On My Own Two Feet: From Losing My Legs to Learning the Dance of Life

by Amy Purdy

Overview

Amy Purdy, who inspired a nation on Dancing with the Stars and has been called a hero by Oprah Winfrey, reveals the intimate details of her triumphant comeback from the brink of death to making history as a Paralympic snowboarder.

In this poignant and uplifting memoir, Dancing With the Stars sensation Amy Purdy reveals the story of how losing her legs led her to find a spiritual path. When the Las Vegas native was just nineteen, she contracted bacterial meningitis and was given less than a two percent chance of survival. In a near-death experience, she saw three figures who told her: “You can come with us, or you can stay. No matter what happens in your life, it’s all going to make sense in the end.” In that moment, Amy chose to live.

Her glimpse of the afterlife—coupled with a mysterious premonition she’d had a month before —became the defining experiences that put Amy’s life on a new trajectory after her legs had to be amputated. She wouldn’t just beat meningitis and walk again; she would go on to create a life filled with bold adventures, big dreams, and boundless vitality—and share that spirit with the world. In 2014, Amy—the only competitor, male or female, with two prosthetic legs—claimed a bronze medal for the U.S. Paralympic team in adaptive snowboarding. She then became a contestant on season eighteen of Dancing With the Stars, and viewers were captivated as the girl with bionic legs managed to out-dance her competitors all the way to the finale.

Amy’s journey is a testament to the resilience of the human spirit and the capacity we all have to dream bigger, defy expectations, and rewrite our stories. Amy was given a second chance for a reason—to use her life to inspire others. Her powerful memoir urges us to live life to the fullest, because we are all a lot more capable than we could ever imagine.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062379115
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	03/19/2024
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	261
Sales rank:	459,687
File size:	19 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Amy Purdy is the top-ranked female adaptive snowboarder in the U.S., a three-time World Cup para-snowboard gold medalist, the 2014 Paralympic bronze medalist, the founder of Adaptive Action Sports, and a New York Times bestselling author. She is a professional motivational speaker who has been featured at both TEDx and Pop Tech, and is also an actress, model, dancer, clothing designer, and an experienced product spokesperson.

Table of Contents

Prologue 1

Chapter 1 The Stanger 3

Chapter 2 Desert Daydreams 8

Chapter 3 Bonfires and Snowboards 18

Chapter 4 A Different World 33

Chapter 5 The Edge 43

Chapter 6 Awake 57

Chapter 7 Ground Shift 64

Chapter 8 Home 79

Chapter 9 New Season 97

Chapter 10 The Gift 107

Chapter 11 Connection 123

Chapter 12 Action Plan 143

Chapter 13 Transition 154

Chapter 14 Horizons 161

Chapter 15 The Race 173

Chapter 16 New Roles 181

Chapter 17 Sochi 196

Chapter 18 Universal Rhythm 213

Epilogue: Reflections 239

Acknowledgments 245