Finding the Edge: My Life on the Ice

by Karen Chen, Kristi Yamaguchi (Foreword by)

Overview

Figure skating icon and U.S. National Champion Karen Chen tells the amazing story of her rise to the top, featuring never-before-seen photos and behind-the-scenes details from her journey on and off the ice!

At seventeen years old, Karen Chen has already achieved what some girls only dream of—and yet it’s only the beginning for this incredibly talented athlete.

The daughter of Taiwanese immigrants, Karen began to figure skate at just five years old. Ten years and many grueling training sessions later, she broke out at the 2015 US Championships with a bronze medal. This was after sustaining a nearly career-ending ankle fracture a year earlier.

In 2017, Karen became the US National Champion, winning gold in two programs and receiving the highest score ever recorded for the short program at the US National level.

Now for the first time, Karen shares the story of how she got where she is today—and where she’s going next. Karen has already overcome astounding obstacles, and her grit, determination, and positive attitude have made her future truly limitless.

In Finding the Edge, she shares, in her own words, what it’s like to be Karen Chen—and what it takes to achieve the impossible.

Features a foreword from Kristi Yamaguchi, the Olympic champion, two-time World champion, and U.S. champion.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062822789
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	11/28/2017
Sold by:	HARPERCOLLINS
Format:	eBook
Pages:	224
Sales rank:	593,809
File size:	6 MB
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

Karen Chen is an American figure skater. She was the 2017 US national champion, placing fourth at the 2017 World Championships. She also holds a bronze medal from the 2015 US National Championships and two bronze medals from the ISU Challenger Series. Karen was born in Fremont, California, and has been skating since 2005. Finding the Edge is her first book.

Athlete, artist, wife, mother, philanthropist—in each of these things Kristi Yamaguchi embodies the word “champion.” Following her victories at the 1992 Winter Olympics and World Championships, Kristi embarked on a successful professional career that went non-stop for more than a decade. During the years 1992-2002, Kristi toured with Stars on Ice, won numerous professional competitions, frequently appeared on television specials, and collaborated with several choreographers to create diverse programs. She is also the author of Dream Big, Little Pig! and It’s a Big World, Little Pig!

 

 

Table of Contents

Foreword 1

Prologue 5

Chapter 1 Coming to Life 11

Chapter 2 Finding a Friend 19

Chapter 3 Figuring it Out 29

Chapter 4 Practicing Perfect 37

Chapter 5 Pushing Through 47

Chapter 6 Making Sacrifices 55

Chapter 7 Willing to Win 63

Chapter 8 Getting out of my Own Way 71

Chapter 9 Meeting a Mentor 79

Chapter 10 Preparing for Uncertainty 85

Chapter 11 Breaking Through 97

Chapter 12 Fighting Back 105

Chapter 13 Making my Mark 117

Chapter 14 Learning Balance 127

Chapter 15 Becoming the Dream 135

Chapter 16 Listening to my Voice 147

Chapter 17 Continuing the Journey 157

Epilogue 165

Career Summary 169

Figure Skating Competitive Season Timeline 176

Glossary of Figure Skating Terms 179

International Skating Union Technical Rules 203

Us Figure Skating Championships-Single Ladies champions 207

Acknowledgments 213

Editorial Reviews

Chen’s fans and young skating enthusiasts will find much to devour about life as a competitive skater.” — School Library Journal

From the Publisher

02/01/2018
Gr 4 Up—Figure Skater Chen's memoir chronicles her career from her first time on the ice to winning the U.S. National Championship in 2017. She describes herself as a quiet, shy kid with a perfectionist streak. Chen's love for skating and dedication to the sport come across clearly. In the prologue, she writes, "Ice skating is the closest I get to flying—it's the only time I feel weightless and free." She shares how she overcame nerves and self-doubt at various points in her career and how she came back from a serious injury. Chen was a natural skater, but readers can see how hard she worked to get where she is with the support of her family, her coaches, and her mentor Kristi Yamaguchi, who provides the foreword. The prose is straightforward and full of detail about skating life. The epilogue includes a glossary of figure skating terms and technical rules. However, readers looking for information on Chen's personal life will not find it here. VERDICT Chen's fans and young skating enthusiasts will find much to devour about life as a competitive skater, while general memoir readers may not find much of a connection.—Mindy Rhiger, Hennepin County Library, MN

School Library Journal