This is a very well written memoir that will resonate with anyone who has struggled with their weight and how to make a lasting change.

I could not get into this book, ultimately it was not form me and I could not finish it. It may be one for other readers

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced readers copy in exchange for an honest review.

4 stars

I enjoyed Robert Earl Stewart's memoir of how he began his running program.

This is the biography of how running changed Roberts life. As a runner I understood many of the feelings Robert had and the obstacles he found along the way. Well written

A lovely book about so much more than running - a man’s story of how he saved himself from addictions. It’s a story that will inspire anyone who reads it and even if you’ve never had an addiction or been overweight or jogged a block - you will relate and find great value and insight and even joy in this wonderful read. Heartfelt thanks to Dundurn for the advanced copy. Wha a treat. Great for a book club / so much to discuss and will bring any discussion group closer.

I loved this memoir.

Robert was dangerously overweight and nothing seemed to want to make him face the reality. The book details how he changed from that man to an avid runner.

The book really takes you on the emotional journey with Robert. He has me from the start of the book when he described the interaction between him and his father about his weight, whilst saying goodbye to his mum.

The reader celebrates every success with him, from the first his first walks around the park, to his runs in different locations around the world.

The past addictions and wrong choices, really help us make sense of where we meet him at his unhealthiest.

I love running, but busy family and work life has meant I haven't done it for 9 years. This book will hopefully serve as the inspiration to put those run night shoes back on and just start walking.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this book in exchange for an honest review.
Books about running usually catch my attention. But with this book, there's so much more to the author's story. From losing his mother, struggling with alcoholism and then becoming morbidly obese, meeting his wife and starting a family, and to finally finding his passion for running. It's interesting to read about all of this plus his adjusting to the different feelings about running.

I jumped at the opportunity to read The Running-Shaped Hole. Like most reader-runners I know, I love to read and I love to run and I really love to read about running. And sometimes my on again-off again runner status is inspired by it. That’s at the root of what I was going for here and, you know what? It worked. As soon as this snowy PNW thaws out, I’ll be lacing up the new shoes I got for Christmas and hitting the trails. (Even when I am on again, I am terrified of running in slippery conditions.)

This book title refers to running, but honestly, it is much richer than that. Stewart begins by sharing his story of alcohol addiction, his journey through recovery and how that journey neglected to consider his whole health. Yes, he gave up drinking, but he used an inappropriate relationship with food to cope. He takes us through the story of meeting his future wife, their courtship, growing their family. He also talks about his education, his career and how he discovered himself as a poet. His memoir leaves nothing out, finally landing us in the time and place when running makes its debut.

Reading Stewart’s experience with learning to run and navigating the complexities of learn to run groups, the etiquette involved when dealing with other runners and the transition from civilian to runner was so relatable. There were so many times when he articulated thoughts and feelings I have had and in which I was convinced I was alone.

Stewart lives in Windsor, Ontario and I became fascinated with The Detroit Free Press Marathon (the only marathon in the world to cross international borders!) throughout this book as Stewart makes a couple of attempts before (spoiler alert!) successfully running it. I really enjoyed learning about it and have contemplated the logistics of getting there and running in a number of times while still reading the book and since.

The title refers to Blaise Pascal’s notion of the god-shaped hole, an empty place in our hearts that only god can fill. When one embarks on learning to running or making running a part of their life, there is a revelatory and often revolutionary experience that comes along with it. Stewart does an excellent job of articulating that. He keeps his story very real and, for me, as a reader, there is no greater reward.I also particularly enjoyed his slightly catty, but very justified setting straight of the record as it relates to a certain neighbourhood altercation. (Shame on you, Sandra!)

This book takes an empathetic approach and gives bite size approaches and allows you to have kindness and patience with yourself when dealing with life. This is so necessary for everyone to read in life. Highly recommend. Especially loved the reflection to true life to humanize my feelings and relate. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Absolutely loved this memoir. Feels honest, very well written. Greatly inspirational story, and not just about running, but also (sometimes too much) eating, alcohol abuse recovery, a rock & roll lifestyle and a sweet understanding family. Relatable and enjoyable, I couldn't put this down. One of the highlights of 2021 for me!

As a once larger person who found inner peace running, I was excited to read Robert Earl Stewart's memoir THE RUNNING-SHAPED HOLE. Stewart chronicles his emotional, humorous, and moving journey from a man who let his addictions own him to man who finds running as one of the ways to funnel his addictive tendencies into a healthy habit that changes him in ways never knew possible.
Stewart explains how he has let his addictions win when he was younger and how a series of bad choices over many years make it all the harder to start making good choices. He is frank, often comically so, about his size, his ability to be a good husband and father, and his struggles as a writer. What becomes clear immediately in the book is that Stewart is a good person looking for his place in the world. As he is becoming a husband, father, writer, and runner, the identity of Robert Earl Stewart slowly comes together, as if each of those characteristics is a puzzle piece and the more the complete the puzzle is, the clearer the understanding of who Robert Earl Stewart is becomes apparent. The reader will cheer Stewart's successes and sympathize with his setbacks (particularly those nagging runner injuries that seem to drag out). Another standout aspect of the book is Stewart's detailed descriptions of where he runs in Windsor, Canada and Detroit. For the first time I am interested in visiting there because of how interesting and unique Stewart depicts those cities.
I was sad when the THE RUNNING-SHAPED HOLE ended and I kind of want to go to Windsor, Canada now for a run to see if I can "accidently' run into Robert Earl Stewart and get some more great stories of his running journey. A great read!

Robert Earl Stewart has this in common with me: he jogs, rather than runs, and running has played a central role in his life. "The Running-Shaped Hole" is his half-decade story of embracing running as a last ditch effort to escape a downward spiral of morbid obesity and morbid depression. Like me, he is ultra slow; like me, he finds purpose in his running quest; unlike me, he seems to have amazing willpower to aspire within a few years to run a half-marathon despite still being heavy. Using a conversational, confessional style, the author weaves an intricate story of his life with a wonderful family as he steps away from the brink of self-destruction, a story replete with tales of running's pleasures and woes. Sporty readers or those pondering what jogging is like will find The Running-Shaped Hole a useful, entertaining read.

Anyone who has struggled with weight will find a piece of themself in this book and in Robert Earl Stewart's candid commentary on why he struggled with addiction. It's so familiar to all of us. But what you won't have seen before is Stewart's description of why he runs and how he overcame his demons. The portions of the book where Stewart describes his connection to the space he finds while running is really quite profound and absorbing. The writing oozes with irony, humor, and the sense that there is a Running Mind for all of us, even if we can't run.

I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I know ALOT about eating disorders and this is the kind of book I love to read because it details the misery of overeating and being overweight, but also gives inspiration that you can take your own health into your hands and make it better.

At times, this was a little slow, but Robert's story is remarkable. I like that he does not ALWAYS take himself super seriously and I admire him for being so honest.

When the author describes his running and how he feels, it is so engaging and I could read on endlessly.

Loved.