Description: In the midst of a standard midlife crisis, Barry Strauss decided to learn how to row a single scull. What began as a diversion soon became a passion, affecting every aspect of his life. In Rowing Against the Current, Strauss chronicles his progress as an athlete, from his first awkward strokes to the triumph he felt when he achieved the subtle combination of strength and precision of an expert rower. As he pursued his sport, Strauss's world expanded in many ways. He learned to trust his body and believe in his own toughness, developed a renewed sense of self-confidence, and came to appreciate both the beauty of nature and the dignity of hard labor. As an historian, he gained a deeper understanding of the life of an oarsman on an ancient galley.

Strauss takes readers into the punishing life of rowers -- getting up in the freezing cold, practicing until your hands bleed, and submitting to the scolding of coaches -- and into the perfect moments they experience as they navigate a craft with the dimensions of a pencil through deep, cold river water in the early dawn. By turns comic and lyrical, Rowing Against the Current is about the fear of trying something new and the joy of discovering it can be done.

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