Bravey (Adapted for Young Readers) Chasing Dreams, Befriending Pain, and Other Big Ideas

Alexi Pappas is not only an Olympic runner, actress, filmmaker, she is a writer whose heartwarming and life-affirming memoir will inspire young readers, as she shares the touchstone moments in her life that helped her learn about confidence and self-reliance, compassion and forgiveness, and loss and hope, in this accessible and motivating memoir.

What is a bravey? For Alexi Pappas, it means to chase the goals that seem scary. She has not shied away from the challenge.

In this honest and hopeful memoir written especially for young readers, Alexi Pappas details key moments that had profound effects on her life, including the loss of her mother when she was just four years old, to her formative years at school where she felt different from her peers, and into her young adult life, including the incredible year she experienced in 2016 when she made her Olympic debut as a distance runner and wrote, directed, and starred in her first feature film. Through it all, Alexi worked hard—physically, mentally, and emotionally, but not without setbacks and hardships along the way.

Young readers will be inspired by this plucky young girl who refused to pick one lane and was compelled to explore various pursuits in athletics as well as the creative arts, crafting an abundant life filled with loving friends and family, and strong female role models and mentors she sought out—all who helped shape the bravey she is today.

Alexi Pappas is an award- winning writer, filmmaker, and Olympic athlete. Her writing has appeared in The New York Times, Runner’s World, Women’s Running, Sports Illustrated, The Atlantic, and Outside, among other publications, and she has been profiled in The New York Times, Sports Illustrated, New York, and Rolling Stone. Pappas co- wrote, co- directed, and starred in the feature film Tracktown with Rachel Dratch and Andy Buckley. Most recently, she co- wrote and starred along-side Nick Kroll in Olympic Dreams, the first non- documentary style movie ever to be filmed at the Olympic Games. A Greek American, Pappas holds the Greek national record in the 10,000 meters and competed for Greece in the 2016 Olympics. She lives in Los Angeles, California.