Running to the Mountain - by Jon Katz (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Jon Katz, a respected journalist, father, and husband, was turning fifty. His writing career had taken a dubious turn, his wife had a demanding career of her own, his daughter was preparing to leave home for college, and he had become used to a sedentary lifestyle. Wonderfully witty and insightful, Running to the Mountain chronicles Katz's hunger for change and his search for renewed purpose and meaning in his familiar world.

Armed with the writings of Thomas Merton and his two faithful Labradors, Katz trades in his suburban carpool-driving and escapes to the mountains of upstate New York. There, as he restores a dilapidated cabin, learns self-reliance in a lightning storm, shares a bottle of Glenlivet with unexpected ghosts, and helps a friend prepare for fatherhood, he confronts his lifelong questions about spirituality, mortality, and his own self-worth. He ultimately rediscovers a profound appreciation for his work, his family, and the beauty of everyday life--and provides a glorious lesson for us all.

Review Quotes

Praise for A Dog Year

"A great book that dog lovers will definitely enjoy."
-Booklist

"The story line of Katz's latest book can be summed up very simply-two dogs die and two new ones join the family
but its charm comes from an intricate blend of witty anecdote and touching reflection."
-Publishers Weekly

"A surfeit of tail-wagging, face-licking love."
-Kirkus Reviews

Praise for Running to the Mountain

"A wonderful book -- personal, moving, funny... to call a book a perfect gift always seems slightly patronizing, but I already have a long list of names -- yes aging baby boomers -- I'm intending to give Running to the Mountain."
-USA Today

"A funny, moving, and triumphant voyage of the soul... Katz finds faith not by running away, but by realizing that spiritual sustenance comes from within -- from the decency with which we handle our roles as spouses, parents, and friends."
-Boston Globe

"You'll love this book.... In the end, we admire Katz, not for the spiritual grace that he seeks but for the grace he finds: the grace of fatherhood, husbandhood, of tending fully to those who depend on him to be a source of stability in their world."
-Men's Journal

"Candid and inspiring... Katz has much to be proud of: he faced himself, he rearranged himself, and he came back to write movingly of the experience."
-Washington Post Book World
Praise for Geeks: How Two Lost Boys Rode the Internet Out of Idaho
"In Geeks, Katz displays a deft reporter's touch and shows us the geek truth, rather than simply telling us about it.... Too often, writing about the on-line world lacks emotional punch, but Katz's obvious love for his 'lost boys' gives his narrative a rich taste."
-New York Times Book Review

"Geeks is a story of triumph, friendship, love, and above all, about being human and reaching for dreams in a hard-wired world."
-Seattle Times

"A touching page-turner about social outcasts using technology to wriggle free of dead-end lives."
-U.S. News & World Report

"An uplifting and hugely compassionate book."
-Philadelphia Inquirer

About the Author

Jon Katz has published six novels and two nonfiction books, including Virtuous Reality. He has written for Wired, New York, GQ, and The New York Times, and was twice nominated for the National Magazine Award. Katz is a contributing editor to Rolling Stone and Slashdot.org and is media critic and technology columnist for Free! (www. freedomforum.org), the Freedom Forum's news and information web site. He lives in northern New Jersey with his wife and daughter, and spends a lot of time in Washington County, New York, with his two dogs, Julius and Stanley. He can be e-mailed at jonkatz@bellatlantic.net.