The Memory of Running
“
Smithy Ide is 43 years old, he is an overweight, chain-smoking alcoholic with a job he is not proud of and few friends to speak of. In one short week, his life is flipped upside down, his parents are killed in a car crash in Maine and his sister, Bethany, shows up dead in a Los Angeles...”
“
Smithy Ide is 43 years old, he is an overweight, chain-smoking alcoholic with a job he is not proud of and few friends to speak of. In one short week, his life is flipped upside down, his parents are killed in a car crash in Maine and his sister, Bethany, shows up dead in a Los Angeles morgue. Smithy ends up on a journey that takes him across America, on his old Raleigh bicycle, departing from his parents home in Rhode Island.
As Smithy travels across the country we learn about his parents, his sisters battle with mental illness and their families past experiences, including an old neighbor that smithy keeps in touch with along the way. We also learn about the people and places that Smithy encounters on his adventure. This journey changes him as he reminisces about the past, meets others and begins to heal old wounds and grows into a better person.
I loved this journey and would definitely recommend the book. I found the writing to be well done, it sucked me in from the first page, I wanted to learn more about smithy, his family and the characters he meets on his journey. This book showed all sides of human nature, it was sad at times, and funny at times, and overall was a real joy to read. As a reader on the journey with smithy we learn about how others can look normal and strong on the outside but be struggling with life on the inside. i think this would make a great movie and my Internet searches found it in production, but no dates or actors listed. I would love to see it happen, so my fingers are crossed.
Favorite quote:
"Looking back, I was more than likely afraid of an ending, because an ending usually meant a beginning."”
(read full review)
