Running After Antelope

by Scott Carrier

Book Overview

The wildly various stories in Running After Antelope are connected and illuminated by a singular passion: the author's attempt to run down a pronghorn antelope. His pursuit-odd, funny, and inspired-is juxtaposed with stories about sibling rivalry, falling in love, and working as a journalist in war-torn countries. Scott Carrier provides a most unique record of a most unique life.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1582431795
• ISBN13: 9781582431796
• Release Date: February 2002
• Publisher: Catapult
• Length: 142 Pages
• Weight: 0.38 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.3" x 5.5" x 8.3"

Customer Reviews

Wonderful Book

Scott Carrier has the ability to bring the difficult, heartfelt pain of going through transition to words with humor, selflessness and honesty. His very humble manner is charming and yet also you realize how much you want to reach out and help, even though his writing style isn't a call for help. I listened to him on NPR and I laughed as he described living in mormon Utah and discussed the most personal topic of all, his life. He is going through the same trials and tribulations we all do, his is a personal painful road which I hope most won't have to encounter. But I loved his work and only wish he would write more.

Somber yet darkly funny commentary

This book is a loosely woven collection of essays from Scott Carrier, some of which were read on various NPR programs, and others of which appeared in Esquire. Running throughout the essays are the author's attempts to outrun pronghorn (prodded by his brother's research into the evolution of breathing). But along the way, we hear about Carrier's other adventures in the world: reporting from places where most would fear to tread (the jungles of Mexico, Kashmir, Cambodia), trying to find the truth; hitchhiking across the country to collect an advance on a book; living in a dumpy house near the University of Utah with some way-out neighbors; and many more. In each, he examines the plight of the people whose paths cross his. His writing is very evocative and immediate, sad and funny. I sped through this little collection and might just look for something else by Carrier.

Addicting

Scott doesn't tell us the story of his life in one time restrained, fact-stacked mess he lets us into his world with lucid storytelling. From Cambodia to Mexico and into his city of orgin (Salt Lake) Scott uses words to more than paint pictures he transports the reader to the scene and injects them with emotion.

An enjoyable and edifying quick read

Highly recommended. I read this about a year ago, so don't have the best memory of it, but remember it foundly. The chapters that directly deal with "Running after antelope" are interesting scientifically in their own right. They broke the idea of a key role for long distance running in human evolution to the public far ahead of the popular press. The rest of the book was entertaining and filled with good down home american stories as I remember..and inspiring in a semi depressive sort of way.

"Running to Stay Alive"

Scott Carrier's theme in "Running After Antelope" is a description of his life, of my life, of everyman's life. Intercalated between short essays of his adventures are recurrent descriptions of Scott and his brother's hypothesis that they (humans) can outrun a pronghorn antelope. This metaphor fits a thinking man's quest in life. We all must keep running to really stay alive. This is some sort of by-product of consciousness I suppose. I predict that Scott will never succeed, but he must keep running. Most of us loose sight of what we should run after. This book gently reminds us without the usual prostelitizing. The sparkling essays are crystals without too much said. This is a soothing book, despite the horrors that are depicted. I plan to give it to everyone I know capable of introspection.