Running the Rift by Naomi Benaron.

This is a response to a previous post about why there isn't more running fiction.

I started reading Running the Rift by Naomi Benaron.

Running the Rift is historical fiction. The story takes place in Rwanda prior to the start of the Rwandan genocide in the 1990s. The main character and his family are Tutsi, an ethnic minority in Rwanda and Burundi.

I'm about 15% into this novel. I knew almost nothing about Rwanda and or the genocide before I started the book, so I'm interested in the story to learn more context about the region and conflict. I've looked up a few things already, and I'm enjoying the motivation to learn more about Africa and Rwanda.

I found the initial conflict to be too cliche. At the beginning of the story the protagonist seems to have it all, elite intellect and athleticism. Right off the bat, readers know something bad is about to happen. The first bad thing is the cliche part that I think the author should have cut. It's not needed. Readers will learn it and understand it just as well as back story. As a reader I thought this is going to be about the genocide when I saw the setting was Rwanda. Then the first main conflict in the story made me think, hmm maybe this isn't about the genocide. Then of course, it is about the genocide and the first cliche conflict was a distraction. Besides this nitpick of mine, the story flows well. It's a slower reveal for both the readers and main character. The first chapters are short and make for fast and easy reading.

I'm going to continue with the story. I'm interested. 

This is book two for me on the list below. The next three are in my sights.

 

Reading the Most Popular Running Fiction Challenge

This was book three of five on the list below.

The following books are the most rated running fiction on goodreads.com, as of 6 July 2024. Goodreads readers can vote here for the best running fiction.

1. The Running Dream by Wendelin Van Draanen (30,771 ratings) (Young Adult Fiction, female high school 400m runner)
   
2. Once a Runner by John L. Parker Jr. (15,114 ratings)
3. *The End of the World Running Club by Adrian J. Walker (14,848 ratings)
   
4. Running the Rift by Naomi Benaron (7,104 ratings) (Historical Fiction, Rwandan genocide)
   
5. The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Runner by Alan Sillitoe (6,686 ratings)

Honorable Ineligible Mentions

• What I Talk About When I Talk About Running by novelist Haruki Murakami (memoir, not fiction)(171,386)
• Forrest Gump by Winston Groom (not enough about running)(68,999)

* Novel might be demoted due to not being enough about running