Norwich: One Tiny Vermont Town's Secret to Happiness and Excellence

by Karen Crouse

The extraordinary story of the small Vermont town that has likely produced more Olympians per capita than any other place in the country, Norwich gives “parents of young athletes a great gift—a glimpse at another way to raise accomplished and joyous competitors” ( The Washington Post ).

In Norwich, Vermont—a charming town of organic farms and clapboard colonial buildings—a culture has taken root that’s the opposite of the hypercompetitive schoolyard of today’s tiger moms and eagle dads. In Norwich, kids aren’t cut from teams. They don’t specialize in a single sport, and they even root for their rivals. What’s more, their hands-off parents encourage them to simply enjoy themselves. Yet this village of roughly three thousand residents has won three Olympic medals and sent an athlete to almost every Winter Olympics for the past thirty years.

Now, New York Times reporter and “gifted storyteller” ( The Wall Street Journal ) Karen Crouse spills Norwich’s secret to raising not just better athletes than the rest of America but happier, healthier kids. And while these “counterintuitive” (Amy Chua, bestselling author of Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother ) lessons were honed in the New England snow, parents across the country will find that “Crouse’s message applies beyond a particular town or state” ( The Wall Street Journal ).

If you’re looking for answers about how to raise joyful, resilient kids, let Norwich take you to a place that has figured it out.

Genres: Nonfiction, Sports, Audiobook, Parenting

288 pages, Paperback

First published January 23, 2018

Reviews

[Dave · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a fun and uplifting quick read. In an era of Tiger Woods and Tiger Moms we see how programming kids from age 3 to be athletic superstars is a recipe for disaster - pretty much like child Hollywood stars.

Here's a town, Norwich, that has 1 Olympian per 350 people and that doesn't buy into Ivy League parenting even though its in the shadow of an Ivy League school and many job's are connected to Dartmouth. Instead of focusing on individualism, it's about team/community. We meet an Olympic skier who plays soccer over her coaches objections because it helps her connect with her peers. Another Norwich Olympian, Andrew Wheating, brings up the difference between 10 point guys (team players) and 1 point guys (individuals). It sounds like these Olympians are well grounded.

Which is good to hear because I think the author and I were in the same place - seeking to recover from our Olympic disillusionment.

For me the Sochi games were DOA. The corruption and cronyism and everything else made me care less. I felt that the Vancouver games highlighted how close towards the X-games the winter games were moving. Meanwhile the athletes in summer and winter games are doped to the gills when they aren't hocking stuff we don't need. I don't feel so good when we win medals because a lot of these are new events we added because had a natural advantage - snowboarding wasn't an event in the first Olympics I remember, which was Calgary. Back then in 88 we knew the the communist countries raised athletes like classical Sparta raised warriors. Doping was on for them, the East German women were grotesque examples, but we had our cheaters too - Ben Johnson, Flo Jo, Carl Lewis - doped to the gills. But the spirit of amateurism in the west and Rocky IV and the 1980 hockey team made it feel wholesome. Now the the summer Olympics are all about GDP - US, China, and Japan lead the way. I don't think medal count is a reflection of athleticism or Olympic spirit.

Of course Norwich is difficult to replicate. It's bedroom for a college town and so many of the people there have advanced degrees and advanced salaries. It was in the right place for the first skiing boom and now that the Salt Lake games and climate change have shifted winter sports to the west, aspiring Olympians have to choose between staying at home in a supportive environment and going to Sparta.

Sparta is best known for self-annihilation, why do we celebrate it?

It's a reflection on our society, one that following the Norwich example can seek to change. When I watching the Calgary games the analogy was that Sparta was the Communist bloc and we were Athens. Seems like we need to go to Norwich to get back to Athens.

[Meg]

Maybe we shouldn't treat children as more mini athletes. Maybe capitalism has ruined amateur sport. Maybe community support for each other is important. And fun. Reading this while reading about kids who only have one meal a day because of school lunch and then deal with racial violence is an appalling contrast to the middle class dream in this gentrified town in Vermont. I also can hardly imagine parents of children who play sports internationally letting them work and pay their way (compared to the Girls in pretty boxes book???) In conclusion. I'm glad I was allowed to be mediocre at sports and live in a small town.

