Blue Wolf Reviews

Tag: running

  • Out of Breath

    Out of Breath

     It seems that Jo has been running away all her life. There were distressing circumstances in her childhood which she planned to leave behind when she left England and moved to Australia. In Sydney she wanted to settle down. She began a relationship which failed. This led to her fleeing to a farm near Broome to pick mangoes.

    The courage of Jo is never in doubt as she rises to the challenge of the outback, the weather, harsh conditions, and sheer hard work. However once again we find her running away. This time she is looking for a true escape, living with a group of people in disused buildings.

     This group are happy, settled and headed by a woman who is love and kindness personified. They spend a great deal of time in the protected waters off the coast, and all become skilled in the art of holding their breath underwater for a long time.

    Jo has never questioned the need for money. Mainly the group exist on fruit that is substandard, or grain that has been rejected. But a project is revealed that has her questioning her moral compass. The intrigue and mystery that gradually evolve, have such alarming consequences that Jo runs, this time, for her life.

    Out of Breath by Anna Snoekstra is a sombre story with twists that slowly are revealed. It looks at how we can manipulate our subconscious and chain ourselves to misconceptions. There are some lovely descriptions of the Australian landscape.

  • Get Moving Keep Moving: Healthy ageing and how physical activity loves you back

    Get Moving Keep Moving: Healthy ageing and how physical activity loves you back

    Gordon Spence was like most people, physically active as a young man, playing sport, running and generally enjoying life. As he grew into adulthood and further study he slowly slipped away from his love of running, gained weight, lost fitness, accepting that feeling of sluggishness was par for the course. Until it wasn’t! 

    With a significant birthday looming, he realised something needed to change and after reviewing his past twenty years, realised that the main element missing from his personal health list was some regular form of exercise; his love of running had always been his ‘go to’ in times long past and perhaps, in spite of finding a number of reason why not, he should revisit this and get fit once again.

    Get Moving, Keep Moving is a genuinely excellent book setting out, but not preaching, the many aspects of growing older, or ageing, and why it is of vital importance, perhaps more so than ever before, to get fit and stay fit if you want to live a happy, healthy and active older lifestyle.

    He uses his father as a role model; a man who was always and still is a very active man, the ‘Dad’s Army’ Rowing crew average age of 70 something years young and a number of younger people who made the step into ‘moving it’ for a variety of reason, all with the underlying commonality of ageing in a healthy and fit manner.

    Spence states very clearly this is not a book about running; it is not, but it is a book about seeking out ways of getting back into healthy. Set out in three parts with Part one focusing on the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) staggering figures that by 2050 there will be 2.1 billion, yes billion people, on this earth over the age of 60 years.

    It looks at what is considered to be, by WHO, The Decade of Healthy Aging’, as something we all need to a take on board and begin to look at a more positive way of making the most out of living your life well.

    Part Two The Health Activation Process looks at HOW, by using the simple process of Reflect, Project, Inspect and Connect. Simple but very effective. Naturally Part Three Living in the Future is of great concern to all, especially as one reaches a substantial figure of years, which for many seems a long way off, but in reality is not.

    The four gentlemen who have contributed to chapter 8 are the ‘Dad’s Army’ Rowing crew, each one a fit, healthy and active 70 something years, and still enjoying good physical and mental health. That says a lot for making the effort and ‘Moving it or Loosing it’ as is the saying.

    Gordon Spence has delivered a bible of common sense, aimed primarily at the 50-60 year age range, which will help people help themselves, by finding the connection to an activity that will keep them mentally, socially and physically engaged and fit, right into their seriously engaged older years.

    Get Moving, Keep Moving is definitely the way to head into healthy wellbeing as the aging process continues ever onward. Get your copy and begin to age well right about now!

  • As Fast As I Can

    As Fast As I Can

    As Fast As I Can is much more than entertaining look at facing up to real life challenges, viewed through the eyes of ten year old Vivian and her family, as they struggle to cope with a devastating illness and the fall out that will mean Vivian will not be able to live her dream of representing Australia at the Olympic Games when she is older.

    Vivian was not one to give up lightly as she had a dream, a big, huge dream to follow, she just was not sure how she was going to make it happen, as in her family they had the belief that if you worked hard enough, you could achieve whatever you wanted!

    Her friend Olivia is pretty good at sport; they trained together using Olivia’s backyard, measured out a sprint track, but becoming a sprinter was not to be, neither was long jumping a success. Gymnastics was great, but after trying and trying Vivian realised that was not the pathway to the Olympics. Eventually cross country running for the school sports captured Vivian’s imagination and she began training like mad to be able to be the best possible on the day, maybe even to win.

