Dryland, Nancy Stearns Bercaw
Dryland, Nancy Stearns Bercaw
List: $35.99 | Sale: $25.20
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Dryland
One Woman's Swim to Sobriety

Author: Nancy Stearns Bercaw

Narrator: Donna Postel

Unabridged: 7 hr 7 min

Format: Digital Audiobook (DRM Protected)

Published: 04/18/2017

Synopsis

For swimming champion Nancy Stearns Bercaw, the pool was a natural habitat. But on land, she could never shake the feeling of being a fish out of water. Starting at age two, Nancy devoted her life to swimming, even qualifying for the 1988 Olympic Trials in the fifty-meter freestyle event. But nearly two decades later, when she hung up her cap and goggles, she was confronted with a different kind of challenge: learning who she was out of the lanes.In this honest, intimate memoir, Nancy reflects on her years wandering the globe, where tragic events and a lost sense of self escalate her dependence on booze. Thirty-three years after her first sip of alcohol, the swimmer comes to a stunning realization while living with her husband and son in Abu Dhabi—she’s drowning in the desert. Nancy looks to the Bedouin people for the strength to conquer one final opponent: alcohol addiction.

About Nancy Stearns Bercaw

Writer and national champion swimmer Nancy Stearns Bercaw is a seventeen-time NCAA All-American athlete and was inducted into the University of South Florida’s Athletic Hall of Fame in 2009. Her writing has appeared in publications around the world, including the New York Times, the Huffington Post, the Korea Herald, U.S. News & World Report, Abu Dhabi’s Tempo magazine, and ScaryMommy.com. She is the author of Brain in a Jar: A Daughter’s Journey Through Her Father’s Memory and a contributor to Chicken Soup for the Soul: Living with Alzheimer’s and Other Dementias. She lives in Vermont with her husband and son.

Reviews

Goodreads review by StMargarets on April 09, 2018

Really interesting memoir of a champion swimmer who joined the peace corps, taught English in Korea, and wrote and edited all kinds of the things - all under the influence of alcohol. Her turning points comes while she and her husband are working and living as ex-pats in Dubai - the Dryland in the t......more

Goodreads review by DJ on September 18, 2017

Favorite Quotes: Living in Abu Dhabi is akin to being a minnow in a fishbowl next to a tank of piranhas. You’re safe unless the glass breaks. I start by brushing my teeth vigorously, as if I’m Lady Macbeth and dental stains are the proof of my crime. Allan’s hairline has receded in the years we’ve been......more

Goodreads review by J.P. on June 06, 2018

This book was recommended to me by a friend because of my connection to alcohol addiction and recovery (4 years sober) and the thought I may find this inspirational came to mind at the time. Although I've had the book for some time I just had not yet brought myself to read it. For me at times it is h......more

Goodreads review by Tamara on April 18, 2017

I read this book with great interest, as I have a personal connection to some of the events. It is a very honest look at living life both inside your head and outside, in the world. I feel like the story was unfolding as it was written, as it is so raw and real and not contrived at all. Nancy was ab......more

Goodreads review by Lisa on April 19, 2017

This memoir is so much more than just a journey to sobriety. The author has led an unusual life, living and working in a variety of different countries. I found her stories and struggles to be real and fascinating. A quick and interesting read - and a positive tale of moving on after coming to terms......more

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