I highly recommend the book “Hurt Me If You Can” by Matthew Baxter. My son is a middle school cross country runner here in the suburbs outside of Chicago. I came across Matthew Baxter and his book one day when my son and I were watching Youtube videos about college cross country. Matthew Baxter wrote this book about his running experiences in high school. He spent his college cross country years at Northern Arizona University.
I picked up this book in order to understand the sport of cross country from the perspective of a high school athlete (of which my son will be in the Fall 2021). In high school my focus was more on the academics and my husband was in band. I am truly a non-athlete and hoped the book would give me insight into the world of high school cross country.
The “tales” from Matthew gave me more of an insight into the mind of a high school boy who just happened to run. I learned about his trials and tribulations with family, school and running.
I found the tales of his running to be insightful as well. I learned how he approached his training. I learned how he relied on his team members. I learned how mature he was to take the time to stop and enjoy the experience and nature at the different courses he raced. I learned how he approached and overcame adversity with his high school running career. Through it all, I could clearly tell he loves to run.
I plan to pass along this book to my son next summer, just before he enters high school. I believe this book will be a valuable resource for my son from the aspect of a boy navigating high school years who happens to be a cross country runner.
I recommend the book “Hurt Me If You Can”. I especially recommend the book to middle school and high school runners.
Me: I am Diane M. Spolar and I live in Willowbrook, Illinois (a suburb outside of Chicago) with my husband, son and cat. I am a CPA by day and a reader by night and on the weekends. I am a lifelong lover of books.
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