What I Talk about When I Talk about Running

A Memoir

By: Haruki Murakami

Narrated by: Ray Porter

Length: 4 hrs and 23 mins

Publisher's summary

From the best-selling author of Kafka on the Shore comes this rich and revelatory memoir about writing and running, and the integral impact both have made on his life. Equal parts training log, travelogue, and reminiscence, this revealing memoir covers Murakami's four-month preparation for the 2005 New York City Marathon.

Settings range from Tokyo, where he once shared the course with an Olympian, to the Charles River in Boston, among young women who outpace him.

Through this marvelous lens of sport emerges a cornucopia of memories and insights: the eureka moment when he decided to become a writer, his triumphs and disappointments, his passion for vintage LPs, and the experience, after age 50, of having seen his race times improve and then fall back.

Translated by Philip Gabriel.

©2007 Haruki Murakami (P)2008 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Murakami crafts a charming little volume notable for its good-natured and intimate tone....An early section recounting Murakami's transition from nightclub owner to novelist offers a particularly vivid picture of an artist soaring into flight for the first time." ( Publishers Weekly)
"A brilliant meditation on how his running and writing nurture and sustain each other....With sparse, engaging prose....Murakami shares his runner's high." ( Sports Illustrated)
"Provides a fascinating portrait of Murakami's working mind and how he works his magic on the page." ( The Plain Dealer)

Excellent story for fans and runners

If you’re a fan of Murakami and running, you’ll enjoy this running memoir. The story and performance are both excellent.

Just good enough

It was good and funny at times for sure and the narrator did a great job. I think for me when it was listed under one of the top 10 best running books through a Google search I was expecting something, I don't know, more or different. it's definitely worth the read or listen whichever you prefer.
-wifey M.

Amazing

My sister told me about this book. I was surprised how very descriptive the author is. You go on a journey with him to different countries and times of his life. A good book.

Beautifully written and inspiring

Such an amazing listen. The book is so beautifully written that listening to it was like drinking a fine wine, savoring each sip. It also encouraged me to keep running, one of life’s pleasures for me

Excellent

Worth every minute, can’t wait to listen again while running, truly a work of art.

what a reading!

The narrator was amazing. I felt that he genuinely reflected the attitude of the author. I could be wrong. but it was a memorable reading and read.
I was recommended this book and will do the same for others. great read.
Thanks for writing it sir.

Good but a bit disjointed

3.5 stars. A sort of odd mix of musings on running and thoughts on being a novelist, sprinkled with bits of memoir. I enjoyed getting a look at Murakami's life and a peak into his mind, but it was hard to discern a real thread -- if this were just a set of essays, it would cover a wider range of topics, but it doesn't read smoothly as a memoir or as a manifesto on running or as a chronicle of how he came to be a novelist. Still, for fans of his novels, time well spent.

Good read if you're a runner

If you like this author or are a runner, you'll enjoy this book. I run daily and enjoyed listening to it while I run. It's a memoir more than anything, but it was interesting.

About his love for Running and Writing

Murakami has always fascinated me and his novels always take me on a trip and in this short memoir about his favourite hobby, Running, he gives us a glimpse of how he views his writing style and how it parallels to when he's running with some tidbits of philosophy thrown in.

Ray Porter, as usual, was brilliant from start to finish.

great story

inspirational to hear how running impacts a person in other areas of their life..awesome to say the least.