A review by tim_ohearn
Once a Runner by John L. Parker Jr.

4.0

Newly obsessed with running (and no longer being objectively terrible at it), I received this book as a Christmas present. I love my parents dearly, but this was the only time that they nailed it in the Thoughtful Christmas Gift category. Once a Runner. Quentin Cassidy. The Trial of Miles; Miles of Trials. The cabin in the woods. The race at the end. This book was to me what Harry Potter is like to those interested in wizardry. If I was one of those book freaks, I'd have packed this up in my track bag before every race. This book was associated with such a vibrant, exciting time in my life during which I never once considered the prospect of taking a victory lap. I'm not saying it'll change your life. I'm not even saying that the writing was anything spectacular. Once a Runner is a book the competitive runner understands at a visceral level.