Rachel Toor

Read this after hearing Rachel Toor on Another Mother Runner podcast and about her again through a favorite company of mine, Skirt Sports. She sounded like a cool lady and I wanted to read her book.

I enjoyed her writing about the experience of learning how to run. I found some of the exposition about running tedious but that's because I've been running for a dozen years, non-runners would need to exposition, I think.

The information about Walter the Rat was both interesting and strange. I understand how it contributed to the story of Alice but I still found it a bit irritating. Must be my anti-rat bias!

The lessons about learning to be wrong and choosing a college wisely are good lessons as is the one about paying more attention to the people you love although delivered in a somewhat heavy handed manner.

Overall it was enjoyable but not spectacular. I might share it with my friend's daughter who recently started to run cross country in high school.

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[b: Misunderstood: A Book About Rats|25689036|Misunderstood A Book About Rats|Rachel Toor|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1444655322s/25689036.jpg|45517440] is yet another in my 'let's put every book my library has on rats on hold and see what I may find' experiment. This was, so far, probably the most fun of the books I've found. While it doesn't go into quite as much detail about the actual intricacies of rat care as other handbooks I've read, it does a better job of encapsulating the whole rat-human experience that comes from living with these pets. I don't feel saying 'owning' them is quite the right term - you more just share your home with them for the duration of their lives.

[a: Rachel Toor|17545|Rachel Toor|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1193155752p2/17545.jpg] has written a wonderful book for young audiences that is equally engaging for older readers. She writes about her own life with her rat, Iris, and in the process the other rat enthusiasts and the scientists who study them. There are ample citings of interesting facts about rats and the people who keep them. Scientific studies are delved into, as is the natural history of the animals and the way humans have interacted with them over the ages. This is a book about fancy rats, and one of the few that exist. It'll be an eye-opening book for anyone interested in them.

As testimony to this books intense readability and fascinating content when I was adopting a hedgehog out recently, the woman's children became very interested in my pet rats. I let them play with them, and was sharing facts with them. The daughter noticed I had this book on my table, and picked it up right then and there. She ended up reading about 20 pages in a single sitting, all the while sharing the facts with me and showing me the pictures within it. Not a bad way to help people understand just how cool these animals are.… (más)

Uber competitive academically, but highly introverted, Alice stews over being rejected at her first college of choice, Yale. Her closest confidantes are her best friend, Jenni, and her pet rat, Walter. It is upon Jenni's advice that she take up running as a New Year's resolution. Alice finds she really likes the sport, and soon lands a job in Joan's running store. As Alice discovers a kindered spirit in Miles, homeschool student and fellow runner, something happens that upsets Alice's world. Her family and friends, most notably Joan, who once tried out for the Olympics, help Alice eventually realize that she may be focusing on the wrong things and to think about what really matters in life. Found this book to be introspective; not a heavy-handed romance per se but Alice's relationship with Miles was very charming.… (más)