It traces Cathy's life, beginning as a young girl growing up in Queensland. That's where she spent time with her family and spent a lot of time running. It's also where she ran her first race, and won.
Cathy's story tells readers how she would practice sprinting by chasing her brothers on a dry, sandy riverbed. And she would practice running laps at a local track.
It was hard though, and Cathy didn't always want to train, but her mum would help to motiviate her and remind her that she could do so much her sister, who had cerebral palsy, couldn't do.
Born to Run tells the story of Cathy's success, but doesn't shy away from difficulties either, including showing she faced racism. Cathy's road to achievement in sport took her far from home and her family, but Cathy always remembered her sister and ran for her as much as for herself.
The Sydney Olympics marked the pinnacle of Cathy's running career, with a proud moment lighting the cauldron at the opening ceremony, and then winning gold in the 400 metres. The girl who was born to run made her dream come true.
Although Born to Run finishes with the Sydney Olympics, and Cathy retired a couple of years later, the book is not the end of the story. She went on to begin the Cathy Freeman Foundation. Cathy, a Kuku Yalanji and Birri Gubba woman, has used the Foundation to help Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander kids get an education and to support them to follow their own dreams.
Charmaine Ledden-Lewis, an award-winning Indigenous artist and descendant of the Bundjalung people has illustrated Born to Run with beautiful, intimate pictures which help capture Cathy's perspective.
Born to Run is a wonderful story that acts as a reminder for everyone that dreams can come true.
Note: Born to Run contains the names and images of deceased Aboriginal people.
Title: Born to Run
Author: Cathy Freeman
Illustrator: Charmaine Ledden-Lewis
Publisher: Puffin, $ 24.99
Publication Date: November 2021
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 9781761043802
For ages: 5+
Type: Junior Non-Fiction
