In 1982 having sold his jazz bar to devote himself to writing Murakami began running to keep fit A year later he'd completed a solo course from Athens to Marathon & now after dozens of such races he reflects upon the influence the sport has had on his life & on his writing Equal parts travelogue training log & reminiscence this revealing memoir covers his four-month preparation for the 2005 New York City Marathon & settings ranging from Tokyo's Jingu Gaien gardens where he once shared the course with an Olympian to the Charles River in Boston By turns funny & sobering playful & philosophical this is a must-read for fans of this masterful yet private writer as well as for the exploding population of athletes who find similar satisfaction in distance running