Running Books: Memoirs & History

Insights into individual runners and cultures that support running.

Updated September 20, 2023
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Choosing to run : a memoir
Linden, Des
Paper Book
Choosing to Run takes readers through both the triumphs and greatest challenges of Des Linden's career, including the day that, despite freezing rain and gusting winds, she experienced her career-defining win at the 2018 Boston Marathon. She discusses her unique journey, and how she got there...
Good for a girl : a woman running in a man's world
Fleshman, Lauren
Paper Book
* A New York Times Bestseller * Winner of the William Hill Sports Book Of The Year Award * A Financial Times Best Sports Book of 2023 Fueled by her years as an elite runner and advocate for women in sports, Lauren Fleshman offers her inspiring personal...
The incomplete book of running
Sagal, Peter
Paper Book
"Sagal has created a new genre--the five-minute-mile memoir. Combining commentary and reflection about running with a deeply felt personal story, this book is winning, smart, honest, and affecting. Whether you are a runner or not, it will move you." --Susan Orlean In the...
Let your mind run : a memoir of thinking my way to victory
Kastor, Deena
Paper Book
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER ."Deena Kastor is one of the greatest bodies in distance running, but this book captures what is so groundbreaking about her mind."-Alexi Pappas, Olympian, writer, and filmmaker "Inspiring, fascinating, and insightful. Practical for anyone...
The longest race : inside the secret world of abuse, doping, and deception on Nike's elite running team
Goucher, Kara
Paper Book
INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER In "one of the most important athlete memoirs of its generation" (Kate Fagan, #1 New York Times bestselling author), Olympian Kara Goucher reveals her experience of living through and speaking out about one of the biggest...
A runner's high : my life in motion
Karnazes, Dean
Paper Book
"A Runner's High wakes up the appetite to run long distances. Dean takes us on a lifelong journey of ultramarathons, through the ups and downs, the friendships and lonely moments, and the struggles and rewards of each race. Dean writes in a direct and intimate way that keeps us reading like he...
Running while Black : finding freedom in a sport that wasn't built for us
Désir, Alison Mariella
Paper Book
Running saved Alison Desir's life. At rock bottom and searching for meaning and structure, Desir started marathon training, finding that it vastly improved both her physical and mental health. Yet as she became involved in the community and learned its history, she realized that the sport was...
We share the sun : the incredible journey of Kenya's legendary running coach Patrick Sang and the fastest runners on earth
Gearhart, Sarah
Paper Book
An enlightening biography and gripping sports narrative that takes us behind the scenes into the lives of some of the world's most elite runners in Kenya and their coach, Patrick Sang. "I highly recommend this book." --Meb Keflezighi At a secluded training...

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