Someone to Run With

by David Grossman, Vered Almog (Translator), Maya Gurantz (Translator)

The story of a lost dog, and the discovery of first love on the streets of Jerusalem are portrayed here with a gritty realism that is as fresh as it is compelling.

When awkward and painfully shy sixteen-year-old Assaf is asked to find the owner of a stray yellow lab, he begins a quest that will bring him into contact with street kids and criminals, and a talented young singer, Tamar, engaged on her own mission: to rescue a teenage drug addict.

A runaway bestseller in Israel, in the words of the Christian Science Monitor: "It's time for Americans to fall in love with Someone to Run With."

Genres: Fiction, Israel, Young Adult, Contemporary, Jewish, Romance, School

343 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2000

About the author

From ithl.org:

Leading Israeli novelist David Grossman (b. 1954, Jerusalem) studied philosophy and drama at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and later worked as an editor and broadcaster at Israel Radio. Grossman has written seven novels, a play, a number of short stories and novellas, and a number of books for children and youth. He has also published several books of non-fiction, including interviews with Palestinians and Israeli Arabs. Among Grossman`s many literary awards: the Valumbrosa Prize (Italy), the Eliette von Karajan Prize (Austria), the Nelly Sachs Prize (1991), the Premio Grinzane and the Premio Mondelo for The Zig-Zag Kid (Italy, 1996), the Vittorio de Sica Prize (Italy), the Juliet Club Prize, the Marsh Award for Children`s Literature in Translation (UK, 1998), the Buxtehude Bulle (Germany, 2001), the Sapir Prize for Someone to Run With (2001), the Bialik Prize (2004), the Koret Jewish Book Award (USA, 2006), the Premio per la Pace e l`Azione Umanitaria 2006 (City of Rome/Italy), Onorificenza della Stella Solidarita Italiana 2007, Premio Ischia - International Award for Journalism 2007, the Geschwister Scholl Prize (Germany), the Emet Prize (Israel, 2007)and the Albatross Prize (Germany, 2009). He has also been awarded the Chevalier de l`Ordre des Arts et Belles Lettres (France, 1998) and an Honorary Doctorate by Florence University (2008). In 2007, his novels The Book of Internal Grammar and See Under: Love were named among the ten most important books since the creation of the State of Israel. His books have been translated into over 25 languages.

See also other authors with similar names.

Reviews

[Simona · Rating 5 out of 5]

Avevo letto molti elogi su Grossman, ma mai avrei immaginato che questo libro mi sarebbe potuto piacere così tanto. Lo stile di Grossman è semplice, essenziale, ma colpisce, arriva diritto al cuore, proprio come è successo con questa storia.
"Qualcuno con cui correre" è una storia di amore fraterno tra Tamar e Shay, di amicizia, di coraggio, di speranza, di crescita, di chi deve imparare a superare le proprie paure per crescere, diventare adulto.
E' un romanzo emozionante, profondo, vero e reale nella sua maestosa semplicità. Una storia che porterò sempre con me.

[☆LaurA☆ · Rating 5 out of 5]

"La realtà che è diversa dalle fantasie, dai sogni in cui vivi di solito. Perché questa è la vita, dolcezza, la vita vera, reale, quella in cui cerchi sempre di essere ammessa come membro a pieno diritto e che continua a respingerti come un corpo che rigetta un organo trapiantato."

Uno dei libri più belli letti fino ad ora.
Un libro pieno di emozioni. Le prime pagine avevano un ritmo un po' lento, tanto che mi sono chiesta se avessi scelto bene, ma man mano che la storia prendeva piede prendeva anche ritmo e la voglia e la curiosità di sapere cosa stesse succedendo non mi lasciavano.
Un libro che tratta temi come la droga, lo sfruttamento minorile, l'amicizia , l'amore e la musica....la musica che fa da sottofondo a tutto il racconto.
Sentimenti che ti entrano dentro, ti tirano dei pugni nello stomaco che non ti aspetti.

"C'è un momento in cui si compie un piccolo passo, pensò, si devia di un millimetro dalla solita via, a quel punto si è costretti a posare anche un secondo piede e d'un tratto si finisce su un percorso sconosciuto. Ogni passo è più o meno logico, conseguente al precedente, eppure di colpo ci si ritrova in un incubo."

"Davvero avrai cura di me?"
"Tu che ne pensi?"
"Penso di sì."

Mi ha fatto bene all'anima leggerlo e male allo stesso tempo. Perché si può mettere a rischio la propria vita per aiutare una persona che nemmeno conosci, ma che sai che é la persona più importante della tua vita.

[Isidora · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was utterly enjoyable read. It gave me back the scents and sounds of my childhood’s never-ending summers and the feeling of being totally immersed in a book.

