I am a runner. One of the most frustrating things about lockdown has been the postponement and then cancellation of marathons and half-marathons. (It’s the ‘not knowing’ that gets you!)
There were cheers in our house when, early in lockdown, the Prime Minister announced that daily outdoor exercise would be permitted (if we had taken an Italian or Spanish approach then I would have had to trot around the edge of the garden, which wouldn’t have been good for the flowers).
I read the brilliant 1Q84 by Murakami several years ago. I only discovered last week that he was not only a runner but has written about running too. While we were staying with family I found “What I Talk About When I Talk About Running” on a bookcase and read it in one sitting. It’s short and easy to read. The style reminded me of Vonnegut, but without the slightly creepy undertones, the science fiction and the repetition that are a feature of Vonnegut’s work.
He writes about running, about life, about his life and background and about disappointment and achievement. This struck lots of chords with me: I don’t run to break records (as if!), but to beat _me_. I am still improving (having only taken up running four and a half years ago). At some point I will have to come to terms (as Murakami has) with the idea that I will be getting slower as I get older (not yet, though!).
This book works for runners and for non-runners, although those who run will recognise lots of references and things that ring true for them.
