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transplanted_spud's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
"This is why running stories are timeless."
Noe Alvarez has written a deeply personal, deeply interior book here. Running stories are timeless because they are always, no matter the form or frame or trappings, about spirit. I appreciated reading a running story that wasn't "inspirational" as a change, but still deeply and profoundly moving. I hope Noe was able to find what he needed in the writing of this book. It was an honor to witness his actions and growth.
Noe Alvarez has written a deeply personal, deeply interior book here. Running stories are timeless because they are always, no matter the form or frame or trappings, about spirit. I appreciated reading a running story that wasn't "inspirational" as a change, but still deeply and profoundly moving. I hope Noe was able to find what he needed in the writing of this book. It was an honor to witness his actions and growth.
breoutside's review against another edition
4.0
I mostly liked this book especially the parts where he talked about his parents. His story felt really relatable (though I do not come from exactly the same background.) I did find some of the imagery related to his indigenous companions potentially problematic in purporting stereotypes related to mysticism but on the other hand he was just writing about what he saw and heard so *shrug*. Overall it's worth a read for sure.
icbikecommuter's review against another edition
3.0
The author drops out of college to find himself on a 6000 mile run from Alaska to South America. Much of the story just hurts your heart. Then he also experienced poor treatment on the run as well. I do understand the feeling one experiences running- feeling connected to your spirit and the earth. I have heard of other Peace walks which may have similar
Missions with less trauma. 6000 miles of running has to be hard on the body.
Missions with less trauma. 6000 miles of running has to be hard on the body.
kerri_strikes_back's review against another edition
2.0
I am looking forward to discussing this one... I have many disparate thoughts on it. It feels wrong to dislike something that is trying to share a new (and disenfranchised) perspective, but for the middle half of this book I was just kept repeating to myself, wtf?
The first section is about Noe's life growing up as the son of undocumented immigrant laborers in Yakima, WA, and that part is beautiful and evocative. It paints a nuanced picture of the pain vs. pride.
Then he (mild spoiler this paragraph) goes to college, feels completely unqualified, is not doing well in most of his classes (I saw many parallels here to themes from the book "Educated") and learns about the Peace and Dignity Journeys pan-America run, and feels called to participate. And again, so far, so good - and by good I mean understandable, interesting, well-written memoir, etc.
Then he joins the run and this is where the story went off the rails to me. This is taking place in 2004, so not the long ago past.
Noe sends a email at some point to a past professor of his about the lack of water who then makes inquiries - when the people ostensibly ORGANIZING this run are made aware of these inquiries, their solution is to ask the person "responsible" to confess, and when nobody confesses, they say "fix it" and Noe goes and emails his professor that, oh, everything is fine now!
So, I don't know. There's a Guardian article on the book from last May that includes a (new) quote from Noe saying "If you didn’t want to run, you didn’t have to. Others took on the miles.” but that is not at all the impression I got reading his memoir, and the vibe conveyed of this thing that was supposed to be sacred and activist and meaningful getting mired in these petty but also DANGEROUS conversations really did not sit well with me.
But I must add the caveat that I have no indigenous heritage; had never heard of this run before reading this book; am a very white-privileged woman; maybe I am missing something.
The first section is about Noe's life growing up as the son of undocumented immigrant laborers in Yakima, WA, and that part is beautiful and evocative. It paints a nuanced picture of the pain vs. pride.
Then he (mild spoiler this paragraph) goes to college, feels completely unqualified, is not doing well in most of his classes (I saw many parallels here to themes from the book "Educated") and learns about the Peace and Dignity Journeys pan-America run, and feels called to participate. And again, so far, so good - and by good I mean understandable, interesting, well-written memoir, etc.
Then he joins the run and this is where the story went off the rails to me. This is taking place in 2004, so not the long ago past.
Spoiler
The run is characterized by in-fighting factions. There are a few "strong-willed" participants who believe the run must be experienced in suffering, going so far as to HOARD WATER IN THE DESERT because they believe some of the runners are not "taking the run seriously enough." Noe is one of the runners "not taking the run seriously enough," a BOY who is running 15+ miles per day on excruciating knees, inadequate nutrition, never saying no to when he is told to run MORE (often BY these so-called "leaders" - I am sorry, if you believe you should be suffering for this run, then why don't YOU get out there and run more??????). The two ringleaders of this "run is pain" faction end up in relationships with some of the women on the run and I am reading this all very concerned from the (admittedly limited) view presented that those relationships might be abusive. (One girlfriend "sneaks Noe a water bottle" at one point -- is that something she would be punished for? Noe frequently expresses his fear of these men. So, WTF?)Noe sends a email at some point to a past professor of his about the lack of water who then makes inquiries - when the people ostensibly ORGANIZING this run are made aware of these inquiries, their solution is to ask the person "responsible" to confess, and when nobody confesses, they say "fix it" and Noe goes and emails his professor that, oh, everything is fine now!
So, I don't know. There's a Guardian article on the book from last May that includes a (new) quote from Noe saying "If you didn’t want to run, you didn’t have to. Others took on the miles.” but that is not at all the impression I got reading his memoir, and the vibe conveyed of this thing that was supposed to be sacred and activist and meaningful getting mired in these petty but also DANGEROUS conversations really did not sit well with me.
