Reviews of Adam Rippon's 'Beautiful on the Outside' memoir

[Sylvia]

I got a quick question about the book, is it text-only or are there any photos in it? (I'm trying to decide whether to buy the ebook or the hardcover and if there's pictures in it, I'd prefer the hardcover).

Adam Rippon’s New Memoir ‘Beautiful on the Outside’ Is Not (Exactly) What You Think It Is

The Olympian-turned-dancer-turned-author is both snarky and sincere in his first-ever tell-all book.

observer.com

Relevant excerpt (Wegman's photo included):

I love the photos in the book almost as much as I love the captions. One photo that struck me was your fifth birthday party at Wegman’s supermarket. How did that come together?
Your guess is as good as mine! At five years old, I don’t know what kind of pull I had with my parents, but I just loved being at Wegman’s. Growing up, I thought Wegman’s was, like, boutique. And I loved the idea of having a magician there…which I did, as you see in the picture. I know he looks like a normal man but he holds a lot of power.

There are 16 pages of color photos in the book, the majority of which I've never seen before. One caption reads: "Me sitting with my newborn brother Brady. (I think it's Brady. There's so many of them.)"

Adam did this phone chat before his appearance in Houston in late October:

Adam Rippon On Being ‘Beautiful On The Outside’ — When Inside Is A Mess | Houston Public Media

The Olympic figure skater discusses his new memoir ahead of a Houston event.

www.houstonpublicmedia.org

In the audio above, Houston Matters host Craig Cohen talks with him about that, about the second season of his YouTube show, Break the Ice with Adam Rippon, which premieres Oct. 30, and his just-announced new show on the mobile streaming platform Quibi called Useless Celebrity History, which launches in April 2020.

 

[Miezekatze]

Thanks a lot!

 

[overedge]

I just finished reading the book. I really enjoyed it. Adam has a good attitude and is a great storyteller. I had no idea about the financial hardships he was facing when he first starting training with Raf, and good for him for being so honest about how he managed.

The only downside, I would say, is that some earlier stories seemed kind of skipped over or condensed so that there could be a long section on the Olympics later on. I get that the Olympics are big and were a big event in Adam's skating career, but I was kind of interested in learning more about the earlier part of his career and his struggles to find a coach he felt was "the one" for him.

Also, and this is not a thing, but I got a little tired of mentions and stories by the time I reached the end of the book.

 

[soogar]

I just finished reading the book. I really enjoyed it. Adam has a good attitude and is a great storyteller. I had no idea about the financial hardships he was facing when he first starting training with Raf, and good for him for being so honest about how he managed.

I liked his book but somehow think that the numbers did not add up with his expenses and costs. I kept doing the math and trying to figure out how he could afford rent (how much was his rent) and skating with the prize money and funding that he received. Especially once they take tax out of the winnings, unless the USFS cuts a check without taking out taxes. Either way, rent, leasing a vehicle, food, equipment and ice time with only a little money coming in from teaching... I don't know, it doesn't add up unless all of his apartments were free (I know he had at least Raf's place and the bird family's place with no rent).

 

[overedge]

I liked his book but somehow think that the numbers did not add up with his expenses and costs. I kept doing the math and trying to figure out how he could afford rent (how much was his rent) and skating with the prize money and funding that he received. Especially once they take tax out of the winnings, unless the USFS cuts a check without taking out taxes. Either way, rent, leasing a vehicle, food, equipment and ice time with only a little money coming in from teaching... I don't know, it doesn't add up unless all of his apartments were free (I know he had at least Raf's place and the bird family's place with no rent).

I agree that he wasn't too specific about some of the costs, so it might be hard to accurately reproduce his budget. If he was eating ramen noodles and taking free apples from hotel lobbies, though, I think he was pretty broke.

 

[Erin]

Also, and this is not a thing, but I got a little tired of mentions and stories by the time I reached the end of the book.

Yes, I agree! I overall enjoyed the book and get that he was trying to provide some humour, but it it’s not my kind of humour.

 

[barbk]

I'm listening to the audiobook read by Adam. He's a very good reader, and it works nicely. I'll miss the pics, but the walk time while listening is a bigger win.

 

[maatTheViking]

I got a quick question about the book, is it text-only or are there any photos in it? (I'm trying to decide whether to buy the ebook or the hardcover and if there's pictures in it, I'd prefer the hardcover).

the pictures were at the end of the book in the ebook. I didnt have any issues with formatting

 

[CaliSteve]

Also, and this is not a thing, but I got a little tired of mentions and stories by the time I reached the end of the book.

