Our Favorite Books About Running
Even if you don't think you're a runner
This Saturday, our little city of Lancaster, PA will be hosting the 49th annual Red Rose Run. While none of the Nooks crew will be participating this year (I—Maile— just started pounding the pavement again earlier this spring so don’t count me out for next year,) it got us thinking about the books we love about running. But before that old voice in your head says, “Running isn’t my thing,” hear us out. Read one of these titles, and you might change your mind!
Born to Run by Christopher McDougall
I (Lisa) am an on-again, off-again runner. Right now I’m in my “off” stage, and if anything could pump me up to get going again it would be this book. Born to Run is about “superathletes” and the kinds of runners I will never be, but it is such an inspiration. I remember feeling joy when I read it because the story of these people and the race they run was just infused with fun. When I talk to other runners, this book comes up a lot.
Running with Sherman by Christopher McDougall
McDougall made a name for himself back in 2009 with his first book Born to Run, that took a deep (and oh so entertaining) dive into the trend of barefoot running. On the recommendation of my dad, I (Maile) read the book, loved it, and went on a mad hunt for a pair of goofy five-toed shoes, sure I would be an ultra, barefoot running fool by the time summer was out. It never happened.
But while McDougall didn’t ultimately convince me to run 100 miles in a pair of leather sandals, his book Running with Sherman definitely had me itching to follow in his shoes by finding my own rescue donkey and entering the Leadville Boom Days Pack Burro Race. After rescuing Sherman, a grossly neglected donkey, McDougall decides that the best way to solidify their fragile relationship and give them both an adventure of a lifetime is to run the Leadville Burro Race together in the hills of Colorado.
Their journey is hilarious, heartbreaking and ultimately hopeful as McDougall and Sherman meet a cast of wacky characters across the country who all help to make their dream of racing come true. It’s a story as inspiring as it is fun to read, and might have you concocting a few far-fetched dreams of your own.
The Slow AF Run Club by Martinus Evans
I (Maile) have been an intermittent runner ever since college. Truth be told, I hesitated to even call myself a “runner” because my mile times were consistently above and beyond the ten minute mark, which would probably be qualified as a “fast walk” by those gazelles that sped past me on the way to their 7 minute miles. Was I really allowed to be a “runner”?
Enter Martinus Evans’s book The Slow AF Run Club. As the story of his own running journey unfolds, Evans, a 300lb-plus runner who has competed in hundreds of races (including many marathons), opens wide the door of the running world to all the “slow, fat, and non-traditional runners” out there. How refreshing!
Evans invites all of us to partake in the goodness of running without getting hung up on how we look or how fast we go while we do it. It’s the pep talk everyone who’s ever thought “I could never be a runner” has been waiting for.
Good For a Girl by Lauren Fleshman
I (Lisa) read this one a couple of summers ago and was shocked—shocked, I tell you!—at how much inequality still exists in women’s sports. We’ve come a long way, but we still have a long way to go.
“Equality doesn’t end at the equal rights to play. True equality in sports, like any other industry, requires rebuilding the system so there is an equal chance to thrive,” Fleshman writes. From body image to how puberty and maturation affect a girl’s performance to eating disorders and injury, Fleshman covers a lot of ground (pun intended?). Her story is inspiring, empowering, and at times, heartbreaking.
You don’t have to be a runner to connect with the message of Good For A Girl.
Track Series by Jason Reynolds
Yes, this is technically middle grade (with some mature themes), but I (Lisa) could not get enough of this series that follows a group of middle school students picked to run on an elite track team. Each runner has their own book—Ghost, Patina, Sunny, and Lu—and each one ends just as the race is beginning, so you have to read the next one to find out what happens. They were all five-star books for me.
And—good news!—a fifth book in the series is releasing in October. It’s called Coach, and I’m adding it to my TBR right now.
Could our list be longer? Sure! But we love to hear from you, too. What books about running do you love?
I LOVE THE TRACK SERIES!!!
coincidentally, I featured it today, too 😆
I love them all!