book review – Born to Run
On the insistence of my Adventure Racing buddy, Dave Adlard, I bought a book.
Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen
A fantastic read, even for non-runners. The author, Christopher McDougall, (video) is a master story teller. I was gripped by this true life story.
Full of incredible characters, amazing athletic achievements, cutting-edge science, and, most of all, pure inspiration, Born to Run is an epic adventure that began with one simple question: Why does my foot hurt? In search of an answer, Christopher McDougall sets off to find a tribe of the world’s greatest distance runners and learn their secrets, and in the process shows us that everything we thought we knew about running is wrong. …
It’s available on Audible.com, as well as in a Kindle edition.
Get it!
I listened to this book immediately after Dan Brown’s entertaining The Lost Symbol (my review).
It was crystal clear that Dan Brown is a hack compared with by Christopher Mcdougall.
Why is that?
I believe Brown is an old school author. Mcdougall an author of the future,
Mcdougall is a journalist, writing primarily magazine articles. This is his first book.
A magazine article must be instantly engaging. Otherwise the reader will flip ahead to the next story.
Christopher Mcdougall reminds me of Jon Krakauer, another magazine scribe turned author.
Bottom line: get Born to Run.
to add to my list…I am in a reading frenzy these days…
but the bulk of paper books is getting me down – come Apple, make your announcement!
Dana
January 20, 2010 at 9:26 am
Hi Rick, I agree great book. I bought the audio version and really enjoyed it. Wasn’t too sure about his claims about running barefoot but I just read a study which validates his claims. Check out the study at: http://www.pmrjournal.org/article/S1934-1482%2809%2901367-7/abstract
Currently reading “The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt’s Darkest Journey” by Candice Millard.
It is a great book.
Bill Wallace
January 21, 2010 at 8:05 pm
Thanks Bill.
I’m going to try some trail running in Teva style sandals this year. Striking toe first. Short strides.
See what happens.
rickmc
January 21, 2010 at 9:09 pm
[...] recently reviewed a book called Born to Run by Christopher [...]
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