El. knyga: Running Body

"The Running Body is an empowering narrative of reclaiming agency, body, and voice. At the same time, Pifer's detailed accounts of what she did (not) eat and her resulting physical transformations offer an honesty and vulnerability both admirable and potentially triggering. Sheimportantlyis unflinching in showing how recovery, like grief, is never linear, and body trouble might always be waiting for an opportunity to re-emerge." * Still Journal * "The Running Body is a most unusual book - little in words but big in philosophy. . . . I was mesmerized - the flow reminded me of honey yet the sentences would repeat themselves, would be fragments, would be otherwise unique." * Patch * The Running Body isnt just a splendid book about life as a competitive runner. It is a searing exploration of what it means to give yourself over to the beauty and pain of competition, to run for your life but also against it. Emily Pifer is fearless in her pursuit of the truth, not just about running but disordered eating, patriarchal culture, the male gaze, our frantic quest for control, and the role of sports in our society. I felt I was listening to a voice that had vital things to say, and that helped me understand my life, as well as hers. -- Steve Almond, author of Candyfreak and Against Football "I couldn't put this book down. With gut-wrenching honesty and startling courage, Pifer documents her harrowing descent into the dark side of elite running, where the pursuit of physical perfection is non-negotiable and potentially deadly. A moving, important story." -- Anelise Chen, author of So Many Olympic Exertions "It is beautiful to watch Pifer find her way back to herself, sentence by sentence, in this triumphant memoir." -- Leah Dieterich, author of Vanishing Twins: A Marriage