Book
On My Own Two Feet: From Losing My Legs to Learning the Dance of Life
Amy Purdy
TL;DR
Amy Purdy’s memoir, published this New York Times bestseller at the end of 2014. It was written with Michelle Burford. It is a tale of her overcoming multiple physical adversities and how she overcame them to become a champion.
Quick Facts
- Author
- Amy Purdy (with Michelle Burford)
- Published
- December 30, 2014
- Publisher
- William Morrow
- Pages
- 256
- ISBN
- 9780062379092
Amy Purdy contracted bacterial meningitis at nineteen. Both legs were amputated below the knee, she lost both kidneys and the hearing in her left ear, and her spleen was removed. Two years later her father gave her a kidney. The memoir covers that and the inspirational comeback in the years after.
HarperCollins published it on 30 December 2014. Earlier that year she had won bronze in snowboard cross at the 2014 Winter Paralympics on 14 March, and came second on Dancing with the Stars in May. She wrote it with Michelle Burford, a memoir collaborator and a founding editor of The Oprah Magazine. Elizabeth Gilbert called it honest and sharply written.
Why OGSP Recommends It
This is a story about Amy Purdy who for years endured multiple major medical issues including losing both her legs. Even with all these hardships, Amy turns them around to become a paralympian and create a center to help other people with physical limitations thrive.
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Key Takeaways
- It is a memoir, written with Michelle Burford, a memoir collaborator and a founding editor of The Oprah Magazine.
- It covers the meningitis that cost her both legs at nineteen, the kidney her father gave her, and the years after that.
- HarperCollins published it on 30 December 2014 and it became a New York Times bestseller.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who wrote On My Own Two Feet?
Amy Purdy wrote it with the journalist Michelle Burford. William Morrow published it in December 2014.
What is On My Own Two Feet about?
It is Amy Purdy’s own account of losing both legs to bacterial meningitis at nineteen and finding her way back onto a snowboard. She worked on it with the memoir collaborator Michelle Burford.
Is On My Own Two Feet a true story?
Yes. It is a memoir of her own illness, her amputations and the years that followed.
Where can I get On My Own Two Feet?
It is widely available in print and as an ebook, and there is an audio edition as well. The book runs to 256 pages.