Book review: Kelly; a father, a son, an American quest

This is not a book about Princess Grace, the most famous Kelly. She does get a mention, but the mention is merely in light of her place as the daughter of John B. Kelly Sr. It is also not a book about the four-time Olympic rower, John Kelly Jr. although Kelly Jr. does get a sizeable chunk of text because of his role as the son of Kelly Sr., especially his rowing role. This book is about the three-time Olympic Champion father, John B. Kelly Sr.

John B. Kelly Sr., more commonly known as Jack Kelly, is the inspiration behind this book by rowing writer Dan Boyne.

Jack Kelly, was the talented youngest son of a large Irish family growing up in a working-class ghetto in Philadelphia, USA at the turn of the 20th century. Living close to Philadelphia’s Schuylkill River and seeing the professional single scullers racing on those waters inspired Jack Kelly to become a rower.

Rowing remained important throughout Kelly’s life and even his mother had to concede to its influence. At one point Kelly Sr. had to explain to his mother why he was putting his energy into rowing rather than starting a career and getting married. Even into Kelly’s years of becoming a very successful businessman and his foray into politics, rowing remained a strong influence.

One major thread of the book was Kelly Sr. being denied an entry into the British Henley Royal Regatta. Various explanations have been given as to why Kelly Sr. was excluded, and the debate continues to this day, as no explanation was given by the Henley organisers at the time. Whatever the reason, Kelly Sr. never forgot the rejection and it was one of the reasons that the young Kelly Jr. was pushed hard into rowing by his father.

The book devotes a sizeable chunk of text to Kelly’s only son, John Kelly Jr., or ‘Kell’, but still remains within the context of Kelly Sr. and his passion for rowing.

Throughout the book Boyne recounts many wonderful anecdotes about the different members of this amazing family. Perhaps some of the most interesting and compelling parts of the book are Kelly’s early days. Boyne portrays a vivid picture of the life of a poor immigrant family, the strength of will of his mother and the family’s enterprising ways.

Easy to read, hard to put down, this book flows like a good row with the added bonus of being written by someone within the sport of rowing. It is the perfect tale of a theme we all love, of the underdog succeeding in the end.

This is the third rowing book written by Boyne and it follows one of the greatest rowers ever.

The book is available through the World Rowing Library at Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk