“Naomi Osaka is everywhere, but how did she get here?” With Naomi Osaka back on tour after a year of maternity leave, Ben Rothenberg’s biography Naomi Osaka: A Journey to Finding Her Power is a perfect read for any avid Osaka fans, tennis enthusiasts, or just a typical reader.
As someone who has been supporting Naomi since 2017, when I heard the news of this book, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on it. It did not disappoint! The biography is a chronological outlook on Naomi’s life from her parent’s generation to 2021. Not only did the biography provide new information about my favorite tennis player, but it also strengthened her image in my mind. The renowned tennis journalist delivered Osaka’s rise to fame in 496 pages with details that I never imagined possible.
Through the enjoyable read, common themes important to Naomi are covered. Mental health, a topic that has always been at the forefront of Naomi was discussed heavily in the book. Instead of focusing on the Roland Garros 2021 refusal to participate in the press conference, Rothenberg starts the book with the heckle incident at Indian Wells and portrays the importance of mental health throughout the biography. In addition, I was nervous about the depiction of the 2018 US Open controversy with Serena Williams. Fortunately, the foreshadowing of Naomi’s admiration for Serena helps the reader to understand Naomi’s stance on the whole situation, and it is beautifully written.
In my opinion, one of the best parts of the biography is Ben’s specific description of the 2020 US Open. In the 2020 US Open, Naomi Osaka wore seven masks with the names of the seven black victims who faced injustices because of their race. The book went into detail about the background story of each of the victims and achieved Naomi’s goal of “[making] people start talking.”
Not only does the book illustrate the details of Naomi’s life in extreme detail, but the biography also includes inputs from many of those relevant to her life. For example, the book cites Osaka’s former coach Sascha Bajin’s biography, as well as Naomi’s mother’s memoir. To get input from Naomi herself, interestingly, Ben chooses to use Naomi’s social media feed. Osaka often posts her thoughts on her social media through a screenshot of the “notes” app. This immediately shifts the book from a third-person POV to a first-person POV, creating the effect that Naomi is writing the book.
Although some may think that the book is only suitable for a regular tennis watcher, I would respectfully disagree. The book is a great way for people to get into tennis! Ben explained the schedule of the tour and the game of tennis clearly. Moreover, not only will someone gain knowledge about tennis through this book, but also learn about journalism, ethnicity, and athletes.
The only criticism I have, however, is the density of the book. As a crazy Naomi fan, it took me a full two weeks to get through the book. Although this might be because I annotate while reading the biography, I do find some of her beginning journey to be repetitive. This isn’t a huge issue since this book largely serves to inform the readers about Naomi’s life without twisting any details!
Overall, a great book for anyone who LOVES tennis! Being both a tennis podcast host and a reader, I have an episode that goes into more detail about the book for anyone interested. I gave a rating of the book as well as describing other topics I enjoy! Click this link to listen on Spotify, and be sure to follow my podcast on Spotify and Youtube.
