Hey, it's NPR's Book of the Day. I'm Andrew Limbaugh. Scout Bassett grew up in a government-run

orphanage in Nanjing, China. Her right leg was amputated when she was a small child, and she never

got a proper prosthetic until much later. She's now a Paralympian, getting bronze medals

in the 100 meters and long jump. It's a pretty wild

story, and it makes sense that the title of her memoir is Lucky Girl. And in this interview

with NPR's Lakshmi Singh, she tells the story about growing up using a prosthetic that's

supposed to look like an anatomical leg, trying to pass, essentially. And she felt exposed the first time she ran in one of those running blades because that

meant there was nowhere to hide.

All she could do was run.

That's after the break.

In the U.S., national security news can feel far away from daily life.

Distant wars, murky conflicts, diplomacy behind closed doors.

On our new show, Sources and Methods.

NPR reporters on the ground bring you stories of real people,

helping you understand why distant events matter here at home.

Listen to sources and methods on the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts.

Scout Bassett's new book is called Lucky Girl.

But long before she ran in the 2016 Paralympic Games,

the celebrated athlete says she never felt all that lucky.

It was just the name she got.

My Chinese name, Jufuja, written in the characters, the Chinese characters, means lucky.

Bassett says some people hear lucky and think it's ironic. When she was an infant in Nanjing, China, Bassett says she survived a fire. She also lost her right leg.

...