A bigger splash

A strange and appealing journey through the sociology of American swimming
pools, Thomas van Leeuwen’s The Springboard in the Pond takes a dive into
history and trawls up treasures. You could predict Esther Williams (an
overdressed, triumphant goldfish), the simple pond, the outrageously glamorous
Beverley Hills horror, but the converted church? Or the Garden of Allah? And
witness the role that the pool plays in obsessions with health—the deadpan
“the only safe pool is a pool filled with sand”, the deadly duel between clean
water and the ferocious chemicals used as disinfectants. Read and enjoy.
Published by MIT Press, $24.95/$40, ISBN 0262220598.