Haruki Murakami

In a best-selling memoir, the award-winning Japanese writer recalls his preparation for the 2005 New York City marathon, interweaving his reflections on the meaning of running in his life, his thoughts on the writing process and career, and his greatest triumphs and disappointments. Reprint.

A Memoir

What I Talk about when I Talk about Running

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

Rutik 

When I tell people I run every day, some are quite impressed. “You really must have a strong will,” they sometimes tell me. Of course, it’s nice to be praised like this. A lot better than being disparaged, that’s for sure. But I don’t think it’s merely willpower that makes you able to do something. The world isn’t that simple. To tell the truth, I don’t even think there’s that much correlation between my running every day and whether or not I have a strong will. I think I’ve been able to run for more than twenty years for a simple reason: It suits me. Or at least because I don’t find it all that painful. Human beings naturally continue doing things they like, and they don’t continue what they don’t like. Admittedly, something close to will does play a small part in that. But no matter how strong a will a person has, no matter how much he may hate to lose, if it’s an activity he doesn’t really care for, he won’t keep it up for long. Even if he did, it wouldn’t be good for him. That’s why I’ve never recommended running to others. I’ve tried my best never to say something like, Running is great. Everybody should try it. If some people have an interest in long-distance running, just leave them be, and they’ll start running on their own. If they’re not interested in it, no amount of persuasion will make any difference.

Running has a lot of advantages. First of all, you don't need anybody else to do it, and no need for special equipment. You don't have to go to a special place to do it. As long as you have running shoes and a good road, you can run to your heart's content.

I knew that if I did things half heartedly and then didn't work out, I would always have regrets.

When I am running, I don't have to talk to anybody, and don't have to listen to anybody. All I need to do is to gaze at the scenery passing by.

In long distance running the only opponent you have to beat is yourself, the way you used to be.

Most ordinary runners are motivated by an individual goal, more than anything: namely, a time they want to beat. As long as one can beat that time, a runner will feel he's accomplished what he set out to do, and if he can't, the he will feel he hasn't. Even if he doesn't break the time he had hoped for, as long as he has the sense of satisfaction at having done his very best and possibly having made some significant discovery about himself in the process, then that in itself is an accomplishment, a positive feeling he can carry over to the next race.

To keep on going, you have to keep up the rhythm. This is important thing for long term projects. Once you set the pace, the rest will follow 

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.

I just run. I run in a void. Or maybe I should put it the other way: I run in order to acquire a void. But as you might expect, an occasional thought will slip into this void. People's minds can't be a complete blank. Human beings' emotions are not strong or consistent enough to sustain a vacuum. What I mean is, the kinds of thoughts and ideas that invade my emotions as I run remain subordinate to that void. Lacking content, they are just random thoughts that gather around that central void.

nahomi

“As I was running I was struck by a thought: Even if my time in races doesn’t improve, there’s not much I can do about it. I’ve gotten older, and time has taken its toll. It’s nobody’s fault. Those are the rules of the game. Just as a river flows to the sea, growing older and slowing down are just part of the natural scenery, and I’ve got to accept it”

“I just run. I run in a void. Or maybe I should put it the other way: I run in order to acquire a void.”

greta

"hey, I'm going to give running a try," and then discover they enjoy it. And of course that would be a beautiful thing.

As the author of this book I'd be very pleased if that happened

‘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

Sven Schmidt

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

Patrick Arminio

Interesting insights into Murikami through his ritual of running. Even as a runner I didn’t find him the most relatable and don’t feel like the book left me with much wisdom or takeaways. It’s more of a diary about his rather anticlimactic experience with running over the course of a few years. Beautifully written. 

Jacob Hopkins

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

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

“Here it is: Pain is inevitable. Suffering is optional. Say you’re running and you think, ‘Man, this hurts, I can’t take it anymore. The ‘hurt’ part is an unavoidable reality, but whether or not you can stand anymore is up to the runner himself.”
----------------------------------

I have always dreaded any exercise that involves cardio. In fact, I have only developed a more consistent and accepting relationship with running very very recently. Picking up a habit, let alone continuing it consistently is definitely a challenge, so when I re-crossed paths with this book one day in my sister’s library (ironically it was gifted to her by me), written by one of my favorite authors, about a topic I was looking to explore more, I knew it was time to read it.

