I finished reading Water for Elephants. Overall I thought it was a great book. It was very entertaining, well written and a fun story. There are several parts that I think could have been left out, or significantly toned down, and the story would have remained the same. But, it was a fun, quick read.

50/50 was a crazy amazing book. I still can’t believe that he ran 50 marathons in 50 days. That is such a crazy endeavor. However, the craziest part of the book, in my opinion, is the last few pages. He tells what happened in the days following the end of the Endurance 50. Telling you doesn’t ruin anything, I don’t think, it just adds to how crazy this man is. But if you don’t want to know, stop reading now.
After all the marathons were over and everyone had gone back to their homes, somehow someone had neglected to get Dean an airline ticket from NYC back home to San Francisco. What did he do? Anyone I know would have gone to the airport and bought a ticket. No, he decided to run home. From New York to San Fran! What?! Didn’t he just run 50 marathons!? Don’t you think his wife was like, “Honey, I think it is time for you to come home now. You have been gone 7 weeks. Time to come home.” I have no idea what she said, but the book says that he ran for one month, sleeping in parks and getting food on the run, traveled 1300 miles to Missouri. Then he decided he missed his family and decided to go home. So he ran to the airport, got a ticket and flew home. After running just over 1300 miles in the 50 marathons, he ran an additional 1300 miles in his quest to get home. That is dedication.

I am still working on When Helping Hurts, a book we are reading through with our small group.

I think my next book will be Devil at my Heels, the story of Louis Zamperini, a runner & WW2 hero.