Share:

25 Best Marathon Books

Goal: Find the best Marathon books according to the internet (not just one person's opinion).

Method:

  1. Search for "best marathon books" and study the top 4+ pages.
  2. Add only the books mentioned 2+ times.
  3. Rank the results neatly here.

25 Best Marathon Books

As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases (at no extra cost to you).

1

Born to Run

A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen

by Christopher McDougall

Also recommended by:

Turia Pitt, Sahil Lavingia

2

What I Talk About When I Talk About Running

A Memoir

by Haruki Murakami

Also recommended by:

Brian Koppelman, Jack Edwards

3

26 Marathons

What I Learned About Faith, Identity, Running, and Life from My Marathon Career

by Meb Keflezighi

4

Once a Runner

A Novel

by John L. Parker Jr.

5

Running with the Buffaloes

A Season Inside with Mark Wetmore, Adam Goucher, and the University of Colorado Men's Cross-Country Team

by Chris Lear

6

Mind Gym

An Athlete's Guide to Inner Excellence

by Gary Mack

Also recommended by:

Michael Gervais

7

A Beautiful Work In Progress

by Mirna Valerio

8

Can't Nothing Bring Me Down

Chasing Myself in the Race against Time

by Ida Keeling

9

Eat and Run

My Unlikely Journey to Ultramarathon Greatness

by Scott Jurek

10

Footnotes

How Running Makes Us Human

by Vybarr Cregan-Reid

11

Good for a Girl

A Woman Running in a Man's World

by Lauren Fleshman

12

How Bad Do You Want It?

Mastering the Psychology of Mind over Muscle

by Matt Fitzgerald

13

How She Did It

Stories, Advice, and Secrets to Success from Fifty Legendary Distance Runners

by Molly Huddle

14

Let Your Mind Run

A Memoir of Thinking My Way to Victory

by Deena Kastor

15

Mighty Moe

The True Story of a Thirteen-Year-Old Women's Running Revolutionary

by Rachel Swaby

16

Running Is My Therapy

Relieve Stress and Anxiety, Fight Depression, and Live Happier

by Scott Douglas

17

Running Rewired

Reinvent Your Run for Stability, Strength, and Speed

by Jay Dicharry

18

Running the Rift

A Novel

by Naomi Benaron

19

Running While Black

Finding Freedom in a Sport That Wasn't Built for Us

by Alison Mariella Désir

20

Running with Sherman

How a Rescue Donkey Inspired a Rag-tag Gang of Runners to Enter the Craziest Race in America

by Christopher McDougall

21

The Comeback Quotient

A Get-Real Guide to Building Mental Fitness in Sport and Life

by Matt Fitzgerald

22

The Perfect Mile

Three Athletes, One Goal, and Less Than Four Minutes to Achieve It

by Neal Bascomb

23

The Rise of the Ultra Runners

A Journey to the Edge of Human Endurance

by Adharanand Finn

24

The Runner's Kitchen

100 Stamina-Building, Energy-Boosting Recipes, with Meal Plans to Maximize Your Training

by Emma Coburn

25

Unbroken

A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption

by Laura Hillenbrand

Sources

Edited by

Richard Reis

Software engineer whose passion for tracking book recommendations from podcasts inspired the creation of MRB.

Anurag Ramdasan

Lead investor at 3one4 Capital whose startup expertise and love for books helped shaped MRB and its growth.

Did we miss a book?

Spot a missing title or bad link on this list?

Comments

All comments are moderated.