I wouldn’t call this book a motivational or educational support to runners, but more like a memoir built around Murakami’s hobby of running. And run, he does. Marathons, triathlons, hills, and coasts.
From his music choices to his running motivation, his ups and downs in this journey, his goals, and even his old jazz bar, Murakami reveals little tidbits about his life that were simple yet fascinating like all his books.

I just love the way this man’s mind works.

Farah Aisha Shabrina

BESTTTT BOOK of the (1/3) year, but i’m sure it’ll still be the best book i’ve read until the end of this year, or ever. not just about running tips and stuff, the memoir also shares contemplation on mundane things that we do, according to Murakami, can be meditative acts if we keep them long enough. as a person who keeps failing to stick to routine(😭) i was encouraged by the book. i sense a delicate nudge in me, a slight-but-profound revelation. i love how the book is not trying to lecture us readers about being a healthier, more productive human being, but to be more aware of how we see ourselves & how we want to live our lives💯👍 bonus point: it contains many life lessons (from the life of Murakami himself) that we can learn from

p.s i’m the living proof of a 10K finisher after (although not straight after) reading the book😭✋ am not bragging but it is what it is. it is all because of Mr. Murakami🏃‍♀️🤍

Cece Page

A collection of meditations written from various races, training runs, and just runs for the fun of it. This will only be appealing to you if you’re a runner and even more so, if you have a creative career in any way. I personally loved a lot of Murakami’s philosophies on running, progressing, creating, and starting again, etc. I have many similar trains of thought while I run and/or create. Good book and quick easy read :)

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.

Laura Mauler

I was disappointed in this book. The writing felt so amateurish and unpolished, like a collection of stream of conscious notes that were in the process of being turned into a first draft. He repeated points over and over within paragraphs as well as throughout the book, over-explaining and in the process killing the vitality of the ideas. Also, there was the big problem that the book didn't make any point - it felt like listening to a very detailed and long-winded description of a mildly interesting person's day.

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.

Loaned by Mariana, post Frauenlauf, perhaps in an attempt to inspire me to train for a half marathon (still unsure if I have the drive/focus for this).

Great Sunday afternoon read. I particularly liked how Murakami explains the physical and emotional feeling of running long distances, and how that changes over time. It's part memoir, which also makes it enjoyable to follow.

My favourite quote - "Sometimes I run fast when I feel like it, but if I increase the pace I shorten the amount of time i run, the point being to let the exhilaration I feel at the end of each run carry over to the next day. This is the same sort of tack I find necessary when writing a novel. I stop every day right at the point where I feel I can write more. Do that, and the next day's work goes surprisingly smoothly". 

g.m.

Loaned by Mariana, post Frauenlauf, perhaps in an attempt to inspire me to train for a half marathon (still unsure if I have the drive/focus for this).

Great Sunday afternoon read. I particularly liked how Murakami explains the physical and emotional feeling of running long distances, and how that changes over time. It's part memoir, which also makes it enjoyable to follow.

My favourite quote - "Sometimes I run fast when I feel like it, but if I increase the pace I shorten the amount of time i run, the point being to let the exhilaration I feel at the end of each run carry over to the next day. This is the same sort of tack I find necessary when writing a novel. I stop every day right at the point where I feel I can write more. Do that, and the next day's work goes surprisingly smoothly". 



Fell even more in love with this excessively selfcritical sweetheart.

Klára Kováčiková 

it's like murakami is writing me a love letter at this point 

Laura

Thomas DeCelle

tanima

this is one of the only memoirs that i enjoyed. i would 10/10 recommend. 