I will try to write down some of the reasons why this book is highly recommended:
David Grossman is a wonderful storyteller in a classical, precise and deep way of telling things.
It is adventure, coming-of-age, love story and a story about modern Israel.
It is thrilling, fast-paced (after the first fifty pages) and emotional read.
The characters are fascinating, some of them are animals.
Only to read how Grossman describes the main character’s singing is a reward in itself.

There are several other arguments and different experiences are possible (magical realism, philosophical, historical, parenting) . You just have to let the story be your guide.

[Mariel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Assaf knew: when he stood like that, he was wearing the expression that once made Reli, his sister, say, "You got lucky with one thing, Assafi- with a face like that, you can only surprise people for the better."

(Do you ever wish someone would say something like that to you? Or even better to have that face.)

I made a sacrifice. I had to make a sacrifice. A quick decision to save myself on Saturday now (it was last week) and lose the perfect reading day from the spring of 2006 (I'm playing cool. I know exactly when and where). It had lasted and it was so sweet. You have no idea how sweet it was. It almost never lasts. I wish it lasted. I had detailed fantasies sprung alive out of me, to carry me far, like running. Emilie said this book was like being held. It is like that, and like if someone really saw you. If you could have faith that that sort of thing could happen it feels like reading this book. I knew that there was a reread of this book for me and I "saved" it for years. Now I don't have that anymore. (Somewhere in this paragraph I became self conscious of using the word "like" too much and now I can't stop.)
I regret it a little, that sacrifice. I am not good enough for this kind of love today (last week, the day before but not all days because I was once in 2006). I feel like frozen in the Grossman's The Book of Intimate Grammar horror version of sending out ground controls to people and there was never any other people, only you, because I feel so silent. If I could figure out how to do his Aroning, like Marieling, and teach someone else then it would be like in Someone to Run With. So I have no damned idea how to do that. Someone to Run With made me go Marieling again and it was so sweet. I kind of did this time, only there was a shadow behind me. It was like when you want to ask "Does anyone ever..." If Assaf and Tamar met and their fears were realized that's how I feel because I maybe didn't "save" it long enough. I'm still sad.

Don't get me wrong I love this book so much I can hardly stand it.

Now the dog broke into a cry, and Assaf, bewildered, knelt beside her, petting her with both his hands; but she continued to whimper, her body trembling with sobs, looking a bit like a child who is trapped in a fight between her parents and can't take it any longer. Assaf actually lay down beside her, lay right down and hugged her, and petted and stroked her, and spoke into her ear, as if he had entirely forgotten where he was, forgotten the place and the nun; only tenderness for the depressed, frightened dog poured out from him. The nun felt silent, looking in wonder at the grown boy, concentrating in that moment, with his serious child's face, the black hair falling over his forehead, the acne on his cheeks- and she was moved by what she felt flowing endlessly from his body to the dog.

I wish Assaf was real. His face that can surprise you, the big body that is solid. He could almost sit beside you in your head and day dream with you about that friend of his or the one you had just like it in school days. The one that won't be your friend anymore if you don't do what they want you to. The would-bes and could'ves until you that wistful crooked smile aligns with the upside down frown of reality. The I can't talk to brave girls like that. Wistful sigh. I wish Assaf was real. Legs to run after the dog. I can hear the pounding on the pavement like a heart beat. His boss from his summer job working for city hall says it is something they do. Take the dog on a leash and it will lead you to where it lives. I don't have trouble believing that a dog could really do it (my childhood dog came home on her own many times). That a government agency would employ such tactics? It's not important. I didn't have trouble believing that Assaf could really do it. He's a daydreamer. The dog takes Assaf to where the owner, the girl Tamar, would go. He could run through her life, learning the rhythm, the beats aligning like that smile.

When Assaf just does that with the dog... He just did it, you know? He's that kind of guy. I wish that really happened and I would know where to go when it did.

that perhaps there is a world in which the people go out in the morning, to work or to school, and in the evening, each one returns to a different home; and there, in every home, each person is kind of playing his role. The father role, or the mother, or the child, the grandma, and so on, and so forth. And all evening they talk and laugh and each and fight and watch TV together, each one of them behaving precisely according to his role. Later, they go to sleep, and in the morning they get up and again go off to work or school and come back in the evening, but this time to a different home, and there, everything starts all over again: the father becomes father to a different family; the girl is a girl in a different family. And because they forgot, during the day, what had happened the previous evening, they always think they are in their own home, the right home, and this is how it goes for all their lives.

