What I Talk About When I Talk About Running by Haruki Murakami

One of the prompts for the Pop Sugar Reading Challenge this year is to read a book about a running club. There is no way I'm going to finish that challenge this year, but I'm still plodding around, thinking maybe I can do most of it. I decided I'd read Haruki Murakami's memoir What I Talk About When I Talk About Running for this, although if I'm being 100% accurate, it's not really about a running club. Close enough for me. 

I know that this is a beloved memoir and everything I am about to say is going to be blasphemy to a lot of you. 

I didn't like this.

It talks a lot about body image and body shaming. It talks a lot about running.

What, you ask me, did you expect? 

I guess I expected this to be about writing with a little bit about running. Instead it was about running with a little bit about writing. If that's your jam, go ahead and read it. It was not my jam, although I listened to the audiobook and the narrator made it all go down easy. 

3/5 stars

Lines of note:

In every interview I'm asked what's the most important quality a novelist has to have? It's pretty obvious - talent. No matter how much enthusiasm and effort you put into writing, if you totally lack literary talent, you can forget about being a novelist. This is more of a prerequisite than a necessary quality. If you don't have any fuel, even the best car won't run. (timestamp 1:53:18)

What a pep talk. *eyeroll*

Most of what I know about writing I've learned through running every day. These are practical, physical lessons. How much can I push myself? How much rest is appropriate and how much is too much? How far can I take something and still keep it decent and consistent? When does it become narrowminded and inflexible? How much should I be aware of the world outside and how much should I focus on my inner world? To what extent should I be confident in my abilities and when should I start doubting myself? (timestamp 2:01:49)

This was an interesting passage and I wish he'd talked a lot more about these parallels. Unfortunately, this was the meat of it. 

Once when I had a chance to talk with a sales rep from Mizuno he admitted, "our shoes are kind of plain and don't stand out. We stand by our quality but they aren't that attractive." I know what he's trying to say - they have no gimmicks, no sense of style, no catchy slogan, so to the average consumer they have little appeal - the Subaru of the shoe world, in other words. (timestamp 2:16:51)

I have to admit having laughed pretty hard at this. One of the cars that is on our list of potential cars is a Subaru. No one over here is IN LOVE with it, though. It's fine. 

Still the most significant fallout from running the ultramarathon wasn't physical, but mental. What I ended up with was a sense of lethargy and before I knew it, I felt covered by a thin film, something I've since dubbed runner's blues, although the actual feeling of it was closer to a milky white. (timestamp 2:53:18)

WTF does this mean? Milky white? 

Hat mentions (why hats?): 

..take off my hat, which I had on to keep the sun off me. I'd worn the hat to keep my head warm... (timestamp 2:38:41)

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Anyone else read this? Think less of Murakami now that they've read it? I've obliquely mentioned our car search a couple of times in this space - would anyone be interested in a full-length post on our endless search?