Murakami’s running based memoir is an instruction manual for using different disciplines to buoy one’s primary creative practice. Detailing the prolific author’s start at running (running a marathon at 33), and also writing, it goes on to tell how he built the general discipline into his life as a form of routine. In his efforts to run a marathon a year from that point and the related anecdotes of some of these races, I felt some inspiration and also resonated with my own relationship to physical endurance and creative output. 

Some of the books' stronger narrative and literary point’s muse on the greater more universal challenges that confront creatives and athletes alike. Some of the author’s treatise on what one could call the ouroboros effect of loneliness were striking: 

“ Sometimes, however, this sense of isolation, like acid spilling out of a bottle, can unconsciously eat away at a person’s heart and dissolve it.” 

Loneliness can beget more loneliness, by making one un-empathetic. You can see this double edged sword of obsessive discipline in professional athletes like Ronaldo or Micheal Jordan, i.e. the “I took that personally” in 

The author goes on further to illustrate a constant of more sensitive loners everywhere, describing how self imposed isolation in order deal with or overcome rejection— sometimes necessary for a creative or physical discipline— also feels like self sabotage; 

“It protects me, but at the same time it steadily cuts away at me from the inside. I think in my own way I’m aware of this danger—probably through experience—and that’s why I've had to constantly keep my body in motion, in some cases pushing myself beyond the limit, in order to heal the loneliness I feel inside and put it into perspective. Not so much as an intentional act, but as an instinctive reaction. 

 The loneliness of long distance runners isn’t anything new, as seen in Tony Richardson’s British realism film from 1959, of the same name. But Murakami doesn’t get hung up on this. Other more poignant passages illustrate the camaraderie of the sporting life. One too short but entertaining anecdote details the author’s running interview with John Irving in central park in the 80’s. And passing references to the early deaths of fellow competitors, individuals with whom the author felt an unspoken kinship, and the deep sorrow at the wastefulness of cruel early death bring back the main point that most good writing about sports, (or anything for that matter) is really writing about life. 

Murakami shows this last point well in many passages, linking the endurance needed to write to the endurance needed to run. He almost describes it as a relationship of maintenance from one to the other. And how the rigor of life, and satisfaction in these disciplines, is pushing yourself farther than you have before, trying to prove the inner critic wrong; “ 

If you’re going to while away the years, it’s far better to live them with clear goals and fully alive than in a fog, and i believe running helps you do that. Exerting yourself to the fullest within your individual limits: thats the essence of running and a metaphor for life– and for me, for writing as well. I believe many runners would agree.”

Quentin Gibeau

Murakami’s running based memoir is an instruction manual for using different disciplines to buoy one’s primary creative practice. Detailing the prolific author’s start at running (running a marathon at 33), and also writing, it goes on to tell how he built the general discipline into his life as a form of routine. In his efforts to run a marathon a year from that point and the related anecdotes of some of these races, I felt some inspiration and also resonated with my own relationship to physical endurance and creative output. 

Some of the books' stronger narrative and literary point’s muse on the greater more universal challenges that confront creatives and athletes alike. Some of the author’s treatise on what one could call the ouroboros effect of loneliness were striking: 

“ Sometimes, however, this sense of isolation, like acid spilling out of a bottle, can unconsciously eat away at a person’s heart and dissolve it.” Loneliness can beget more loneliness, by making one un-empathetic. You can see this double edged sword of obsessive discipline in professional athletes like Ronaldo or Micheal Jordan, i.e. the “I took that personally” in The Last Dance.

The author goes on further to illustrate a constant of more sensitive loners everywhere, describing how self imposed isolation in order deal with or overcome rejection— sometimes necessary for a creative or physical discipline— also feels like self sabotage; “It protects me, but at the same time it steadily cuts away at me from the inside. I think in my own way I’m aware of this danger—probably through experience—and that’s why I've had to constantly keep my body in motion, in some cases pushing myself beyond the limit, in order to heal the loneliness I feel inside and put it into perspective. Not so much as an intentional act, but as an instinctive reaction. 

