The Memory of Running

I just finished up listening to the unabridged audio book of “The Memory of Running” by Ron McLarty.

At the end of the audio book, there is a lengthy interview with the author (pretty cool feature of an audio book). He mentions that since he is an actor and playwright, he often reads his writing aloud after he completes part of it to make sure it’s moving along as he intends. His opinion is that this book was really meant to be read aloud to be appreciated. I agree.

I really enjoyed this book, although I think it would have most likely made me miserable actually reading it. I’m not much of a reader, mainly because any time I do pick up a book for reading, it’s usually a technical manual. I read enough of those that I just don’t view reading as a leisure activity. It’s work for me.

The book really isn’t so much about the main character, Smithy, but about the people he meets and interacts with. I think most people can understand the main character as someone who just didn’t amount to much, and we’re happy to go along for the ride while he puts some meaning into his life.

The style of writing lends itself to many stories from the past, if not more so than the present. Because there are so many different interactions with other characters, it’s difficult to describe exactly why I liked this book so much. It must be the variety, and that the scenery and people are constantly changing which moves this read along.

I especially like that I feel that this story could have happened. It stays based in a "could have happened" reality, and didn't try to become a over the top "failure to astounding success" type of story. The ending was satisfying, but I wouldn't call it a happy ending, nor sad. Again, this book is difficult to describe, because it's a rare form that doesn't try to fill any of the well-known templates for modern novels.

Yes, I realize I'm being vague, so I leave you with this: I recommend the audio book to anyone, and the actual book to anyone that enjoys a good read but doesn’t need a compelling story to “hook” them into the book.