Runners, Add These 6 Books to Your Summer TBR List

Best for: Parents and Coaches of Teen Athletes

This Is Not About Running: A Memoir

By Mary Cain

I remember when Mary Cain blasted onto the national running scene when she was in high school. And I remember the headlines when she, seemingly, burned out and it all came crashing down. But her hard-to-read, raw, ugly-truth memoir shows us what was really going on behind the scenes with abusive coaches, teammates, and their parents, who had way too much power as early as her middle school years. Every runner should read this book and celebrate how far Mary has come in spite of all of us heckling from the sidelines. But this should be mandatory reading for parents and coaches of teen athletes, lest history repeats itself.

—Heather Mayer Irvine, contributing editor

Best for: Runners Needing Inspiration to Keep Showing Up

For the Love of the Grind: A Memoir

By Sara Hall

The 43-year-old two-time World Marathon Major medalist Sara Hall provides an honest look into her running and racing journey in her memoir, released earlier this year. Known throughout her 20-plus-year professional career for her outspoken Christian faith, heavy racing volume, and for adopting four sisters from Ethiopia with her husband, retired runner Ryan Hall, Sara gives an honest glimpse into her mentality as she walked through each season of her career. It’s a Chariots of Fire-esque story of how even through insecurity, anxiety, imposter syndrome, and pressure to prioritize her husband’s career or motherhood over her own running, she still found an internal motivation that kept bringing (and continues to bring) her back to the joy she found in her search for her physical and mental limits through running.

—Bethany Mavis, contributing editor

Best for: Runners Who Think Their Best Days Are Behind Them

Don’t Call It a Comeback: What Happened When I Stopped Chasing PRs, and Started Chasing Happiness

By Keira D’Amato

If you haven’t read this book yet, it’s the perfect time to pick it up, especially if you’re in need of some motivation. While so many books by elites and pro athletes function as highlight reels, D’Amato lets readers into periods of disappointment and genuine despair. She tells it like it is: your body changes as you get older, have kids, and yet, as she discovers, there is hope. You will find another gear. Plus, the writing is clear and sometimes really funny. It’s a delight to read and takes you into the lab with one of the coolest pro runners in the field.

—Ali Nolan, senior digital editor

Best for: Dirtbag Trail Junkies

Crux

By Gabriel Tallent

Let’s start with the obvious: This is not a book about running. The protagonists of this book would probably loathe the thought of running. But those protagonists, two teenage climbers living in the Mojave Desert, have more than a few similarities with trail runners. They’re obsessed with goals that don’t make sense to those around them. They sacrifice sleep, stability, and outside relationships in service of their outdoor pursuits. And, most importantly to the story, their shared passion builds a bond between them that seems unbreakable, until it’s pushed to the limit. Whether you can understand all the climbing lingo or not (like me), this tale of friendship and chasing lofty goals is a great read for anyone who loves pushing themselves outdoors.

—David Gleisner, community engagement editor

Best for: Runners Struggling With Injury or Identity

The 27th Mile: How to Smooth the Rough Transition Out of Your Running Years

By Dimity McDowell

Running is a modern-day pilgrimage, a social outlet, an avenue to prove to ourselves that we are stronger than we think—until it isn’t. Maybe that setback is temporary; maybe you have to let go of running forever. Either way, Dimity McDowell expertly navigates this painful process in The 27th Mile, which is part narrative, part self-help. Grounded in McDowell’s own experience of losing not only her favorite hobby, but also a ritual inextricably tied to her professional identity as the founder of Another Mother Runner, it’s instructive but not preachy.

I happened to read this book during a three-month stint of complete non-weight bearing while recovering from foot surgery, and I can attest that McDowell’s honest but uplifting voice served as a source of solace during a dark time. Running can mean everything to us, and we will also survive without it.

—Abby Levene, managing editor, Trail Runner

Best for: Runners Working to Better Their Mental Health

Running Is My Therapy

By Scott Douglas

I’m fascinated by the topic of running and mental health. Yes, it’s because, like 23% of adults in the United States, I deal with a psychiatric condition. And yes, running helps. So naturally, this book is something I love to reference. Douglas writes this as a runner who lives with both depression and anxiety. (He’s also one of the most knowledgeable and talented running writers out there, if you’re unfamiliar.) He doesn’t try to sell running as a replacement for therapy and medication, but instead dives into how running changes the brain in a way that helps runners cope with mental health challenges. For any runner who is curious or wants to explain the “why” behind their running in greater depth, this is worth a read.

—AN