“This is a beautiful, powerful book with multiple dimensions of exploration and discovery. The painful and joyful moments of the author’s life are skillfully interwoven with the mind-wandering trances of long distance running. With a mastery of psychology and philosophy, along with his rich and varied life, Thompson’s reflections on childhood, family, mental illness, healing and meaning will enrich and challenge any reader. While highly recommended for all, this book will be especially useful for anyone who works in the mental health world or struggles with mental health challenges personally or in their family. This is a reflective, hopeful book.”
- BRUCE D. PERRY, MD, PhD, Co-Author (with Oprah Winfrey) of the #1 New York Times Bestseller What Happened to You? Conversations on Trauma, Resilience and Healing
“J. M. Thompson’s journey through the depths of suicidal depression and addiction is terrifying, arduous, and ultimately exhilarating. Running is a Kind of Dreaming delivers a fascinating exploration of the relation between mind and body, as well as inspiration for those struggling to find light beyond the darkness. A brave and vivid story, poetically told.”
- SCOTT STOSSEL author of the New York Times bestseller My Age of Anxiety
“J. M. Thompson’s beautifully written Running Is a Kind of Dreaming is a revelation. This remarkable memoir takes the reader on a journey from the abyss —the darkest despair, when all seems lost — to the return to glorious life. This book will inspire and provide hope for the hopeless.”
- DAVID SHEFF author of the New York Times bestseller Beautiful Boy
“Running Is a Kind of Dreaming explores the cosmic range of human emotion…By the end, Thompson comes across as a revolutionary force in clinical psychology”
- DILLON ALLEN-PEREZ San Francisco Book Review
“One of the best memoirs I’ve read in a long time. Thompson does an amazing job of weaving past, present, running, and life into a compelling, extraordinary personal story.”
- DIANA FITZPATRICK President of the Board of Trustees, Western States Endurance Run Foundation
“What makes Thompson’s tell-all different from your garden variety drug survival book, is twofold. First, his catalyst to get help were the gaping holes of childhood beyond his memory’s grasp, interesting to both those who can and can’t relate. Second, Thompson’s ability to describe the sensations of runner’s high and the synchronicity felt with nature are both poetic and unique.”
- ROXANNE BAKER SRQ Magazine
“[Thompson] eloquently captures the beauty of communing with nature in details runners will soak up . . . Running is a Kind of Dreaming is a hopeful story of resilience by a man baring his vulnerability as a trauma survivor and who fought his demons.”
- BRENDA BARRERA Booklist
“If you truly want to understand the insidious horror of the way that madness and addiction can creep into one’s life and gradually escalate from odd behavior and bad decisions all the way to hospitalization, this is the book. Despite the author being able to ultimately salvage his life, this is one of the scariest books I’ve ever read: it makes The Exorcist read like Curious George.”
- Library Bound
