February 2021: Running With Sherman

[Anne, BPL Librarian]

Join us Monday February 8, 2021, at 1:30pm for a book discussion about Running With Sherman: How a Rescue Donkey Inspired a Rag-tag Gang of Runners to Enter the Craziest Race in America by Christopher McDougall.

Register here: https://bethlehem.librarycalendar.com...

[Anne, BPL Librarian]

Here's an introduction to the book on the author's website:

https://www.chrismcdougall.com/runnin...

It even has a video!

"Running with ShermanWhen Christopher McDougall agreed to take in a donkey from an animal hoarder, he thought it would be no harder than the rest of the adjustments he and his family had made after moving from Philadelphia to the heart of Pennsylvania Amish country. But when Sherman arrived, he was so sick he could barely move. Chris decided to undertake a radical rehabilitation program designed not only to heal Sherman's body but his mind as well. The best way to soothe a donkey is to give it a job, so Christopher decided to teach Sherman to run. He'd heard about burro racing--a unique type of race where humans and donkeys run together in a call-back to mining days--and decided he and Sherman would enter the World Championship in Colorado.

Easier said than done. In the course of Sherman's training, Chris would have to recruit several other runners, both human and equine, and call upon the wisdom of burro racers, goat farmers, Amish running club members, and a group of irrepressible female long-haul truckers. Along the way, he shows us the life-changing power of animals, nature, and community."

[Anne, BPL Librarian]

Here are a couple of interviews with the author:

Audio and/or written interview from Only a Game show on public radio: https://www.wbur.org/onlyagame/2019/1...

An interview about the books and about running: https://greensboro.com/blogs/wooten_r...

Edit to add articles on the Pedrettis:
https://lacrossetribune.com/community...|

https://madison.com/wsj/news/local/ex...

Edited to add Hal Walter's review of the book in which he is depicted:
https://hardscrabbletimes.com/2020/02...

Good article on Fairplay's Burro Days:
https://www.thedenverchannel.com/news...

Photo gallery from the Fairplay article: https://www.thedenverchannel.com/news...

Fairplay, Colorado's Burro Days Festival: https://www.facebook.com/Burro-Days-F...

Leadville Boom Days website: http://www.leadvilleboomdays.org

Burro Race Rules: http://www.leadvilleboomdays.org/the-...

Western Pack Burro Racing website: http://www.packburroracing.com

[Anne, BPL Librarian]

Questions from LitLovers:

1. So let's get personal here. Did you cry? When? On first meeting Sherman in his broken-down condition? Or by the end, rehabilitated by loving care.

2. Okay, if you didn't actually well up, which episodes in the book at least moved you or delighted you? How about, say, the moment when Sherman raced uphill to the farm, "touching noses with the two big warhorses" behind the fence?

3. Talk about some of the human characters that populate the book. Zeke, for instance, suffering with depression. Perhaps you might do some online research to find out what psychologists have learned about how bonding with animals can alleviate depression. Who are other characters in this book whose lives were touched by Sherman?

4. (Follow-up to Question 3) Consider other ways in which animals aid humans. Therapy dogs in hospitals, for instance? Equine therapy?

5. What is your own experience bonding with animals, healthy or not? Have you even volunteered, say, to work with animals in a humane society's kennel?

6. As humans, what do we owe animals?