Meditations from the Breakdown Lane: Running Across America - Softcover

Shapiro, James E.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1635618525 ISBN 13: 9781635618525

Publisher: Echo Point Books & Media, 2019

Synopsis

In the summer of 1980, 34-year-old Jim Shapiro laced his shoes, checked the weather, and started off on a 3,000-mile run across America.  It was a minimalist adventure: from Dillon Beach, California to Central Park in New York, he carried what he needed, ate when possible, and slept where he could. Save for a stretch in the desert where a car accompanied him for safety, Shapiro ran the route entirely alone as a self-supported “journeyman.” His incredible 3,026-mile solo trek took 80 days.  
Meditations from the Breakdown Lane is the captivating chronicle of the physical and mental fortitude required to complete such an arduous journey, as much an exploration of Shapiro’s own evolving mental state as of the ever-changing American landscape. With an astute eye and the prose of a poet, Shapiro chronicles the vivid details of his epic endeavor, balanced with his analysis of the challenge. Stripping away the most superficial elements, he captures an honest, unvarnished account of his enjoyment, suffering, boredom, pain, loneliness, frustration, elation, and fatigue and ultimate triumph. With candid sincerity, Shapiro offers portraits of the America he encountered along the way.
For runners, travelers, or anyone who enjoys the challenge ‘because it is there,’ this insightful and inspirational book is an essential American travelogue. 

About this title

About the Author

James Shapiro was born in New York City in 1946. After graduating from Harvard College in 1968, he served as a Peace Corps volunteer in the Northeast of Brazil. After working at a wide variety of jobs he settled into teaching elementary, middle and high school levels for over thirty years. Running is still for him one of many ways to discover how to give yourself away.

From the Back Cover

In the summer of 1980, 34-year-old Jim Shapiro laced his shoes, checked the weather, and started off on a 3,000-mile run across America. It was a minimalist adventure: from Dillon Beach, California to Central Park in New York, he carried what he needed, ate when possible, and slept where he could. Save for a stretch in the desert where a car accompanied him for safety, Shapiro ran the route entirely alone as a self-supported "journeyman." His incredible 3,026-mile solo trek took 80 days. Meditations from the Breakdown Lane is the captivating chronicle of the physical and mental fortitude required to complete such an arduous journey, as much an exploration of Shapiro’s own evolving mental state as of the ever-changing American landscape. With an astute eye and the prose of a poet, Shapiro chronicles the vivid details of his epic endeavor, balanced with his analysis of the challenge. Stripping away the most superficial elements, he captures an honest, unvarnished account of his enjoyment, suffering, boredom, pain, loneliness, frustration, elation, and fatigue and ultimate triumph. With candid sincerity, Shapiro offers portraits of the America he encountered along the way. For runners, travelers, or anyone who enjoys the challenge ‘because it is there,’ this insightful and inspirational book is an essential American travelogue.

Edition details

• Publisher: Echo Point Books & Media
• Publication date: 2019
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1635618525
• ISBN 13: 9781635618525
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 258