It's fair to say that I struggled with this book somewhat.
The sub title held a pretty good hook to make it stand out from most books of the running and endurance genre that I have read before. "Stories of ordinary runners overcoming extraordinary adversity" suggested an anthology of case studies. What I had not expected was that a recurrent theme would be the author comparing the experiences of her subjects with her own, when this "journey" into running had already been dealt with in her previous work, "Running for MY life", which I had not read at that point.
After a subjective preamble, the book does partially develop in the manner of a series of case studies. After writing her first book, Ms Cullen was contacted by many people who had struggled with mental and physical health issues and many of these felt that taking up running had been instrumental in changing their lives for the better, or by allowing them to cope with other challenges. The book tells the stories of 17 of these, 13 women and 4 men, but also constantly relates back to the author's own lifetime struggles with her mental health, self esteem and severe body dysmorphia. At times I felt that these other subjects were being used purely as props in the self-depicted drama of the author's own life, but nevertheless found these individual accounts to be poignant and thought provoking. But I became convinced that their stories would have benefitted more from an objective dispassionate narrator.
Before writing this review I felt I ought to read "Running for my Life", and I have just completed it. Like the subject of this review the book is quite readable, is easy to follow, and is well edited. It is purely autobiographical, but is full of judgements about other people's intentions and motivations. The men in the author's life do not get a good press, it is fair to say, but after all the title does make it clear it is really "all about Rachel".
I think that if you enjoyed "Running for My Life", and were drawn to the author's own struggles, you will find a place in your library for this obvious follow up. The perspective on different types of struggle with a common theme of running as redemption or compensation is an interesting one. Perspectives will differ on whether "Running for our lives" is truly a book about running, and, in any case, dealing with 17 "cases" in around 200 pages demands the type of superficiality that I am not personally attracted to in a book. The author's insights are from an observer who apparently has no professional qualifications as a counsellor or mental health practitioner. The resulting superficiality and subjectivity were at the root of my doubts about the value of the book. The underlying theme of "running as therapy" would really benefit from the insights of mental health professionals.
The book is available direct from the publisher, Vertebrate Publishing, on the following link
https://www.adventurebooks.com/collections/running/products/running_for_our_lives
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