My Story: Janet Hurley discussing her memoir

Register at MyStory@WilmaDykemanLegacy.org and receive Zoom link.

"Janet Hurley's stunning memoir Glove Shy is an unflinching portrait of her Hudson River Valley family, centered on her older brother Brian, a boxing phenomenon trained by two-time World Heavyweight Champion Floyd Patterson.  Brian's arc becomes part Icarus, part Hamlet, and his triumphs and tragedies leave no one close to him untouched.  As Hurley herself struggles to escape the long shadows and snares of her brother's near-fame and grim misfortunes, an intertwining tale emerges:  one of his tragic flaws and almost inevitable demise, and of her troubled yet powerful and loving indomitable spirit.  Glove Shy is fast-paced, emotionally rugged, and just as poignantly moving as can be."

-- Bland Simpson, author of North Carolina:  Land of Water, Land of Sky

‍

In Glove Shy, Janet Hurley tells the deeply moving story of her love for her brother, Brian, a talented amateur boxer who struggles with addiction and depression. Along the way, she offers up a poignant group portrait of the renowned Huguenot Boxing Club, a unique world overseen by the enigmatic  former two-time World Heavyweight Champion Floyd Patterson. Throughout this harrowing memoir of remorse and reckoning, Hurley offers a clear-eyed account of her life with Brian; she also takes us with her on a journey to make sense of her brother’s tragic death. That she manages not to pull any punches, and that she shines a light on the subtle workings of race, class, and family in America, only makes her accomplishment all the more impressive. A knockout of a book--

--Sebastian Matthews, author of Beyond Repair: Living in a Fractured State, The Life and Times of American Crow, The Beginner's Guide to a Head-On Collision, and In My Father's Footsteps

‍