Again to Carthage (Hardcover)

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Editorial Reviews

Product Description

John L. Parker, Jr.'s first novel, Once a Runner, is the cult novel for runners. Self-published in the late 1970s, and for years sold out of the trunk of the author's car at running events, it went on to sell over 100,000 copies and achieve legendary status among runners.

It perfectly captured the intensity, relentlessness, and sheer lunacy of a serious miler's life. Kenny Moore of Sports Illustrated-himself an Olympic runner-called it "by far the best fictional portrayal of the world of a serious runner . . . a marvelous description of the way it really is."

For over twenty-five years, fans of Once a Runner have wanted more. Parker has finally written the sequel, which begins in the early 1970s where the previous book left off. The protagonist of the first book, Quenton Cassidy, has lost his best friend and teammate from college, a helicopter gunship pilot who dies a horrific death after crashing in the jungle. Cassidy is plunged into a depressive spiral in which he is forced to re-examine his studiously carefree life as a young, single attorney.

Cassidy's return to the world of competitive running is dramatic and revelatory both to Cassidy himself and to the reader, as is his desperate, all-out attempt to make one last Olympic team.

John L. Parker, Jr. is the author of the highly acclaimed novel Once a Runner. He has written for Outside, Runner's World, Running Times, and numerous other publications. He lives in Tallahassee, Florida, and Bar Harbor, Maine.

About the Author

John L. Parker Jr. is the author of "Again to Carthage" and "Once a Runner," and is a former editor of Running Times Magazine.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 344 pages
• Publisher: Breakaway Books; First edition (April 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1891369776
• ISBN-13: 978-1891369773
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 5.8 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (50 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #32,414 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A worthy sequel, November 21, 2007

By	James Marsalis "Jim" (New Orleans) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Parker has written a worthy sequel to OAR. While the book stands up well by itself, if you view it as an extension of the original story and read them sequentially, I think it makes the new novel a more meaningful tale.

Parker's eye for detail remains impeccable, and he never loses sight of the fact that Cassidy's journey is about life as much as it is about running.

For the runners out there, be assured that John once again captures the elements of our sport that make it so dear to us. The workouts, the sacrifice and the racing are all there, and the more mature Cassidy is a logical extension of the original character.

The slightly off-kilter wit of JLP has has survived intact, adding to the pleasure of the read.

The wait was long, but I was not disappointed. I recommend this book highly to all of my fellow runners.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Runner, Once Again, February 12, 2008

By	Kevin Joseph (McLean, VA United States) - See all my reviews

The long-awaited sequel to Once a Runner picks up on silver medalist Quenton Cassidy's life as a thirty-something practicing law in a small Palm Beach firm. While he still runs recreationally, Cassidy seems content to have traded his years of self-denial for a comfortable Hemingway-esque lifestyle of drinking, boating, and skin diving. A series of personal events lead him to re-examine his life, however, forcing a realization that he will never be completely fulfilled unless he is aspiring toward personal improvement, in the way that only a runner committed to serious training can be.

Just as Once a Runner nails the feelings of the competitive schoolboy runner, Again to Carthage captures the mindset of the middle-aged athlete who struggles to come to terms with the inevitability of physical decline. As one would expect, Parker's training and racing scenes are beautifully and convincingly rendered. What's equally impressive, are his descriptions of nature, fishing, and the mountain lifestyle of Cassidy's relatives. If he goes a bit heavy on the details at times, particularly in the middle chapters concerning Cassidy's family, these passages flesh out Cassidy as a person and ultimately reward the patient reader. My only other knocks on the book are the occasional awkwardness of Parker's prose, the inclusion of several plot contrivances, and the penchant for odd, anecdotal humor. Even these shortcomings, though, become kind of welcomely familiar for those of us who love Once a Runner and crave a similar reading experience.

23 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Of Time and The Runner, November 29, 2007

By	Geoff Pietsch (Gainesville, FL) - See all my reviews

John L. Parker Jr.'s Once a Runner was - and still is - the best book ever written about the world of the serious, elite distance runner. (Cassidy, though a miler then, clearly trained as a distance runner.) Again to Carthage isn't likely to have the same success as its predecessor, but I suspect Parker will be okay with that. It seems clear he wrote this book primarily for himself and to honor his family and friends - and with the sure knowledge that both they and his more distant readers who have endured countless long miles - and life itself - will be captured by this tale of the older Cassidy/Parker.

A few readers, perhaps attracted to its lovely cover and the accolades for Once a Runner on the back , may come to this book new, but most will have read OAR. To the latter let me urge you not to expect to find simply further adventures of the college-age Cassidy. This book, too, has running as its center, but it is in many ways more ambitious and mature. Parker has done a great deal of living since those days. He has much he wants to say. And it is virtually all written with grace and passion.

I'm sure Parker had many doubts about writing a sequel to a book as loved as Once a Runner. I am glad he dared to do so - and had the courage to make it much more than a sequel.