Friday, January 15, 2021

The Running Dream by Wendelin Van Draanen

 Unfortunately, I haven't had a five star read yet this year so I'm switching it up and doing #FavoritesFriday so I can share one of my favorites with you! (Definitely not my only favorite. You wouldn't choose a favorite child would you?!)



The Running Dream by Wendelin Van Draanan
Pub. Date: January 11, 2011

This book is ten years old and honestly, I think I read it sometime that year. But the mark that it left on me was enough for me to remember it as one of my absolute favorites, even now.

The story revolves around Jessica. She's a runner (Definitely NOT the part I related to lol) but one day she's in a car accident and loses her leg. (Not a spoiler. That's literally the whole point.) Now, she's struggling through the physical pain of losing her leg and trying to get used to a prosthetic, while also dealing with the emotional trauma of wondering if she will ever run again. Friends don't know what to say and some even start ignoring her.

Then we meet Rosa, a sweet girl with cerebral palsy. She's been treated in this same manner for pretty much her whole life so in a related, but not completely similar, way she understands what Jessica is going through. The silent looks. The whispers. Rosa begins tutoring Jessica in math and from there they begin to form a unique friendship. As the possibility of Jessica being able to run again starts to become clearer, Jessica shows a beautiful change of heart.


The reason I related to this book so thoroughly and why it remains one of my favorite books is because in many ways I could relate to Jessica. No, I did not lose my leg. But I did severely injure my knee, which cut my senior year volleyball career short after just the first couple games. I read this less than a year later, while also preparing for surgery to hopefully fix my knee. 

Jessica's inner thoughts spoke to me. Her angsty teenage depression was a lot of what I was also feeling those days. Definitely a case of "right book, right time". I remember wanting to give up because there were so many things I just couldn't do because of my brace and my crutches. But missing out on volleyball was the hardest (just like Jessica and her running). I never got to play out my final season where I finally made varsity starter. I didn't get to play in the game that decided if the team would go to state. I spent the rest of that season on the bench, dedicated to my team, but never set foot on that court again. To this day, I'm still kind of disappointed. 

The Running Dream is a beautiful story of growing up, learning to be strong - both physically and mentally, putting yourself into someone else's shoes, and helping to build up others who may be struggling too. 

No comments:

Post a Comment