Running with Sherman: The Donkey with the Heart of a Hero
Christopher McDougall, 2020
Knopf Doubleday
352 pp.
ISBN-13: 9781524732363
Summary
From the author of Born to Run, a heartwarming story about training a rescue donkey to run one of the most challenging races in America, and, in the process, discovering the life-changing power of the human-animal connection.
When Chris 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 he arrived, Sherman was in such bad shape he could barely move, and his hair was coming out in clumps. Chris decided to undertake a radical rehabilitation program designed not only to heal Sherman's body but to heal his mind as well.
It turns out the best way to soothe a donkey is to give it a job, and so Chris decided to teach Sherman how 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.
An entire community comes together to help save Sherman and, along the way, Chris shows us the joy of a life with animals. (From the publisher.)
Author Bio
• Birth—1962
• Where—Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
• Education—B.A., Harvard University
• Currently—lives in Peach Bottom, Penn.
Christopher McDougall covered wars in Rwanda and Angola as a foreign correspondent for the Associated Press before writing his best-selling book Born to Run (2009). His fascination with the limits of human potential led him to create the Outside magazine's web series, "Art of the Hero."
He currently lives with his wife, two daughters, and a farmyard menagerie in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. (From the publisher.)
McDougall with his wife, Mika, and Sherman.
Bob Williams for The Philadelphia Inquirer
Book Reviews
[A] magical read, one that elicits surprised chuckles even as it tugs at the heartstrings. The motley crew—both human and animal—that it introduces is an absolute delight; McDougall clearly has a gift for fully rendering the people that he meets.… It’s a wonderful read for anyone who has loved an animal that needed to be loved.
Maine Edge
[A] charming story.… McDougall has a colorful writing style that brings to life the animals’ personalities, as well as the various obstacles they encounter during their year of training.… McDougall describes all of it with exquisite detail, making Running with Sherman a fun and inspiring read, not just for runners, but for anyone who believes in the healing power of the human-animal bond.
New York Journal of Books
In this tenderhearted memoir, McDougall (Born to Run) tells of his adoption and rehabilitation of Sherman, an ailing rescue donkey.… Runners and animal lovers alike can find inspiration in this story of the ways in which humans and animals connect.
Publishers Weekly
A humorous and heartwarming book about not only running with donkeys but about community, our connections with one another, and our abilities to persevere and overcome physical and mental challenges. —Melissa Keegan, Ela Area P.L., Lake Zurich, IL
Library Journal
Both inspiring and humorous, a testament to the depth of the animal-human connection.
Booklist
Sherman's transformation from dying donkey to confident runner involved a circle of family, friends, neighbors, and a few feisty donkeys, each of whom McDougall portrays in affectionate, vivid detail.… A charming tale of a resilient donkey and a community's love.
Kirkus Reviews
Discussion Questions
We'll add publisher questions if and when they're available; in the meantime, use our LitLovers talking points to help start a discussion for RUNNING WITH SHERMAN … then take off on your own:
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 your 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?
(Questions by LitLovers. Please feel free to use them, online and off, with attribution. Thanks.)