Scan barcode
rmarcin's review
3.0
Young college man decides to leave college and find some answers to his ancestry on a 6,000 mile marathon across North America. He needs to face harsh conditions and personalities. Returning to Washington State, he decides what to do with his life.
Part memoir, part coming of age in his 20s, this was a book about discovering our heritage and facing grim realities.
Part memoir, part coming of age in his 20s, this was a book about discovering our heritage and facing grim realities.
hannah_klaassen's review
4.0
Fascinating setting and story. I love the connection to the Yakima Valley and the engagement with place throughout the book.
kennyne's review against another edition
adventurous
reflective
medium-paced
2.5
At first the book was a breeze. His anecdotes were lighthearted. About halfway through the book I was having trouble keeping up with all the names and places they were traveling to. It took me forever to finish the last 50-75 pages because I just lost interest.
megs_k's review
3.0
Here I contend with the nervous reality that has pestered me all of my life, that I will always be working class. ~ Noe Alvarez
katie_esh's review against another edition
3.0
Despite being marketed as a story of the run, I feel like the first half is mainly focused on the factors that led to joining the run. I was disappointed in the lack of detail in the chapters focused on the run, but I later learned that he participated in the run over 15 years ago. I think my lack of enjoyment came from a conflict between expectation and execution.
hecman111's review
3.0
3.5 stars. Much credit to Noé Álvarez for documenting this significant moment in his life. To write a memoir is in itself a feat, but to share it with the rest of the world is an entirely different — and immensely brave — thing. I appreciated his narration of this spiritual journey of indigenous people. I could very much relate to his “in-between-ness” of identity. So many Latinos of Mexican descent have deep indigenous roots but at times feel like imposters when trying to reconnect with those roots within theses borders. It’s a deeply personal story and I appreciate being along for the run.
lizaroo71's review
3.0
I liked where this book led me - to the dictionary, to maps, to YouTube, to gather more info - but I never completely understood the journey Alvarez is on. The epic marathon he is running is part of the Peace and Dignity Journeys. This is “a non-competitive race to renew cultural connections across North America.”
Alvarez definitely celebrates the landscape and gives an inkling of the various cultures he encounters, but he never delves deep. It seems the run is plagued by in-fighting and a lack of resources. Some of those managing the runners seem to be vengeful and to lack compassion for the difficulty of the goal these runners are trying to complete. To be clear, these runners are on a spiritual quest that requires a resilience of mind. They aren’t running in easy terrain. I understand all of this, yet I feel the writing often jolted me out of the experience too soon. The chapters are short. I think it could have done with more details.
Alvarez definitely celebrates the landscape and gives an inkling of the various cultures he encounters, but he never delves deep. It seems the run is plagued by in-fighting and a lack of resources. Some of those managing the runners seem to be vengeful and to lack compassion for the difficulty of the goal these runners are trying to complete. To be clear, these runners are on a spiritual quest that requires a resilience of mind. They aren’t running in easy terrain. I understand all of this, yet I feel the writing often jolted me out of the experience too soon. The chapters are short. I think it could have done with more details.