"My parents' Ford wagon hit a concrete divider on U.S. 95 outside
of Biddeford, Maine, in August 1990." So begins the epic journey of
Smithson "Smithy" Ide, a lumbering, overweight man in his forties
and the antihero of Ron McLarty's picaresque novel, THE MEMORY OF
RUNNING.

When we first meet Smithy, it's clear that he's going nowhere fast.
He's in a dead-end job at a toy factory in Rhode Island, making
sure the faces on the action figures are on straight. He's 279
pounds and barreling headlong into a serious drinking problem, with
no girlfriend or even friends to speak of. He has just finished up
a summer vacation with his parents, and is staying behind to clean
up their cabin. When a local patrolman pulls up, he learns the
horrible news that his parents have been in a terrible car accident
and have been rushed to two different hospitals. Smithy spends the
next couple of days shuttling between the two. Despite all efforts,
their injuries are too severe. His father passes away, and within
hours so does his mother.

The grief is almost too much to bear, and Smithy's broad shoulders
begin to buckle under the weight of his loss. He has an older
sister but she disappeared 25 years ago. Bethany suffered from
schizophrenia, although no doctor had ever correctly diagnosed her.
She heard a voice that made her say and do things, like to take off
all her clothes and stand in elaborate poses, and once even jump
off the Red Hill Bridge into the freezing water below. The Ides'
lives have been shrouded by an uneasy anticipation --- waiting for
the phone to ring with that inevitable call about Bethany. Her
disappearances were commonplace, but once she fell in love and was
engaged, things seemed to change for the better. The voice seemed
like it had faded away and her future looked bright. But a day
after her wedding, she was gone. And that was the last they had
heard from Bethany.

With all these pressures and problems, Smithy begins a
cross-country trek with his childhood Raleigh bicycle looking for
answers. As the miles roll by, the weight falls off and his
confidence is renewed. He reflects back on his troubled family
history, his guilt over his time in Vietnam, and comes to grips
with the more difficult relationships in his life --- his sister
and his invalid neighbor, Norma, whose love and affection he had
always rebuffed.

McLarty writes simply and honestly, and we are right there with
Smithy on every step of his remarkable journey. We join in his
mourning and celebrate his triumphs. In the end, we find ourselves
deeply moved by this flawed but lovable Don Quixote.

The author moved to New York City many years ago in the hopes of
being a writer but was sidetracked by his acting and quickly became
a very successful character actor who has appeared on "Law and
Order" and "Sex and the City," among others. He also is a popular
reader for various books-on-tape and is known for his renditions of
Stephen King novels. King is largely responsible for shining a
light on McLarty's literary talent. After a mention in King's
Entertainment Weekly column, a bidding war began for the
publishing and film rights to THE MEMORY OF RUNNING. Finally, after
so many years of trying, McLarty hopefully will be able to enjoy
some literary success.