I was flying out of the Oakland Airport in April and I noticed a book on the shelf at one of the Kiosk Bookstores. It had a title that was nearly half a page long. I read it and I was hooked. I didn’t buy the book right then because I have an Audible Premium membership that I rely on for my reading (or rather listening.) I looked the book up on Audible (while I was still in the airport,) then downloaded it and synced it out to my Zune. I made a quick stop at Auntie Annes for a Pretzel with marinara sauce, and another quick stop at the ice cream store for a scoop of mint chocolate chip and a scoop of chocolate chip cookie dough. I know that’s not the healthiest lunch but I needed fat and calories and that lunch has plenty of both. I settled down into one of Southwest airlines “comfortable” chairs and started the book. I listened for an hour while I waited for my flight. I listened for the 90 minutes on the plane. I was hooked. The story is fascinating.
Important side note. I don’t run! I play sports. Running to kick a ball, or running to catch a ball, or running to avoid being eaten by a bear, or running to fulfill some other associated task, those I do. Running just to run I don’t do.
I still loved this book! Mostly it is not a book about competitive running but instead a book about the origins, evolution, and practical limits of why we as a species run. I was impressed with the authors ability to carve a truly interesting story from a topic that I would personally consider just mildly interesting to begin with. Boy was I surprised!
I loved the authors use of several interwoven stories to build what for me turned out to be a thoroughly enjoyable reading experience. I would highly recommend the book to you. I will never think of running in the same way again. Not that I have taken up running as a hobby, but next time I am charging down a dirt path in the Uintah mountains with my shotgun at my side, or maybe just playing tag with my kids in the backyard I will smile at the tie that binds us to our past and to our future. Running.