See also: Tara Lipinski.

(And don’t get me started on the judging system. Ain’t nobody understand that shit, which is why you shouldn’t put a speed skater in charge of the ISU.)

I’m firmly within the niche for this book and, while I found it fun, I wouldn’t recommend it for a general audience (I’m still waiting on a book that gives a cultural history of the sport, a la [b:Apollo’s Angels: A History of Ballet|8268599|Apollo’s Angels A History of Ballet|Jennifer Homans|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1347374575s/8268599.jpg|13116700]). Still, skaters, former skaters, and skating parents will probably enjoy this romp through the skating world.

If you do read this, make sure to read it with a tab open to YouTube: trust me, you’re going to want to watch some of these performances!