Name: What I Talk about When I Talk about Running
Rating: 3.91644908616188 (383 reviews)
ISBN: 9781433243882

Haruki Murakami

Reader: To be announced

What I Talk about When I Talk about Running

From the best-selling author of The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle and After Dark, a rich and revelatory memoir about writing and running, and the integral impact both have made on his life. In 1982, having sold his jazz bar to devote himself to writing, Haruki Murakami began running to keep fit. A year later, he’d completed a solo course from Athens to Marathon, and now, after dozens of such races, not to mention triathlons and a slew of critically acclaimed books, he reflects upon the influence the sport has had on his life and–even more important–on his writing. Equal parts training log, travelogue, and reminiscence, this revealing memoir covers his four-month preparation for the 2005 New York City Marathon and includes settings ranging from Tokyo’s Jingu Gaien gardens, where he once shared the course with an Olympian, to the Charles River in Boston among young women who outpace him. Through this marvellous lens of sport emerges a cornucopia of memories and insights: the eureka moment when he decided to become a writer, his greatest triumphs and disappointments, his passion for vintage LPs, and the experience, after the age of fifty, of seeing his race times improve and then fall back. By turns funny and sobering, playful and philosophical, What I Talk About When I Talk About Running is both for fans of this masterful yet guardedly private writer and for the exploding population of athletes who find similar satisfaction in distance running.

A Memoir

Tiff W

Feb 5, 2024 <br />A great first introduction to Murakami, and an encouraging read as an aspiring runner and writer! Will be taking a lot of his thoughts with me as I train for my first half marathon, and setting time to write for myself apart from my writing job.<br /><br />Notes from second reading Dec 15, 2025<br />Rereading this after my first full marathon, feels like everything is coming full circle! Fell in love with Murakami’s fiction after reading this memoir last year, and have done so much more running since then. Pretty much agree with his philosophy to running and writing, that it requires both discipline and focus, that our minds and bodies can be trained to accomplish these tasks. Have visited the Murakami Library at Waseda twice since reading this, love getting to know Murakami as more than a writer but also as a runner, jazz enthusiast and teacher.

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, and now, after dozens of such races, not to mention triathlons and a dozen critically acclaimed books, he reflects upon the influence the sport has had on his life and—even more important—on his writing.

Equal parts training log, travelogue, and reminiscence, this revealing memoir covers his four-month preparation for the 2005 New York City Marathon and takes us to places ranging from Tokyo’s Jingu Gaien gardens, 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 panorama of memories and insights: the eureka moment when he decided to become a writer, his greatest triumphs and disappointments, his passion for vintage LPs, and the experience, after fifty, of seeing his race times improve and then fall back.

By turns funny and sobering, playful and philosophical, What I Talk About When I Talk About Running is rich and revelatory, both for fans of this masterful yet guardedly private writer and for the exploding population of athletes who find similar satisfaction in running.

a memoir

What I Talk About When I Talk About Running

The first nonfiction book I read by Murakami. I related to this man on so many levels, from sleeping schedule to humor to an obsession with the things we love. I may not be ready for read his fictional work yet, but this was a great introduction to his philosophy on running and the writing process. Would recommend to anyone looking for relatability on how writing and running intersects and complement each other. 

Ivy Chen

Cosy and well paced like long distance running. Beautifully written.

Cassandra Tang

As someone who has only run once in their life… this book was very interesting. Some parts felt a little repetitive but I loved the chapters about Greece, very engrossing!! Nice short read.

gracie

I’m no runner. At least not a long-distance runner. But this was more than about just running. 

Pratik M

I knew the book was going to be a memoir kind of thing. It was really interesting to see a different side of a person for something he is not known for. I loved some of the chapters about running marathons. I did my first 10k this year and the way he wrote about running marathons was so well that it felt like I was literally there watching it happening. This was my first murakami book and i want to read more now.

Rutik 

I knew the book was going to be a memoir kind of thing. It was really interesting to see a different side of a person for something he is not known for. I loved some of the chapters about running marathons. I did my first 10k this year and the way he wrote about running marathons was so well that it felt like I was literally there watching it happening. This was my first murakami book and i want to read more now.



Such a wonderful book, makes me want to try and do a triathlon ☺️

Patrick Arminio

An intimate look at writing, running, and the incredible way they intersect, from the incomparable, bestselling author Haruki Murakami. --publisher.

What I Talk about when I Talk about Running

always interesting to get a glimpse inside murakami's head

amelo

Not incredible, but the traditional truisms about a healthy creative life and the audio book is good company. Listened to a lot of it while actually running

jess

Memoir + Murakami = utter happiness. Whatever respect I had for Haruki Murakami as a writer - which is (beyond) considerable - it is as nothing to the depth of my bow down before the Japanese novelist on discovering that he has run an ultramarathon. His description of the physical and mental agonies as he struggled to complete the 62-mile course, followed by the near-religious experience of the last few miles, when he knew he was going to finish, is one of the highlights of what he calls "a kind of memoir". Non-running readers of his novels will probably ask: "Why on earth did he run 62 miles when he knew it would hurt so much?" Runners ask a different question: "Why have I never done that?" This book is in some ways the story of the workings of Murakami's mind, dressed up as a book about running. Maybe he doesn't want to do a more standard autobiography. He should. He is a fine writer, and an interesting man. As I closed this slim volume, I was left wanting to know more about him, not less, also let my adoration for him to go beyond limits!. Then I went for a run and tried to imagine what the last half-hour of a 62-mile run would be like. He knows, and I'm jealous.

Haritlak Thawikasikam

The only Murakami's book that i can't engage. Anyway, Murakami obsession still work for me.

‘Pain is inevitable, suffering is optional’ A compelling mediation on the power of running and a fascinating insight into the life of this internationally bestselling writer. 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, and now, after dozens of such races, he reflects upon the influence the sport has had on his life and on his writing. Equal parts travelogue, training log and reminiscence, this revealing memoir covers his four-month preparation for the 2005 New York City Marathon and 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 and sobering, playful and 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. 'There can never have been a book quite like this memoir of running and writing before. In its self-contained way, it's nothing less than an inspiration' Evening Standard 'Hugely enjoyable...You don't have to have run a marathon to be captivated' Sunday Telegraph 'Comical, charming and philosophical...an excellent memoir' GQ

Bilge Ince

If you’re looking for an inspiration to run, this is not the book you’re looking for. At least it’s not to me, more like a diary with random thoughts and memories of running and nothing more.

Fell even more in love with this excessively selfcritical sweetheart.

What I Talk about When I Talk about Running

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