A Race Like No Other: 26.2 Miles Through the Streets of New York

A Race Like No Other describes in great detail the 2007 New York City Marathon. The author expertly captures the essence of the race and provides the reader with a rare vicarious treat of what is like to run one of the greatest marathons on the planet. The book focuses primarily on a few key players to illustrate the impact of the marathon from multiple perspectives.

The story was not without flaws. Just as the action was heating up and you couldn't wait for the next mile the author interjected a bit of race history. The information was interesting and it certainly belonged in this story, but I do question the placement of some of these factoids. On occasion, the ill-placed historical tid-bits broke up the pacing and gave this reader an show more excuse to put the book down and come back to it later. A few editorial adjustments and this book would have five star potential.

There is clearly something magical about this race and after reading this book I think I will be adding the New York City Marathon to the bucket list. Recommended reading for runners and non-runners alike. show less

This book was very interesting, and definitely inspired me to want to run the New York City Marathon! I enjoyed the book's layout of one mile per chapter, which included some geography, traditions, neighborhoods, and history of the city covered in each mile of the 26.2 mile race. Occasionally, the stories about some of the runners were a bit much, but all in all, I enjoyed the character/runner development as well.

A fantastic overview of the NY Marathon and the incredible athletes (elite and non-elite) who take on the 5-borough 26.2 mile challenge. I've always wanted to run this race and after reading this book I want to run it even more.

Enjoyable, well researched, learned a lot abt. the marathon's history