Book Review: We Loved to Run

By Sara Steven

At Frost, a small liberal arts college in Massachusetts, the runners on the women's cross country team have their sights set on the 1992 New England Division Three Championships and will push themselves through every punishing workout and skipped meal to achieve their goal. But Kristin, the team's star, is hiding a secret about what happened over the summer, and her unpredictable behavior jeopardizes the girls' chance to win. Team Captain Danielle is convinced she can restore Kristin's confidence, even if it means burying her own past. As the final meet approaches, Kristin, Danielle, and the rest of the girls must transcend their individual circumstances and run the race as a team.

Told from the perspective of the six fastest team members, We Loved to Run deftly illuminates the impossible standards young women set for themselves in spite of their own powerlessness. With startling honesty and boundless empathy, Stephanie Reents reveals how girls—even those pitted against each other—find ways to love and defend one another. (Synopsis courtesy of Goodreads.)

WOW. I’d originally wanted to read We Loved to Run because I’m a runner. In the end, though, this book was about much, much more. The setting takes place in the early 90s, where the reader quickly discovers how contentious it can be competing in a field that was still finding its footing for young women competitors. There is so much more to factor in than just how fast they are. It was interesting to go behind the scenes and see how far they’d go to win, even if it means hurting themselves in the process to get there. 

The six women are individuals, but at the same time, they are a collective group. In the beginning, that collectiveness is highlighted a lot in the way team decisions are made, and how each one has their own role to play within the group dynamic. But as the chapters unfold, each woman begins to break away from the collectiveness of their experience, and we learn more and more about their background stories and what has legitimately led them into an at times brutal field that strips away at everything, but gives them so much back in the process. As a runner, I could relate to that. 

When Kristin’s secret is revealed, it shakes the foundation of the friendships and teamwork that has been so carefully built, but at the same time gives much-needed truth, allowing everyone a chance towards honesty. It really pinpointed how different of a time it was in the 90s vs. today, and I thought the author did an excellent job of staying true to the characterization of a young woman and her viewpoints from that timeframe, when extra allowances could be made for behaviors that wouldn’t fly nearly as much today. The sad thing is, that is the lens we were given back then, with the well-known “boys will be boys” idiom; if a woman puts herself into what is considered by society a risky situation, “she’s asking for it.” There wasn’t as much accountability placed on the aggressor; the woman should have known better. The arguments on and for either side between the characters was true to life and made them even more believable and real.

While reading We Loved to Run, it made me want to lace up my Hokas and get out there and run, too. This book captured the spirit, the dedication, the pain and intense love that running can bring to those who are enraptured by it, an obsession that is hard to let go of. It was a definite five-star experience!

Thanks to Random House for the book in exchange for an honest review.

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