    She had in the most unexpected way, discovered a sport she was really good at; one that could take her to the Olympics in 2016 if she trained hard enough and believed in herself.

    This absolutely gripping story from Penny Tangey looks at what happens when dreams come tumbling down, that life often comes with pathways already built in and that learning to dream big is wonderful, but sometimes those dreams need to change directions, even if you are only ten years old.

    From the first page Vivian and her determination to never give up, sets the scene for a heartfelt story that will captivate, as very carefully woven within is strong message to children everywhere to believe in yourself, to follow your dreams but when change comes, as it often will, to change course but keep on dreaming and believing.

  • Running with Sherman

    Running with Sherman

    Running With Sherman, the tale of a down and out donkey who made good, is an absolute delight. Christopher McDougall has crafted a story that will remain in your heart and mind for a very long time, as it tells the tale of a hapless donkey who had been loved almost to death, buy an obsessive owner, being rescued by a kindly soul in the same community, who realised the animals this man loved so much, were suffering badly.

    McDougall, well known for his best seller Born To Run, had no idea he really was looking for a rescue donkey, until he was asked to house this donkey in with his already attitude prone group of assorted animals, to give him hope of a better life, if at all possible.

    After much discussion with his wife and daughters the answer was of course, was Yes, until the poor creature arrived, almost too far gone to be saved: but with the help of friends and neighbours, a lot of love, a compete extrovert of a goat named Lawrence, Flower, a larger than life donkey, Tilda, a miniature donkey who loved to be first, and eventually The Amish Running Club, Sherman was given a fresh new lease on life.

    This heart-warming story of Sherman, how he conquered his fears, of which there were many and became strong enough to compete in the World Championship Pack Burro Race held in Colorado, a gruelling race for the humans, and enjoyment pulse for the Burros, is a complete pleasure from the first page.

    But there is far more to the story than rescuing Sherman, as in the process of getting him fit and able for the race, Chris learned much about the human and donkey spirit, as Sherman’s needs reached out to offer a pathway forward for a struggling young athlete, saw the world of the Amish people embrace the challenge of this somewhat temperamental donkey, a donkey who touched the hearts of everyone who had contact with him.

    Christopher McDougall is a born storyteller who has woven life’s journey with that of a donkey called Sherman, into a tender-hearted story and one in which the wonderful healing bond that occurs between animals and their humans was never more apparent.

    Running With Sherman simply portrays that no matter how bad things sometimes can be, a helping hand, offered with love, understanding and respect, makes sure that anything at all is possible.

  • The Annie Effect Changing lives one run at a time-you Can Too!

    The Annie Effect Changing lives one run at a time-you Can Too!

    Can Too is a charity that has changed so many lives in the most unexpected ways, by providing a pathway to facing fears, losing weight and gaining self-confidence, just for starters. Can Too, a non-profit organisation, channels all the monies raised into cancer research which has given many young research Scientists the time and funding to dig ever deeper into the causes and possible cures for some of the more challenging cancers that attack the human body.

    But how is it that one woman searching for a reason, a purpose in her life, can step back more ten years after starting this organisation and say – Hey, well done! In this very personal memoir Annie Crawford offers a window into believing in self, believing that, Yes, I can do it, whatever IT may be.

    The story begins in her childhood, growing up in a family of seven children in the suburb of Normanhurst, with parents who always looked at a challenge square on and worked out ways to meet them as they came along.  This was a good foundation for the many challenges and issues of self-doubt Annie was to face in her roles as a Social Worker, mother and wife and then as the founder of Can Too, many years later.

    Her love of running was to be the instigator that was to see Can Too evolve when the family returned to Australia after many years living and working in Switzerland and America. This return to Australia also saw Annie once again, trying to work out what was the purpose of her life and what was it that she really wanted to do.

    A glimmer of an idea, thrashed out with her husband Simon, led to Can Too being established with a foundation base of just seven, which slowly grew to 25, then to 54 people registering to undertake the training program for the Blackmore’s Sydney Running Festival and raise funds for Cure Cancer Australia, the organisation that supports young Australian scientists in cancer research.

    From this very humble beginning Can Too has now become a Foundation, has raised more than $18,000,000 has coached and inspired more than 13,500 people and offered the hope of a cure to many thousands more.

    As you move through the chapters of Annie Crawford’s life to date, the most powerful thing to be presented is the complete understanding she came to when she understood fully, that by giving back, she received far, far more than she would ever have expected on the day when she and Simon sat down and discussed the fledgling idea that was to become Can Too!

    As she says on the final page of the book, ‘There were once so many things I thought I couldn’t do, but now I know I can do anything. And you know what? You can too.”