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  • The Running Book

  • A Journey Through Memory, Landscape and History
  • By: John Connell
  • Narrated by: John Connell
  • Length: 4 hrs and 18 mins
  • 4.9 out of 5 stars (20 ratings)
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The Running Book cover art

The Running Book

By: John Connell
Narrated by: John Connell
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Summary

From the award-winning, number one best-selling author of The Cow Book.

It is summer; the hay and silage have not yet been made on John Connell’s farm, so he has time to indulge his other great passion: running. John sets off on a marathon run of 42.2 kilometres through his native Longford, the scene of his award-winning The Cow Book

As he runs across woodlands, fields and tiny roads, he tells the story of his life and contemplates Ireland’s history, old and new. He also remembers other great runs he has done, from Australia to Canada, and tells the stories of some of his running heroes, such as Haile Gebrselassie.

Part memoir, part essay, The Running Book explores what it is to be alive and what movement can do for a person. It is deeply intimate and wide-ranging, local and global: Connell is as likely to write about colonialism and the effect of British imperialism in Ireland and its former colonies as he is about life on his family farm in Ballinalee, County Longford. Told in 42 chapters, each another kilometre in the 42.2k race, the whole book is 42,000 words long, and it captures what it is to undertake a marathon moment by moment, in body and mind. Above all, The Running Book is a book about the nature of happiness and how for one man it came through the feet.

©2020 John Connell (P)2020 Macmillan Publishers International Ltd
  • Unabridged Audiobook
  • Categories: History

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What listeners say about The Running Book

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Nodding along

I recognised almost every sentiment, strain, victory and loss (long-term victory) expressed; the only difference being the characters and the landscapes in the stories I lose myself in whilst on the road, in the hills or even on the treadmill. Very well written and narrated. Thank you.

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Wonderful Book

Absolutely loved this book. It is entertaining, educational and uplifting. John's delivery was beautiful

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Dream run

Takes you on a ethereal and historical trip through Co Longford and beyond. The running is important and his love of the peace of mind it brings shines through. Not every runner hits a physical wall in a marathon but I'm being pedantic now.

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Very interesting book

I really enjoyed this audio book. I listened to it while out running and I found it both a very motivational listen and also great from a historical perspective as there is short stories on the history of places john ran in..

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excellent

another wonderful book from John Connell.
he reads just as well as he writes.

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Beautifully written and delivered

As a runner of some years and an Irishman this work resonated deeply with me, however it transcends both nationality and being a runner, extraordinarily sensitive and beautiful.

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A very enjoyable canter through aspects of history

A well written personal story of the authors homeland and it's history as he understands it.

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Soothing as a I Meandered to his Musings

John speaks as well as he writes (praise upon praise), a companion that will do the hard miles even if you are strolling along. Whether he speaks of heavy truths of history or light hearted stories, it is easy to listen to. No matter how deep he goes or no matter how little you want to absorb, it is a pleasure to hear a wide range of interesting passages. You will come away with some trinket, even if you know a good whack about a fair bit.

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