This is a response to a previous post about why there isn't more running fiction.
I started reading The Running Dream by Wendelin Van Draanen.
The Running Dream is young adult fiction. The main character is a junior in high school and 400 meter runner. She has an accident and can no longer run. The chapters are very short and the pace of the book is fast. So far the first ~10% of the book doesn't have much to do with running. I assume it'll be more about running because of the title, structure of the story, and the character's mentality. Through no fault of the author, writing, characters, or story, I probably won't continue with this book.
The author Van Drannen is a runner. If you read over her website, she mentions running multiple times, even finishing six marathons.
For runners interested in young adult fiction, I'd recommend this book.
I plan to check out and briefly review the other four running novels below.
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.
- The Running Dream by Wendelin Van Draanen (30,771 ratings) (Young Adult Fiction, female high school 400m runner)
- Once a Runner by John L. Parker Jr. (15,114 ratings)
- *The End of the World Running Club by Adrian J. Walker (14,848 ratings)
- Running the Rift by Naomi Benaron (7,104 ratings) (Historical Fiction, Rwandan genocide)
- The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Runner by Alan Sillitoe (6,686 ratings)
- 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)
No comments:
Post a Comment