The Memory of Running

De: Ron McLarty

Narrado por: Ron McLarty

Award-winning actor and playwright Ron McLarty is well known for his audiobook performances. What fewer people realize is that he's also an accomplished author. In this wonderfully quirky novel, available exclusively as an audiobook, McLarty takes readers on a quest to find hope and redemption with an unlikely hero.

Smithson Ide is 43 years old and weighs 279 pounds when his parents die in an accident. Lost in memories of childhood, Smithson uncovers his old Raleigh bicycle in the garage and begins a cross-country journey to find his beautiful, but tragically psychotic sister. Keenly aware of how ridiculous he must appear, Smithson nonetheless perseveres through a journey that is hilarious and horrifying. It is a trip, he soon realizes, that might provide his last chance to become the person he has always wanted to be.

In late 2003, in his column in Entertainment Weekly, Stephen King called The Memory of Running "the best novel you won't read this year." This glowing endorsement of the audiobook resulted in Ron McLarty receiving a $2 million two-book deal from Viking Penguin. Also, Warner Brothers has shelled out big bucks for the movie rights to The Memory of Running, for which McLarty will write the script.©2002 Ron McLarty (P)2002 Recorded Books, LLC

Reseñas de la Crítica

"Ron McLarty's The Memory of Running is the best novel you won't read this year. But you can experience it, and I'm all but positive that you'll thank me for the tip if you do....What I hope is that you'll order a copy and experience it for yourself....It's bighearted and as satisfying as one of your mom's home-cooked Sunday dinners." (Stephen King, Entertainment Weekly)

ended strangely

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

this book just ended strangely and I was not at all surprised. They dragged it on so long to then just end it

Very juvenile plot line with awkward sex scenes

I struggled with this book. The first few chapters were extremely dull. It did get better, but not by much. It's confusing what age range this is meant for bevause the writing style is so juvenile but then there's random sex scenes in it that made me cringe listening to them. Every character in this book is extremely boring and the narration showed no emotion at all - which is a bummer since the author reads it. Nothing gets explained at the end, a lot of assumptions. Not a fan at all.

Dull, Dull, Dull

I must be missing something here, to judge from the other reviews! But this book is unpublished for a reason: it's deadly dull. Endless tedious details in a story that moves along like molasses, and seems to have nothing much to say. Out of more than 200 Audible books downloaded, this is only the second title I couldn't stand to listen all the way through (gave up after 3 extremely boring hours). Maybe it gets really interesting later on... but I doubt it. Nicely read, though.

Waiting for something to happen

Their is nothing exciting about this book. It?s about the every day types of trials and tribulations many of us go through. If you want to escape from reality this is not the book. I normally do not write reviews but in this case I felt compelled to give my opinon. I purchased this book based on others opinions and reviews. This is the first time I have been disappointed in my purchase. I am far from being qualified to write reviews, BUT I know what I like, and don?t like. I am sure other may find this book intriguing I found it uneventful

Boring, couldn't wait for it to end.

Would you try another book from Ron McLarty and/or Ron McLarty?

No.

What was most disappointing about Ron McLarty’s story?

The story was too long and repetitive. I was hoping for a great end, but was disappointed in that too.

Tiresome, irksome, noisome

Smithy Ide is a dismal, twisted, overgrown adolescent whose ability to tell his own story is limited and irritating. If this were an actual memoir, an editor would have removed the many sentences ending with the phrase "and stuff", and also would have restricted the number of panting references to women's breasts. But this is a novel, written with the vocabulary and insight of a stupid, self-loathing buffoon whom the author no doubt thought would become another Ignatius J. Reilly. He does not come close.

The book's secondary character, disappearing sister Bethany (a name which doesn't even register on the name popularity charts for the year she was supposed to be born), is one of the worst representations of mentally ill women in fiction, and the manners in which community, family and medical team attempt to deal with her behaviors are totally unrealistic. Even if we were being subjected to her adoring brother's faulty memories of the events, this would be forgivable, but to conclude that is to necessarily scrap the entire rest of the narrative.

Which I recommend. McLarty's narration is done with a petulant, half-wit intonation not present in McLarty's normal voice, as evidence by the attached interview. Why does he choose to make his "hero" sound moronic? I'm stunned that so many people think this is a great, important novel, and that McLarty is a talented writer. Then I remember how many (presumably, of the same) people voted for George W. Bush. Twice!

Couldn't Do It

This is the first audiobook that I abandoned midway through. I tried ... I really did. But I could not empathize with the main character, did not find him funny, and could not see his "travels" leading anywhere. A self-proclaimed loser, he came across as ridiculous. I just couldn't stand to hear him go on and on and on.

I rated this book with 2 stars, only because the actual writing was done well.

Interesting story- foul language was too much

The premise for this book was very interesting, unfortunately the foul language was excessive and I found totally unnecessary. Why people feel they need to fill a book with every filthy word they can think of and to describe in minute detail the thoughts going through a man's mind during a sexual encounter is beyond me. Listening to this makes all of this too difficult to finish. At least when I read it I can skip over it. Even then it is tough. I couldn't finish it because I caught myself thinking about all the crudeness day and night. I really get into books and become part of the story mentally. Unfortunately in this book I felt like I was being verbally abused. Not everyone wants sex and awful language. Rewrite it without all that and I would highly recommend the book.

don't listen to the other reviews

I tried giving it a chance, but after 6 hours, just could not do it anymore...save the time and money!

Good hearted, but doesn't pay off

I never really related to the characters or the premise, even though I really wanted to. I respect the author for his very good intentions, but the book never delivered for me. The good humored acceptance of adversity that the main character shows could make Job look impatient, but after a while the incidents became depressing and then almost absurd. I started trying to figure how much of the book was left by how many plot points hadn't been resolved.