Running

by Randolph Rhett

The harder Henry ran, the less ground he made. “Running” is the story of a young professional living in San Diego struggling to make sense of a world vastly different from the one he expected as a child; a world where everyone is selling a formula for success, but none seem ever to work. Struggling to find his way professionally while keeping hold of his most bedrock values, Henry finds himself adrift looking for something to hold him fast. When the woman who broke his heart ten years earlier returns to his life Henry begins to feel his feet get traction. But is she really his salvation, or just another trail leading him off a cliff?

This novel is a brief but intimate portrait of Henry and his fellow thirty-something friends. College educated, hard working, and willing to do what it takes; the middle class life they believed was their birthright is always just out of reach. They are constantly being told by their baby boomer parents, employers, and gatekeepers that they simply needed to try harder or find a different approach; but none of the rules they were taught as children seem to apply. Each of Henry's friends find a different way to cope and adopt their own flawed formulas for life. In the end, they find themselves making more and more compromises only to discover that the goal post have been moved on them... again.

114 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 25, 2020

Reviews

[Glen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won this book in a goodreads drawing.

A Yalie is going through a quarter life crisis. He's a lawyer who hates his job and hates his life. Going to the Harvard/Yale football game he tries to network. He meets a lost love, and a fork in the path of his life.

[Penny LeBaron · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a member of GEN X, I appreciate being part of the invisible generation and the first generation largely unable to live up to having the American dream that our parents and grandparents had. Labeled as slackers who don't care, this helped me not feel as invisible for my own situation! This was a very enjoyable read that many will relate to.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read

[Julia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Relatable and insightful. It makes you reconsider your expectations and the expectations that others might have of you. It was an easy and enjoyable read!

[Frances Claypool · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won this in a Goodreads drawing. I appreciate the opportunity to read new to me authors. I thought the story line to be a relatable subject matter and many may find to be insightful reading. However, I found grammatical errors distracting, affecting my overall rating.

[Debbie Davis · Rating 2 out of 5]

Just could not get into this book. Thank you Goodreads for my Kindle copy.

[Ryanne Wolfe · Rating 2 out of 5]

Super short read and I ended up skimming most of the book just to finish. I get what the author was trying to say and write about but this just didn’t do it for me. I didn’t get the point - it was a book about nothing. Not too much of a plot, nothing you are dying to read and find about, nothing too moving or intriguing.

Would I recommend: no
Would I read more by this author: no