LOL! I noticed he was very open about poop. Maybe he's looking for a Poop Porui endorsement deal.

 

[MacMadame]

Poop is a very important topic to athletes, IME.

 

[aftershocks]

I'm reading the book first (from the library) and then I'll get a copy of the audio book and listen to Adam himself tell his story in his own voice.

I love the humorous reviews on the back of the book, especially:

"Insanely pretty" -- Sally Field on Twitter

"There has never been a gay man as witty and well-liked" -- The ghost of Oscar Wilde

Adam dedicating his memoir to his haters is all kinds of apropos hilarious! Living well is the best revenge.

"This book is dedicated to my haters. You're not that cute, your hair is uneven, and you look dusty..."

 

[VALuvsMKwan]

He certainly has his "bitchy queen" stereotype persona/brand in place with that dedication. How disappointingly unimaginative and unoriginal to me as an elder gay - though I'm sure way too many of his fans are screaming "Yaaas queen" and "Slay" - just as equally unimaginative and unoriginal and conformist to me.

 

[aftershocks]

Well, those opening sentiments were softened somewhat by Adam's final comment to haters on the dedication page:

"Thank you for being my motivators"

 

[barbk]

He certainly has his "bitchy queen" stereotype persona/brand in place with that dedication. How disappointingly unimaginative and unoriginal to me as an elder gay - though I'm sure way too many of his fans are screaming "Yaaas queen" and "Slay" - just as equally unimaginative and unoriginal and conformist to me.

Dedication aside, I find him very likable from the book so far (I'm about a third of the way through it) - and far from bitchy. (I was not a great fan of his skating, so this certainly isn't from the perspective of an uber-fan.) He seems like someone with whom it would be fun to sit down and have a drink.

 

[aftershocks]

Adam can be as faux, humorous bitchy and as real badass as he pleases in any case.

Witty bitchy may get you in the door. Whereas a genuine heart of gold with feet firmly planted on solid ground keeps you in good company, cuz everyone wants to get to know you!

Keep on risin' and shinin' dear, sweet, tough, sassy AdaRipp!!! Atta Man!!! Do it to the max, as you are, cuz you are enough, just as you are. And thanks for living your dream and exemplifying for others that they too can live theirs if they believe they can and stick to that belief against the odds, and make the sacrifices and put in the hard work.

 

[Theoreticalgirl]

Adam's tone didn't come off as "bitchy queen" in the text or the audiobook to me, but to each their own ¯\(ツ)/¯

 

[BittyBug]

Agree. Maybe in addition to no judging a book by its cover, one shouldn't judge the author by the dedication.

 

[CaliSteve]

He certainly has his "bitchy queen" stereotype persona/brand in place with that dedication. How disappointingly unimaginative and unoriginal to me as an elder gay - though I'm sure way too many of his fans are screaming "Yaaas queen" and "Slay" - just as equally unimaginative and unoriginal and conformist to me.

I get where you are coming from. Adam sort of irritated me during the Olympic season.

Read the book and you see the other side of Adam. Also, you get a better understanding of the mindset of an athlete.

 

[antmanb]

I got this as a gift for Christmas and absolutely loved it. I might have to get the audiobook to hear him reading it because I think it would be even funnier. I loved his writing and the tone and it made me like him even more.

I found it really interesting to hear all of the background and the build up to events that we then experience only as the competitions. The amount of work and sacrifice that goes into the sport is really well laid out and often in a hilarious way.

It was really touching to hear about him and Mirai being together and crying about not being at the Olympics together and then getting to go together the next time. It was also really interesting to hear his perspective on being unsure what to do when he didn't make the Sochi team.

The importance of being an out gay athlete at the games and meeting Gus Kenworthy was really good too.

I also literally laughed out loud when he decided that he would put it out there that he was the best spinner in the world and was pleased when he started hearing it repeated back to him. I also really liked when he talks about Jason Brown and you can hear the humour when he says "and if i'm not the best spinner in the world then Jason is".

I thoroughly recommend the book to anyone. There isn't as much skating in it as I was expecting, but the discussion of his life, his family, his relationships is really interesting.

 

[BittyBug]

You would not regret the audiobook @antmanb.

 

[vesperholly]

I also literally laughed out loud when he decided that he would put it out there that he was the best spinner in the world and was pleased when he started hearing it repeated back to him. I also really liked when he talks about Jason Brown and you can hear the humour when he says "and if i'm not the best spinner in the world then Jason is".

A natural gift for PR!