What I Talk About When I Talk About Running

What I Talk About When I Talk About Running: A Memoir by Haruki Murakami, 180 pages

Japanese author Murakami has been running long distances for as long as I've been alive. In this short memoir, he discusses running and its place in his life, focusing largely on his preparations for the 2006 New York City Marathon. This isn't a how-to book, nor does Murakami ever attempt to persuade his readers that they should try running (he admits early on that running is either something you want to do, or it's not; nothing he says is going to convince anyone to do it). Rather, this is an introspective look at the relationship between running, writing novels, and life.

I'm a new runner, having signed up to run my first 5K this May (the Memorial Day Run; register to run with me here). I listened to the downloadable audiobook of this while I ran, and while it might seem intimidating to listen to a guy talk about running an ultramarathon (that's 62 miles, for us humans) while huffing and puffing away on a treadmill, I found the opposite to be true. Hearing about Murakami's sore knees and burning lungs made me feel a bit better about my own aches and pains, creating a kinship with the author. His Zen attitude toward running was also infectious, and I found myself adopting it as I ran. I highly recommend this book to other runners, whether they're veterans like Murakami or rookies like me.