Women Runners ― Stories of Transformation

This anthology by and about women runners truly captures the essence of running, and the spirit and dreams of women. These all-new works, solicited from published authors, run the gamut from humorous to serious to sad, from poetry to fiction to essay. It is a perfect paired volume with The Runner's Literary Companion—the art of writing seeking to comprehend the ineffable, incomparable nature of running. The runners depicted cover the whole range of women—young and old, single and married, gay and straight, fast and slow, casual runners and fierce.

These are not profiles of elite runners or Olympic personalities—they are moving works of literature about ordinary people achieving something extraordinary in their lives. Herein are stories about women running through pregnancy, running out their grief at the loss of loved ones, running a first marathon, running without fear, taking up running in midlife, running a 100-mile race, running naked; stories about running and love, and a high school girl finding her identity and strength through running.

Running shapes one's life to its very foundation, and these stories and essays all celebrate its power to radically transform and empower. Women Runners will illuminate and inspire any runner—man or woman—and send them out the door for a few more miles of sweat and illumination.

Irene Reti began running in early 1996 and has completed four marathons. She is the editor of numerous anthologies, including Cats (and their Dykes) and Childless by Choice: A Feminist Anthology. Her forthcoming memoir, The Keeper of Memory is about growing up as the daughter of Holocaust refugees who kept their Jewish identity a secret from her.

Bettianne Shoney Sien has run fourteen marathons. Her short stories have been widely published and she is a teacher in Santa Cruz, California.