Moon Runner

by Carolyn Marsden

"A quiet, lyrical story that sensitively explores issues of friendship and being true to oneself." —  School Library Journal

When Mina, a self-professed "girlie-girl," discovers that she excels at track, her friends are as surprised as she is, especially competitive Ruth. Even more surprising is the way running seems to lift Mina up and make her happy. When Coach chooses her to run the fifty-meter against Ruth, Mina is torn. Should she slow down and let Ruth hold on to the spotlight? Or let herself soar? With subtlety and insight, Carolyn Marsden explores the delicate subject of competition between friends.

Genres: Sports, Childrens, Fiction

112 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2005

About the author

Carolyn Marsden was born in Mexico City to missionary parents. She has been a writer all her life, but THE GOLD-THREADED DRESS is her first book. About THE GOLD-THREADED DRESS she says, "I wrote this story when my half-Thai daughter was being teased at school. As a parent and elementary school teacher, I watched her struggle to establish a cultural identity. I became fascinated with a conflict that is common to many children in our increasingly diverse United States." Carolyn Marsden has an MFA in Writing for Children from Vermont College. After spending the last twenty-five years in Tucson, Arizona, Carolyn Marsden now lives by the ocean with her husband and two daughters.

Reviews

[Mary Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Girls in 3rd and 4th grade often go through friendship troubles. Their friends are so important to them, but they can easily hurt each other's feelings without realizing. Moon Runner is a wonderful book all about how girls negotiate their friendships, while still being true to themselves.

Mina loves her group of friends. Every day they trade their Friendship Ball, adding bits of multicolored yarn to the growing ball. They are each different: Ruth is the athlete, Sammy loves to collect bugs, Alana is the best reader, and Mina is the New Friend. But one day, Coach Lombard asks all the 4th and 5th graders to try out for track: the high jump, the long jump, the fifty meter dash, the team relays.

At first, Mina feels like a tortoise lumbering along, but soon she imagine "a roadrunner skipping along on tall, skinny legs." She starts enjoying running, and begins sailing along. "By the third lap, she remembered her favorite dream of flying off a snowy cliff and over a landscape speckled with pools of turquoise water." Mina actually is a great runner - and she almost beats Ruth. When she ties Ruth in the 50-meter sprint, Mina worries that their friendship will suffer. Should she lose on purpose, if that will save their friendship?

This is a short but heart-felt book, perfect for girls this age dealing with the importance of friendship issues. Mina is a sympathetic and believable character, and middle grade readers (in 3rd through 5th grades) will recognize her struggles as ones they see at school all the time.

[Cathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sometimes the story felt a little forced, but I really liked the idea of following your dream, even if its not something you'd ever think of dreaming. :) The stress Mina has when she thinks she may lose her friend Ruth seemed very real.
The book almost even made me want to run!

[Chili Public · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sometimes the story felt a little forced, but I really liked the idea of following your dream, even if its not something you'd ever think of dreaming. :) The stress Mina has when she thinks she may lose her friend Ruth seemed very real.
The book almost even made me want to run!

[Betsy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice realistic-fiction novel that does a great job of depicting the often tumultuous emotions of pre-adolescent girls. I plan to get several copies of this book to use with my 4th & 5th grade girls running group. Thanks for the book, Angel!

[Krista the Krazy Kataloguer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Friendship versus competition.

[Kelsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh my gosh! This book was sooooo good! It was one of my favorites, but I'm not going to say too much......... :)

[Emily Higinbottem · Rating 5 out of 5]

i think any one who is willin to read should read this.

[B · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fifth grade, previously unathletic girl discovers she loves to run and is good at it. She doesn't like competing against her best friend.

[Cws]

JAR4-Mar

[Maria · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was a great book about friendship!

[Colleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book probably five years ago but remember it fondly as a coming of age story about a girl who finds herself running track. Great fro grades 5-8.

[Diane Robinson · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good, solid read for a 'tweener'.

[Luiza · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really good!