Maybe it's my bike (and running) fetish that's influencing this, or my goal of biking across the country on a solar powered bike, but I'm not too disappointed with the ending to Memory of Running. Disclosure: I have 3 different bikes and use them all on a regular basis. One of them is electric, another is designed for riding in snow, sand, or other sub-optimal conditions, and the last is a 'normal' Raleigh with an 8 speed internal geared hub... I also have been running competitively since 7th grade.
So, I'm drawn to the book for obvious reasons, but biking aside, I'm actually OK with the ending. Smithy makes it to California. A feat in itself for someone weighing nearly 300lbs without any training or riding experience in the past 20 years. He also loses weight (obviously) but more importantly, sets himself up for a new life. He has no job and little money, but now he has experience with tons of different people and the mental drive that you develop from doing the same task for 8 months.
OK, so the part with Norma standing behind him while he cries to Bethany is a bit too good to be true. Yeah, there isn't an explanation for how this worked out, and I think that the book would be better if it didn't go this smoothly but be look at the other parts of the conclusion. It's not as if Smithy just got a new life, job, and tons of money handed to him. He still needs to get home, deal with his parents' possessions, get a job, and plan a wedding (obviously).
I also didn't have a huge problem with the ending of the book. I know that the ending seemed a bit staged and it was too dream-like that Smithy began to run after losing his bike, but I think the ending wrapped up the story well.
ReplyDeleteMy main issue wasn't that everything worked out so perfectly, though I thought it was a little too unrealistic, but that Smithy doesn't really have any mental closure. We start to see Smithy thinking about more profound things that he has put off for twenty years near the end, but McLarty doesn't touch on any of these things in the end.
ReplyDeleteI think Smithy's journey is amazing. He rode across the country on a bike and I am extremely impressed with his "quest" (or whatever you'd like to call it). But I agree with Lydia, the ending kind of bothered me because Smithy didn't really have any closure. Also, I didn't like how Norma appeared, their relationship seemed uncomfortable throughout the story.
ReplyDeleteThe book definitely had a movie-like ending. I thought it was a staged and happy ending, but like you all said, it's too good to be true. When Norma just somehow appears bothered me a little bit because I was expecting a more dramatized ending. My expectations were very high given the way the book was unraveling. However, the ending proved to be pretty simple.
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