[Dena · Rating 4 out of 5]

Paints Norwich as the ideal place to raise a family, and has a great message about fostering a positive attitude to spots, and life in general, and to celebrate all of life’s accomplishments. I wouldn’t have enjoyed this book as much if I didn’t live in Hanover for 4.5 years. So, with that in mind, I’d recommend this to anyone who lives, or has lived, in the Upper Valley.

[Steve Peifer · Rating 1 out of 5]

So imagine that you are putting together a pitch for a book about John Doe who has been convicted of murder, and you are convinced of his innocence. The publisher bites, you do the research and become convinced that Doe is in fact actually guilty. If you are Karen Crouse, you write the book that says he is innocent, because you don’t let the facts get in the way of your narrative.

If you want to know what entitled privilege looks like, mosey on down to Norwich where the rich white children don’t go to The Olympics for money; they go for the love of the sport. Spoiler alert: they are already rich!

The innocence of Norwich is never challenged by people who start their daughter skiing at the age of TWO because she displays natural aptitude for the sport; somehow that isn’t jarring for the author. Her example of how a known poor student who missed free lunch and is given scraps is meant to illustrate her point but all an honest reader do is to shake their head.

This is in running for the worst book of the year and I’m absolutely in love with Vermont. It’s that bad.

[Heather · Rating 1 out of 5]

I chose this book because I heard the author on NPR and was intrigued by what she might have found in Norwich, the town where I went to pre-school. I was also hoping for some ideas about avoiding the crazy sports parents that we encounter on a regular basis. Unfortunately this book was horribly written, poorly edited and seemed to be trying to fit the stories to match a theory. Many of the metaphors and similes were cringe worthy-"the unqualified support felt warmer on his back than the late-spring sun" or "It was like finding an avocado tree growing among the sugar maples." Ugh. And so much repeated information, the author just kept telling the same stories and repeating the same facts over and over again, it was like an editor had never read this book. I also wasn't convinced that the Olympic athletes she chose actually matched what she wanted to believe about Norwich. This would have been a better article than a book and I do not recommend it.

[Rachel Seelig · Rating 3 out of 5]

Norwich, Vermont has produced a lot of Olympians for a small town, and this author’s thesis is that this is because of a town-wide hands off parenting style in a pastoral landscape with room for its kids to roam (despite the fact that at least two or three of these athletes went to specialized schools for athletes). I don’t disagree with the idea that kids sports have become too intense, specializing too early. And it makes sense to me that, given you can only do winter sports in Vermont in winter that these athletes did other sports for a long time. But I’m unconvinced that this is really a town wide parenting approach,or that, if that is really what this is, that no other town has parents who take this approach. So the thesis I don’t buy. But it was an interesting profile of some of Vermont’s Olympians.

[Mike Dennisuk · Rating 3 out of 5]

Two and a half stars. I found this book a bit disappointing. The theme is an interesting one ... a small town (with small town values) that has regularly produced Olympians. I loved the concept but during the reading, the structure of the book felt wrong to me. It felt as though the concept of the story was forcing itself on the structure of the story. Reading the epilogue and the acknowledgments gave me a clue. I think if she had started with these themes the book may have taken a different, more naturally cohesive, turn. It was a quick, easy read. It was like watching a movie that had the potential to be better but it was not edited properly.

[Msimone · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book takes one hypothèses and hammers it. The author provides up close and personal stories of Norwich athlètes to prove that a town's non- c0mpetitive, self-development attidute , and all accepting approach to "no-cut" sports produces great athletes within the context of a richly endowed enviornment of sports centers, coaches and former olympic athlètes- will produce Olympic winners. This was not enough to sus tain a book, but a magazine article.

[Charlotte Farley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love when nonfiction is written so well that it reads like fiction. Crouse's storytelling prowess shines, and her expert weaving of phrases adds beauty and interest to a book that's already interesting. The Norwich community mindset and its approach to life is, I think, what a lot of us hope for and aim to create, especially in a world that seems more than willing to trade solid values and ethics for the love of the dollar and names in lights. The Norwich connection to so many Olympians is as intriguing as the personal tales of these Olympians' rise to success in their chosen sports and personal paths to happiness when medals and podiums are mere memories.

[Kathleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Much more than a book about elite athletes, it's really about Old School parenting that lets kids be kids without parent intervention at every twist and turn. Crouse confirms what I've always believed about cross-training and the dangers of sport specialization at a young age. This book could also be the antidote for the whole college admissions arms race that's spiraled out of control. There are a lot of take-aways in here.

[Staci · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very interesting read - more about the collective parenting of a community in raising thoughtful, kind and resilient adults than about sports. I thoroughly enjoyed this.

[Louisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quick read and an interesting read on how one small town has produced so many Olympians.

I read a review that that this would have been better as an article than a book and I have to agree.

I did enjoy reading about the athletes but it felt like the author was trying to force the hypothesis on each athlete and their upbringing.

[Penny · Rating 5 out of 5]

This relates the story of one small town in Vermont that produces an extraordinary number of Olympic athletes using the exact opposite of today's pressure cooker approach to sports stardom. Kids are left alone to find out what they love, schools use a no cut approach on their teams, internet access is spotty at best, athletes might do a different sport each season and for those who rise to the top there is no pressure to win, but only to do your best. The town pulls together for all its citizens and whether they ultimately make it to the Olympic podium or not, they are all winners in the eyes of the people of Norwich. And tellingly, all give back to the community passing on the love of sports for the joy of taking part to the next generations.

[Angie Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic book about a town in Vermont that produced Olympic athletes. Not only do they produce athletes but they produce good humans. The goal isn't the Olympics but developing a whole child who loves the outdoors, learning, and giving back. It isn't about the medal, it's about the journey. A wonderful book for everyone, especially parents who think their kid is destined for greatness in whatever sport. It's not about being number 1, but it's about enjoying the sport and doing more than that one thing.

[Beth Shorten · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh...I wanted to like this more. It was very dry in places.

[Laura Cobrinik · Rating 5 out of 5]

Karen Crouse's book, "Norwich: One Tiny Vermont Town's Secret to Happiness and Excellence" is a wonderful feel-good book about a small, cozy, town that has send about 8 people to the Olympics. Six of these Olympians were skiers, one was a swimmer and one was a runner.
Except for Betsy and Sunny Snite, who practiced and became "Olympic" team members, all of the others had their start in the town's recreational ski school which was overseen by Dartmouth University and it's ski coach. I think a lot had to do with the climate and the amount of snow that falls on the mountains in Vermont.
What is unique about Norwich, Vermont, a "Utopian" local nestled between two interstates, is it's caring attitude and it's philosophy when it comes to sports, that even if the Olympian finishes in let's say, twenty-fifth place the skier, swimmer or the runner always has a big all-town send-off with marching bands, etc., and then no matter where the athlete places they come home to Norwich with a big parade in their honor, with banners made and hung along Main Street, and positive "thank you's to each athlete who made the effort. In Norwich the Win does not get a larger "homecoming than one who may have come in last place. It's a town that thanks it athletes more for their efforts than for the Win.
Crouse also states in her book that families choose Norwich as a place to live also for its great school system and as a place where their children do not grow up with a lot of pressure.
After reading Crouse's "Norwich" I get the feeling that the English Romantic Poets like Wordsworth, Keats, and Byron would have felt very comfortable if they lived there. A wonderful book for new parents to read--if they have strong feelings that they don't want their children to grow up with pressure. In Norwich some parents work and some take part in the carpools and watch the other family's children....One of the families who Crouse featured in her book has the mother working as a director of the Recreation Department in Norwich....which means that as each of her kids visit her at work, they have to walk up a staircase in the Municipal building and pass pictures of each of the Olympic participants from Norwich...in the last picture frame of this series there is a question, "Who is next?"
I recommend this book for anyone who wants to be inspired and who wants to relax, and also see that there is a place where "humanity" rules the Earth...as does kindness and empathy.
Laura Cobrinik,
Boonton Township, NJ

[David · Rating 2 out of 5]

As part of getting my mind right for the 2024 games starting in a week or so, I read this short book about a small town in Vermont in which quite a few Olympians grew up, perhaps predictably most of them Winter Olympians.

