What Is a Girl Worth? by Rachael Denhollander

Denhollander’s brave and detailed memoir serves as a clear-eyed look into a disturbing case of sexual abuse that gained national attention. Denhollander reveals her anguish and emotional pain, her feelings of helplessness (“How do I even try to heal from something, when I don’t even know what that ‘something’ is?”). And so they saw the literally world-changing effect that. It was an exhausting time for the family already. What is a Girl Worth is the inspiring true story of Rachael’s courageous efforts to bring former USA Gymnastics team doctor Larry Nassar to justice. RACHAEL DENHOLLANDER: Most people really only started seeing what was taking place with the Nassar investigation at the sentencing hearing. She reported the abuse to her coaches, but, she writes, they didn’t believe her nearly 16 years later when another gymnast’s story of abuse by a coach broke, Denhollander decided to speak out again, eventually leading to Nassar’s indictment and conviction. Rachael Denhollander was traveling in 2016 when thieves broke into her husband’s van, stealing several thousand dollars’ worth of tools. “Gangly” and 5’6,” she didn’t fit the profile of a gymnast but was placed on her gym’s competitive team after sustaining a lower-back injury at age 15, she was sent to Nassar, who would-under the guise of treatment, without gloves, and without consent-vaginally penetrate her with his fingers. Raised in Kalamazoo, Mich., Denhollander was homeschooled, deeply religious, and aspired to become a lawyer. In this powerful debut, attorney and former gymnast Denhollander tells of her life leading to the 2018 conviction of sexual predator Larry Nassar, a sports physician associated with Michigan State University and the USA Gymnastics team who molested the author and more than 200 other girls. What Is a Girl Worth is the inspiring true story of Rachaels journey from an idealistic young gymnast to a strong and determined woman who found the courage.

What Is a Girl Worth? by Rachael Denhollander