“Apropos of Running” is about the drive to succeed, and sharing that drive with others in your life. It is the book we all wish Ahmaud Arbery had the opportunity to write, but painfully mourn that his murder deprived us of that.
If you know a little about art historian and marathoner Charles Moore and want to get a better understanding of what he has been through, this book will do that for you. If you think about running but tell yourself it isn’t for you or that you are too old to start, reading this book is a great way to gain motivation and insider perspective. If you love memoir as a genre and are hoping for the intense vulnerability, and lyrical introspection you know exists in so many lives of Black excellence, you’ll need to accept that those moments will be fleeting.
From New York to London to Atlanta, readers are spectators along the course as Mr. Moore runs through his story. The prose is episodic and winding. Stories trot toward a finish line you aren’t sure you’ll see. You’ll read on cheering for him, but descriptions of the Italian sky as having looked “like a Dan Brown novel” or his mother’s skin color as “high yellow” may make you wish Mr. Moore had dug deeper.
Petite Ivy Press ($27)
But what it leaves to be desired in the way of more thoughtful and careful craft, “Apropos of Running” makes up for in excitement imparted by someone with confidence and dedication. Tributes to the people in Mr. Moore’s life who have been along for this journey, including his mother — whom he does go on to paint with depth and honesty — are the book’s true fuel.
When we finally do watch Mr. Moore move past all the references to Hoka, Hova, and devouring philosophy, his recognition that no matter what you do, time will pass anyway, is an apt one. For marathoners, aspiring runners and folks interested in books about representation, it is well worth the time on the side of the course. You’ll learn about the beauty of the majors, which care regimens are the best for aging runners and the power of tenacity.
Mr. Moore’s vignettes about the people in his running community, his plan for the many races he wanted to tackle, and punctuations from the world of Black art collecting are worth your time. Readers who want to know who he is and understand more about why he took up the task of being a major marathoner after age 40 will find answers to many important questions.
But while the book has so much to offer in those vignettes, it has challenges in its arrangement and style and may leave some readers feeling as though Mr. Moore ran by them with less fanfare than they had hoped for. Still, the book will pull in the invested reader and, as Mr. Moore notes, “time becomes a keeper of itself then. While it’s passing, I am passing with it.” A moment of lovely phrasing about an extraordinary life.
If his writing is anything like his marathon running, we will get more opportunities to read about Charles Moore’s life, and his command of the art will get better with each step.
Bernice McDaniels is an artist from Pittsburgh who writes about love.
First Published: November 20, 2023, 5:00 a.m.