Only one I knew about previously was the middle distance runner Andrew Wheating. I knew he'd been a late bloomer but not quite the extent of it. Only took up track after a couple years of high school soccer and basketball. As of age 16 apparently I was faster in the mile and probably better at basketball (varsity vs. JV anyway). Our athletic paths diverged thereafter to say the least.

I digress in this solipsistic fashion mainly because the book was otherwise a disappointment. Sappy writing style more characteristic of sports writing from 50-75 years ago. Agreeable thesis (caring more about one's community than oneself, playing multiple sports rather than specializing at an early age, and letting your kids play for fun rather than pressuring them to win all the time = good; insanely competitive sports parenting with an eye on ensuring that your kid snags a scholarship = bad) but........

.........not very convincing evidence. Besides being cherry-picked anecdotes.........is it really remarkable that, say, elite ski jumpers had also done other sports as kids or were not obsessed from a young age with making a living at it? Unless you live at the North Pole, I'm pretty sure year-round nordic combined is not really an option. Would be more compelling if you found in a large sample that, say, fall soccer players who choose baseball instead of more soccer in Spring (and playing for low-key school team instead of high-end travel team) end up being better at soccer and enjoying it more.

[Justin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm split on this one. The individual people and the town as a whole are quite appealing, but it's not that great a book. Crouse takes a single idea and writes several bios to support it. The idea is straightforward: Norwich's countercultural approach to sport can create both star athletes and healthy individuals, but it's not entirely convincing since it's more anecdotal than anything and relies on a small sample size.

The book would have been more interesting had it engaged several other ideas: the importance that wealth/privilege play in the lives of these athletes (an idea at the fringes of the book); current research on related ideas (like John O'Sullivan of David Epstein's work); the point that these athletes are succeeding in individual rather than team sports and in sports that tend to draw from a smaller pool (getting a skier from Vermont seems far more likely than developing a string of soccer, basketball, etc., stars); the fact that the Norwich way seems to be fading.

Even so, it's a compelling book in its way. In an era where youth sports are become more professionalized and the backlash against that movement is becoming more visible, the stories from Norwich are moving and intriguing, and a valuable part of the story. I wish the book had been longer and spent more time contextualizing the narrative, but I don't want to discredit it for being what I wished it was rather than what it's actually intended to be.

[R J Mckay · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a copy of this remarkable book from Goodreads in exchange for a review.

Norwich, Vermont is a little town with a big impact on the Winter Olympics. This town of 3000 residents has sent someone to every Winter Olympics for the past 30 years. The towns folks kiddingly say that it is something in the water. But in reality, it is in the way they raise their children. These Norwich kids are allowed free rein to choose what they want to do, and what sport to play, often becoming involved in multiple sports, depending on the season. As a result, the kids love what they do and truly want to see others reach their full potential. These rising stars learn from the example of those who came before them, and in return, when their time comes, they want to give back to the community that supported them in their endeavors. I think the one sentence in the book that sums it all up is that Norwich is a town where ‘everyone wants success for everybody else’. [page 161]
Imagine kids being kids, without the pressure from ‘helicopter’ parents. Doesn’t that sound too good to be true? Well, not for the town on Norwich.
This book is inspiring. It is about raising children as they should be raised. Every parent sometimes laments that kids don’t come with a manual. Well, just maybe this book should be that manual.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent book even for a non-sports lover like myself. Crouse describes Norwich as a place "where the town treats every child as its own." This should be a must read for any parent whose kids are, or might become, involved in sports. Norwich does it right. I found it ironic that one of the jacket comments about Norwich was written by Amy Chua, author of Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother. Having struggled through her book--which I found disgusting--her comments made me laugh because the parents in Norwich have the right philosophy about raising kids and I would not agree that Amy does. It would be interesting to hear Amy's daughter's comments--I'm guessing they might be jealous of Norwich kids!

