Running with a Police Escort
Tales from the Back of the Pack
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- $18.99
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- $18.99
Publisher Description
In the fall of 2012, quirky and cat-loving Cleveland librarian Jill Grunenwald got an alarming email from her younger sister: her sister was very concerned with Jill’s weight and her overall mental and physical health. Having always struggled with her weight, Jill was currently hitting the scales at more than three hundred pounds. Right then, Jill looked in the mirror and decided that she needed to make a life-style change, pronto. She enrolled in Weight Watchers and did something else that she—the girl who avoided gym class like the plague in high school—never thought she’d do; Jill started running. And believe it or not, it wasn’t that bad. Actually, it was kind of fun.
Three months later, Jill did the previously unthinkable and ran her very first 5k at the Cleveland Metropolitan Zoo. Battling the infamous hills of the course, Jill conquered her fears and finished—but in dead last. Yep, the police were reopening the streets behind her. But Jill didn’t let that get her down—because when you run for your health and happiness, your only real competition is yourself.
Six years and more than one hundred pounds lost later, Jill is still running and racing regularly, and she is a proud member of the back of the pack in every race that she has entered. In Running with a Police Escort, Jill chronicles her racing adventures, proving that being a slow runner takes just as much guts and heart as being an Olympic champion. At turns heartbreaking and hilarious, Running with a Police Escort is for every runner who has never won a race but still loves the sport.
Skyhorse Publishing, as well as our Sports Publishing imprint, is proud to publish a broad range of books for readers interested in sports—books about baseball, pro football, college football, pro and college basketball, hockey, or soccer, we have a book about your sport or your team.
In addition to books on popular team sports, we also publish books for a wide variety of athletes and sports enthusiasts, including books on running, cycling, horseback riding, swimming, tennis, martial arts, golf, camping, hiking, aviation, boating, and so much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to publishing books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked by other publishers and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Grunenwald, a librarian and podcast host, shares her life in fitness, from her middle school days avoiding gym class to the present, in which she is an enthusiastic slow runner of races. She often finishes last as the police reopen the streets, hence the title. She also documents her journey from being in denial about her unhealthy lifestyle to acknowledging it and taking action via Weight Watchers and, eventually, running. The story leads up to her first runs in Cleveland, where she lives, to her first race, her first destination race, and many other races. The author is open about her physical pains as a 311-lb. runner, her food cravings, and the mental hurdles she overcomes throughout her races and runs. No matter the challenge, readers witness her walking and finishing last with dignity. Readers can count on Grunenwald to be honest about herself and others, and sprinkled in the chapters are fun references to writers such as Joyce Carol Oates and Stephen King (she is a librarian, after all). This autobiography will appeal to and inspire those struggling to get healthy.