 The loneliness of long distance runners isn’t anything new, as seen in Tony Richardson’s British realism film from 1959, of the same name. But Murakami doesn’t get hung up on this. Other more poignant passages illustrate the camaraderie of the sporting life. One too short but entertaining anecdote details the author’s running interview with John Irving in central park in the 80’s. And passing references to the early deaths of fellow competitors, individuals with whom the author felt an unspoken kinship, and the deep sorrow at the wastefulness of cruel early death bring back the main point that most good writing about sports, (or anything for that matter) is really writing about life. 


Murakami shows this last point well in many passages, linking the endurance needed to write to the endurance needed to run. He almost describes it as a relationship of maintenance from one to the other. And how the rigor of life, and satisfaction in these disciplines, is pushing yourself farther than you have before, trying to prove the inner critic wrong; “ If you’re going to while away the years, it’s far better to live them with clear goals and fully alive than in a fog, and i believe running helps you do that. Exerting yourself to the fullest within your individual limits: thats the essence of running and a metaphor for life– and for me, for writing as well. I believe many runners would agree.”

Per Gustafsson 

This is my first audiobook in english i Wanted to read it in my language which is swedish but i could listen in it in english it wasnt hard Now i would buy or rent it in swedish i like the book and i like to run!

Ok min första engelska ljudbok och det gick bra att följa med trots att den var på engelska vill ha den på svenska bra bok och visst jag gillar ju löpning" - written in #booklyapp

It's almost an autobiography. For most of the book, he talks about all the feelings he has while running. As a runner, I relate to his experience A LOT. The way he talks about self-sabotage, mind games, and the body and the mind wanting to quit all the time.

But, even though it's a short excerpt, he also talks about his experience while running a Jazz bar and the decision to start writing novels at 30.

Another interesting topic (for me the most interesting one) is how he thinks about running and self-improvement. How being arrogant and thinking you don't need much training to run a marathon can lead to a huge failure. The way he preps to run marathons months ahead. And actions and constant feedback he takes from his failures.

I liked his writing style. Very simple and descriptive (not only about physical things and places but also about his feeling in each running experience).

---

This book was read at home in São Paulo - Brazil, at the Guarulhos Airport, on the bus from Schiphol Airport to the Centre of Amsterdam, in Museumplein park, and in Vondelpark in Amsterdam.

An excellent insight into the world of dealing with the weight of life’s realities via one of its most singular forms of exercise 

Crockett Macnie

Udit Desai

Neil Murray

Every time I want to get back into running I read this book. Inspiring, honest and motivating, I highly recommend this to anyone who runs or who is thinking about starting. It's a book I've read five times, and I'm sure will read at least five times more.

Kholoud Ayman

Listening to Haruki Murakami talking about himself as my first experience with an English audiobook was a perfect choice. 

I felt like I was connected to him in some way or as if he was inside my mind, speaking out all the thoughts and feelings that i couldn't express in words.

"In certain areas of my life, I actively seek out solitude. Especially for someone in my line of work, solitude is, more or less, an inevitable circumstance. Sometimes, however, this sense of isolation, like acid spilling out of a bottle, can unconsciously eat away at a person’s heart and dissolve it. You could see it, too, as a kind of double-edged sword. It protects me, but at the same time steadily cuts away at me from the inside. I think in my own way I’m aware of this danger—probably through experience—and that’s why I’ve had to constantly keep my body in motion, in some cases pushing myself to the limit, in order to heal the loneliness I feel inside and to put it in perspective. Not so much as an intentional act, but as an instinctive reaction."

"when someone I’m sure will understand me doesn’t, I go running for a little longer than usual. By running longer it’s like I can physically exhaust that portion of my discontent. It also makes me realize again how weak I am, how limited my abilities are. I become aware, physically, of these low points. And one of the results of running a little farther than usual is that I become that much stronger. If I’m angry, I direct that anger toward myself. If I have a frustrating experience, I use that to improve myself. That’s the way I’ve always lived. I quietly absorb the things I’m able to, releasing them later, and in as changed a form as possible, as part of the story line in a novel."

What I Talk about when I Talk about Running A Memoir

Reviews

Highlights