[Chad · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read this as an intro to parenting and sports--definitely worth a read to see what a whole athlete approach can be rather than specialization, as well as what a community can do to support athletes beyond their sports. Good storytelling and well-written.

Unfortunately, the word "secret" in the title is misleading. Is it any "secret" why a town with so much white privilege can be excellent and happy? Is it any "secret" why the Protestant values of hard work, community shared values, and public good can produce a better mindset in a high performing athlete? This is more a Norman Rockwell storytelling than a discovery of reality, but it does give one clear answer: privilege can produce good results.

[Patrick Macke · Rating 3 out of 5]

The values espoused to in the book and the town Norwich are commendable. In a world where the Olympic ideal is mostly a faded memory, that there are people and places that have a more enlightened competitive perspective provides a glimmer of hope, still, the phenomenon is an outlier and seems to be a product of an age of innocence that has passed us by. That the small town can produce benefits in many ways that the big city and the unfeeling "machine" can't match seems self-evident and so the book, like the quaint little places of our American past, is a nice idea that tries to tell us what we can have but ends up defining what we have lost. It's kind of a slow-moving fairytale.

[Sheri S. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Norwich is a town that has produced a large number of Olympic athletes and the author explains possible reasons for this phenomenon. She discusses how athletes are encouraged and embraced by their community and how many of them are involved in several sports which produces a more well-rounded athlete. She writes about how parents often take a "hands off" approach instead of micro-managing their children's sports development. Residents of Norwich praise their athletes no manner what the outcome of their Olympic performance and this has had lasting positive results for athletes (whose peers from other towns seem more susceptible to depression following the Olympics).

[Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

Norwich by Karen Crouse is an amazing story of a small town, which has cultivated an astonishing number of Olympic athletes. It is a small book, but then again Norwich is a small village in a small state. Crouse does an excellent job at describing what life in Vermont is really like. The book highlights the stories of several Olympic athletes who grew up in Norwich. The stories are interesting and enlightening. But what I found most interesting from the book is what parents in this town do to create 'well balanced' Olympians. This book is a 'parenting book'. What parents should do to raise independent, inspiring youth. This is a great read. I thoroughly enjoyed reading it.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was not just a good read. Norwich perfectly captures the essence of a town devoted to the ambitions of children and young adults who strive for athletic glory. Most importantly, it defines the support, care and concern of parents and city residents behind these aspiring individuals. Norwich should be a manual for soccer moms and little league dads. Within these pages there are no stories of bullying, demanding, argumentative or mean parents. Children thrive and excel in the positivity of a town proudly behind them. I gave it the maximum 5 stars but it deserves ten times more!

[Ruth Woodward · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting look at parenting of Olympic hopefuls. These people have it right! Don't push these kids too hard. Don't make them commit so soon. Make sure it's something they love. Too many people want to push sports and/or education too hard too soon! Kids need a chance to be kids; to experience a multitude of activities; to mature; to have fun.....before they commit their life to one thing.
Not the best written book, but definitely worth reading.

[Regina Clark · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a pleasant read. It tells the story Olympic athletes who were raised in Norwich,,Vermont. Some athletes were happier than others, one was downright bitter. I enjoyed the determination some of them had and how some just were having fun. What I find most intriguing about Norwich is children are taught to be happy and appreciative of life’s simpler things. A lesson that needs to be taught more & more.

[Martha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Norwich seemed to start slowly and seemed predictable. But it was well worth staying with it. Karen Crouse reflects her respect, compassion and appreciation for the lives in Norwich. Reading it as the Olympics are taking place adds another layer to the appreciation of the research here. It is the story of lives well and humanly lived.

[Marisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Focus on what matters most

This book gives an excellent glimpse into how children do when parents give their children the tools and space to be independent. The stories are a good reminder to take a step back from your child’s life. I only wish there had been more perspective from the parents point of view.

[Aaron · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quick and easy read. Nothing profound in the thesis and the book works better as profiles of the individual athletes than a statement on the conditions that produce excellence in athletics (or in life). As some other reviewers have noted, it is more the depth of a magazine article. To sustain a full book, the author could have gone deeper into the post-Olympic life of the athletes.