But I must add the caveat that I have no indigenous heritage; had never heard of this run before reading this book; am a very white-privileged woman; maybe I am missing something.
running_g8r's review against another edition
3.0
I really appreciated how the author tied his parents' experiences as Mexican immigrants living in the U.S. with those of the indigenous runners he meets on his journey. However, keeping track of the people and places in this memoir was very confusing for me. Overall, I still loved the story.
wordscatscaife's review against another edition
5.0
So, I almost didn't read this book based on some of the reviews I read here, but I'm glad I decided to read it after all. I'm not sure if everyone who wrote reviews actually read the book, because they mentioned things like the author not being of indigenous heritage (he states clearly in the book that he is) and the authorities being called (legal action was going to be taken, but it's not like 911 randomly showed up to the runners' site). People also mentioned customs and traditions not being shared, which wasn't the case. Noé presented the people in his book as willing to share what they thought and believed. What did happen was a conflict between local customs and those participating in the PDJ.
Some thoughts on the book:
1) Tone: The reason I looked up reviews was because the tone of the first few pages was very abrasive and I wanted to see if others had the same reaction and if the rest of the book was probably going to be in the same tone.
2) Language: The author includes some text in Spanish, but it isn't always grammatically correct. As a sociolinguist, I can appreciate that the way it's written may be the way people actually talk, but part of me also wishes there had been a bilingual editor for this book. Nothing super big or unintelligible, but just little things that stood out to me.
3) The race itself: I'm conflicted as to how I feel about the race. I respect the reasons for Noé and others going on this race, and I appreciate the fact that many people (organizers and runners included) may feel that difficulties and hardships are necessary to create the kind of experience they're going for, but at the same time, I take issue with food and water being refused people on purpose. Noé also is kind of confusing in how he represents people - he'll say negative things about them, but then something positive, or vice versa, which could be taken as him showing people as flawed and complex, but in the end for me it came across as just confusing.
Overall I won't say Noé is the greatest writer in the world. It's true that a marathon is 26.2 miles, not 6,000, and his writing is at times kind of random (like the dog story). I'm not sure that I agree with others who wished for more character development, as I think Noé intended this book as a way to share his own personal story of growth. I was confused a lot - for example, with what to think about other people on the race, about why he chose to finish the race when he did, what the dog story had to do with anything, and if the race really fulfilled what he had hoped it would.
Given all of that, I think this book is super important because of who's telling it. Noé is Latino, from a group of people that doesn't always get the spotlight in a positive or neutral way. He also highlights his Purépecha heritage and the different tribes and groups represented by the people who run with him. In that way he give a voice to people who typically don't have one in a society dominated politically and socially by whites. I think we need to have more stories told by people who aren't typically represented or given voices, and for that reason I thank Nomadic Matt for recommending this book and I recommend it to others.
Some thoughts on the book:
1) Tone: The reason I looked up reviews was because the tone of the first few pages was very abrasive and I wanted to see if others had the same reaction and if the rest of the book was probably going to be in the same tone.
2) Language: The author includes some text in Spanish, but it isn't always grammatically correct. As a sociolinguist, I can appreciate that the way it's written may be the way people actually talk, but part of me also wishes there had been a bilingual editor for this book. Nothing super big or unintelligible, but just little things that stood out to me.
3) The race itself: I'm conflicted as to how I feel about the race. I respect the reasons for Noé and others going on this race, and I appreciate the fact that many people (organizers and runners included) may feel that difficulties and hardships are necessary to create the kind of experience they're going for, but at the same time, I take issue with food and water being refused people on purpose. Noé also is kind of confusing in how he represents people - he'll say negative things about them, but then something positive, or vice versa, which could be taken as him showing people as flawed and complex, but in the end for me it came across as just confusing.
Overall I won't say Noé is the greatest writer in the world. It's true that a marathon is 26.2 miles, not 6,000, and his writing is at times kind of random (like the dog story). I'm not sure that I agree with others who wished for more character development, as I think Noé intended this book as a way to share his own personal story of growth. I was confused a lot - for example, with what to think about other people on the race, about why he chose to finish the race when he did, what the dog story had to do with anything, and if the race really fulfilled what he had hoped it would.
Given all of that, I think this book is super important because of who's telling it. Noé is Latino, from a group of people that doesn't always get the spotlight in a positive or neutral way. He also highlights his Purépecha heritage and the different tribes and groups represented by the people who run with him. In that way he give a voice to people who typically don't have one in a society dominated politically and socially by whites. I think we need to have more stories told by people who aren't typically represented or given voices, and for that reason I thank Nomadic Matt for recommending this book and I recommend it to others.
novelnotions's review against another edition
3.0
I read this book as part of work book club event. As a runner who has done 1/2 marathons and run events like Ragnar, I definitely connected to the author when he talked about the joys/pains of running. The unique aspects of his journey, both the geography and the group dynamics, were interesting and I'm looking forward to discussing with the book club group and hearing the thoughts others had.