Book Review: Hurdles in the Dark

Here is my latest School Library Journal book review . . . 
 

Hurdles in the Dark is the personal memoir of Elvira K. Gonzalez, who is best known as a Mexican American athlete and track star. Elvira, or Kristi as many of her family and friends called her growing up, delves into overcoming immense challenges in her life. The majority of her memoir centers around her high school career as a track and field hurdler.  Kristi saw this sport as her opportunity to earn a college scholarship and to make a better life for herself.  However, the physical hurdles were not the only obstacles in her path.  Kristi had to jump many hurdles in her life as well including leaving the barrio where all her family lived, raising $40,000 to save her kidnapped mother who crossed the border for a wedding, being arrested and taken to a juvenile detention center, and being sexually abused by her track and field coach.

 Despite all the obstacles in her way, Kristi ended her high school track and field career ranked fourth in Texas and among the top twenty in the nation.  She committed to the University of the Incarnate Word with a full athletic scholarship where she was successful until a series of injuries forced her to quit the team and lose her scholarship.  From there, she moved to New York to finish the book she started back in the juvenile detention center.  Without a steady income, she found herself back in the sport of track and field; this time she was a coach.  Kristi eventually created a thriving track and field club team.  Then she enrolled in school and became a first generation college graduate. There are just so many life lessons packed into this memoir. 

The author’s writing style absorbs the readers into her world.  The readers experience all of Kristi due to the honest account of her setbacks and triumphs. She is able to write her memoir as if it were happening in the present due to the many journals and diaries she kept growing up.  The tone shifts to the grown up Kristi, or Elvira, once the reader reaches the Afterword of the memoir.  It is here that Elvira explains her life lessons, her college experiences, and her time in New York city.  She also talks more about the darker side of sports, grooming, and sexual abuse. This topic might be a trigger for some readers, but Elvira handles it with such ease and has facts to back up her statements.  All throughout the Afterward, Elvira talks about the importance of mental health and finding the right help. Her memoir is a cautionary tale meant to help others through the obstacles in their lives.  

Therefore, Hurdles in the Dark is highly recommended for any high school library, grades 9-12, that needs more memoirs emphasizing the importance of mental health.