A WILL WITHIN A WHEEL

Avid cyclist Ormond offers a history-rich fictional account of the trailblazing women who cast aside corsets and crinoline to become competitive cyclists.

The author begins this novel with an insightful introduction to the 1890s bicycle craze, and then turns the spotlight to significant event spaces and the powerhouse women who race in them, challenging sexist attitudes with their sheer tenacity. The women are portrayed as tough, cutthroat rivals, brazenly hurling insults while pedaling at breakneck speeds in pursuit of glory, prizes, and potential sponsorship deals. As a result, many suffer harrowing crashes that leave them banged up and bloody. Spectators flood arenas, disparagingly viewing the women like circus acts and ruthlessly scrutinizing and criticizing their attire. Tillie Anderson, a hardscrabble Swede who immigrated to the United States and boldly abandoned her seamstress job to pursue professional racing, is a real historical figure and a key character in this narrative. Ormond’s sensory descriptions of the Royal Aquarium, a grand building once inhabited by marine life, almost leaps off the page: “The tanks were drained, and a crusty, white patina dried onto the glass with frothy, green algae blooms clinging to the corners. A silent, murky gloom reigned.” However, the tone of the writing is often overly formal and scholarly; at other times, it takes on an antiquated, melodramatic style: “The men fail to see it, but the women are messengers from some mighty realm of eternal heroes, bearers of some spark in the darkness emanating from an ancient and enduring fire.” Ormond proves to be a meticulous researcher and skilled illustrator; the author’s black-and-white pen-and-ink artwork, depicting various people and places in the story, is often charming. However, lengthy passages about literature, fairy tales, and politics diverts attention from the novel’s most captivating women at the heart of the narrative. At its best, however, Ormond’s novel delivers an enlightening portrait of fortitude in a work that’s nicely suited for history and cycling aficionados.

A worthy journey, despite a few meandering detours.