Description:
COVID-19 disrupted the premier road races known as the World Marathon Majors (WMM) that take place annually in Berlin, London, Chicago, Boston, Tokyo, and New York City. Normally spanning the calendar from March to November, the pandemic forced a rescheduling of the 2021 WMM such that all the races would take place during a six week stretch in the fall. At age 60, with only a single previous marathon under his belt and recently diagnosed with Parkinson's disease, Joe Drake decided to run all six of these races on the compressed schedule.
In Run With It, writing in a style that is charmingly humorous and informative, Joe marks his debut as an author. He tells of his transformation into a marathoner, the physical and logistical challenges of running these races amid a world eager to emerge from a global catastrophe, and how this quest with the help of friends, family, and the running community allowed him to devise a strategy for coping with Parkinson's.
Brief description: Elizabeth (Liz) Radojkovic lives in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. She is an editor and writer with over 35 years of experience, specializing in medical, science, health, and academic books.
Review Quotes:
A truly heartwarming and inspiring read. I am in awe of Joe's determination to face a diagnosis of Parkinson's with such positivity and action. He has found a way to improve his circumstances and in the process is working to help thousands of others facing the same diagnosis.
My family has been profoundly affected by this disease but I believe his efforts, and those of many others like him, will be instrumental in bringing about a cure. Please buy this book not only because it is a great read, but also because the proceeds go to the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research.
I just finished your book this afternoon and I need to tell you both how much I enjoyed it and how much I learned both about PD and the running world. For some reason, putting it all together in a book made your whole experience much more coherent for me. I loved the process of following you from race to race and also hearing more of the back story.
You write beautifully, you've got both a sense of humor and a engineer's ability to make complex biological processes accessible to the non-scientist.