Maggie Mertens narrates her detailed exploration of women, running, and the bizarre treatment of athletic women throughout history. Though women have proven time and again that they have the speed and endurance to run and break records, false beliefs and out-of-date advice continue to pervade the world of women's sports, often to the detriment of the athletes. Mertens's passionate performance of this audiobook is energetic and intelligent sounding as she guides the listener through a fascinating history of women in the running world. She captures current athletes' hope for the future of women's sports while emphasizing the frustrating history of figures passed over and discounted due to their gender.
Pub Date: June 18, 2024
Duration: 9 hrs, 30 mins
DD ISBN: 9781668641125
Publisher: Hachette Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Dugard charts the course, and Godfrey hits a personal best.
Dugard explores the origins of the marathon, from the legend of Pheidippides and the race’s peculiar length to the 1970s and '80s athletes who made marathons cool. Now, competing in a marathon is on every casual runner’s bucket list. Matt Godfrey takes the author’s accessible style and runs with it. His timing, liveliness, and wry tones bring Dugard’s multiple threads to life. The decade is jammed full of stories—Steve Prefontaine getting pipped for the bronze medal at the 1972 Olympics, Joan Benoit winning the first women’s Olympic marathon, the book by Jim Fixx that inspired sedentary people to take up jogging, and even the author finding his community when he discovered running as an 11-year-old.
Dugard charts the course, and Godfrey hits a personal best.Pub Date: April 14, 2026
Duration: 9 hrs, 33 mins
DD ISBN: 9798217285556
Publisher: Penguin Audio
Review Posted Online: May 5, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2026
A fine marriage between talented narration and solid writing.
The author, whose forte is sports biographies, extensively researched Larry Bird’s upbringing through his time at Indiana State. Rather than being a definitive biography of Bird, the audiobook is a fascinating, comprehensive portrait of the basketball star and the people around him in his formative years. Ellen Adair narrates with just the right touch of emotion, letting the story dictate the pacing. She varies her tones throughout her narration, creating an image of the places where Bird grew up, the courts he played on, the school he put on the map.
A fine marriage between talented narration and solid writing.Pub Date: March 3, 2026
Duration: 11 hrs, 51 mins
DD ISBN: 9781668148068
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
Review Posted Online: May 12, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2026
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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