Caitlin Clark is without doubt one of the biggest names in women’s basketball, and her accomplishments on the court are anything but ordinary. But the Indiana Fever star does not believe her extraordinary career has changed who she is at her core.
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“People watch me on TV, and they think the things I do are extraordinary, but I also feel like a very ordinary person at the same time,” Clark says.
Caitlin Clark made the comments in a new interview with PEOPLE, in which she opened up about balancing her growing stardom with her everyday life and shared the perspective behind her newly released children’s book. For Clark, being extraordinary and feeling ordinary are two things that can exist at the same time.
“I feel like, you have these two different things, but at the same time, it’s one,” she said.
The way Clark sees it, extraordinary achievements do not always require extraordinary actions. Sometimes, reaching the biggest dreams simply comes down to doing a little extra, a lesson she has learned throughout her own career.
“I think it’s the difference in just doing a little extra to reach your big dreams, and I think a lot of times, even through my career and even growing up and wanting to achieve really great things, a lot of moments can seem really daunting and feel like you need to do these huge things to accomplish whatever big goal you have,” Clark said.
That message is also reflected in the title of her new book, “EXTRAordinary! A Little EXTRA to Reach BIG Dreams,” which hit store shelves on Tuesday, November 3. And prior to her interview with PEOPLE, Clark had already appeared on morning shows such as Good Morning America and TODAY to share the deeply personal off-court perspectives that shaped the project.
For example, as Clark revealed, the core theme of the 32-page rhyming book stems from a real, customized mirror that hung in Clark’s childhood bedroom. Her parents had the mirror made before she was born, inscribed with motivational phrases about pushing beyond normal limits.
“It’s a super personal thing for me,” Clark says. “My parents still have it up there. They still live in the same house, so a lot of it speaks to my story and the way I was raised. It was a mirror I looked in every single day, and it’s just always been a great reminder.”
According to Clark, the book is not just for aspiring athletes but for any young child navigating self-esteem, teamwork, and personal goals. It highlights her off-court reality, the way she was raised, and her journey through life and her basketball career, as Clark’s book title says, about doing the little extra things.
Caitlin Clark Reveals Heartwarming Family Tradition That Inspired Her New Children’s Book
Caitlin Clark’s new children’s book is more than just a story about chasing big dreams. It also reflects the values and traditions that shaped her childhood.
In her interview with PEOPLE, the Indiana Fever star opened up about how her parents inspired her love of reading, revealing a heartwarming Christmas Eve tradition that she hopes to carry forward with her own friends.
“My mom was an English major in college, and she’s a huge book person, so I always grew up getting books as gifts,” Clark said. “We always had a tradition that my brothers and I would get a book on Christmas Eve that my mom and my dad picked out for us, and there was always a note in there that my mom wrote to us every single year.”
And yes, Clark intends to carry on that special family tradition.
“I think I’ll probably take after my mom’s tradition a little bit too and just write a note to everybody. I feel like that’s something that’s super personal and something that even young kids will be able to keep and have as long as they grow up.”
That’s indeed a fitting thread to close on.