Assaf reads Tamar's diary. No, it's not like that. (I wonder if anyone read that and felt let down that he reads her diary. I had forgotten he did that and I started to feel let down again.) It's a little like that, a little of a betrayal (though he doesn't know her yet). When Assaf is young he asks his mother what she has to write about in her diary all of the time that she has to have for herself for no one else to see. He asks her if she writes about him. She tells him that anything she writes about him she would recite to him by heart. He eventually gives up and knows this outside version of his mothers insides, as a trust. I loved that it was kind of okay that he did this, this diary reading, because he wants to be able to find Tamar. He imagines (or not imagines) the dog Dinka is against this act. I loved that he thinks about what she's writing and later when she thinks it is more important for her to know what Assaf would think of the version of the "if you do what I want you to" false friends. He even says to her back what his mother said about reciting from heart to share with her (he doesn't have a diary). It felt to me like that, because he tells her that he read her diary. He always asked his mother. So Assaf felt that her idea was a feeling "as if from a great distance, something like a tiny blister on his heart" (that's a great description). He feels he would not mistake his little sister for any other little girl in the world. Do you ever feel like that about other people's families? That some people are incredibly lucky to have what they have and then about all of the people who have never had that (or have it no longer)?

Tamar has been toughening herself up to go on a rescue mission. She breaks her own heart, shaves her head, goes underground. No, don't think about that. Don't think about THEM, the boy she loves with the other girl, the so-called friends to overcast her. Her diary where she wrote about herself in the third person. Her dreams hurt. I think the first time I read Someone to Run With I was wrapped up in Tamar's mission to go undercover as a street singer to get ensnared by the sleazy Jerusalem underworld (Pesach and his toothless parents didn't scare me too much, nor did the Elvis lookalike goons hired to drive the kids from gig to gig). Her brother, the gifted guitar player with the chip on his shoulder to freeze you with, made a scared call to her for his salvation plea that he didn't altogether mean. Tamar already knows what's waiting for her if she can get him to the hiding place. Shai is addicted and buried alive. I used to do that, the being there for the recovery, and I wouldn't be telling the whole truth if I said I didn't still blame myself for failing. It was eating me alive and this book doesn't tell me that it happens (maybe Shai goes back) but it was there and I wanted it desperately.
On the streets, to be able to get to where Shai is, Tamar has to let go of the part of herself she's hiding into her singing. They won't find her and she can't play it safe now. When she's in the cave and they've found each other Assaf says the perfect thing when someone gets it. He knows that the hard part is what you have to give of yourself to someone else when you're performing. I've been feeling for a long time that you don't really GIVE it someone else. It wouldn't have been my perfect thing, I guess. They have to be willing to hear it, to take it. You don't lose it then. If it is right then it is shared. That's the scary part if no one is going to want to do that. No matter what you do, if no one wants to do that, then it won't matter. Well, it won't be running. If you can still hope that some day it will still happen then you can keep on giving and if you lose that then it is really scary to do it anyway. I imagine that David Grossman knows this.

When Assaf is running he becomes something that he never had before. He and the dog Dinka have the connection. I imagine that is like the giving/sharing in performing the way I want it to be.

When Assaf is following Dinka to the people that Tamar has touched in her life he gets to know her, and also their stories (I'm having one of those sinking feelings "No, don't do that, Mariel!" if I spoil too much and so steal a pure first time read for anyone), I had this feeling that Tamar is keeping the people in her life separate on purpose, as if they met each other and their visions of her met, what they meant to her became whole, she would lose the broken Tamar she believed she needed to be keep her conviction that she is missing the lego piece to connect Tamar to another person (every time she pokes this hole in her heart I felt like she was touching mine). When Tamar says goodbye to Assaf when he has to leave the hiding place where his solid body is supporting her in what she could not have done alone even though he swears he will return at three o'clock that same day... I had one of those book moments when I could have been reading myself on the page. I wish she had believed Assaf would come back before he came back (of course he came back!). I knew why she didn't. I loved that it didn't change anything, as much as it frustrates him (that boy who lay down with the dog sighs), that he comes back.

When Assaf stops judging his sister for not loving her boyfriend Rhino (I'm kind of in love with him too for the way he'd sneak out of sabbos to watch the football game hours before it started. Then he'd feel empty until the next week. I feel like him right now, not having this book "saved" anymore) as much as he loved her. Maybe it was the too much love, the not enough "space", the constant asking just by loving her so much. It's another way to read someone's diary, to follow them to their secret places, just by connecting their own love experience when you've finally fallen in love yourself.

I think I'm jealous. And I wish that I was like I was once and I was happy and it felt good and I wasn't so sure that it will never happen for me. I belong in this book, I mean. If I belong in any author's books it is a David Grossman book. He writes things that I wish I could ask people "Do you ever think that..." and they would say that they did. So why do I feel like that blister? The far away feeling and no one is on the other end?

Don't get me wrong it's not all the way jealous. But it is enough for me to feel rattling around in my bones. Hollow like a birds, only flightless. The wind in the hair from standing still and others are running. I can almost taste it. It doesn't feel right to be jealous at all. David Grossman books to me are the place to be unafraid. He knows so much, wears the heart on the sleeve to cover you. If I'm going to be like that would I know when to lay down with the dog? I am so damned happy when it ends like they could go off the pages, though. How is this for one of those dreams that you've heard before and it sounds so damned good anyway? It can't be a cliche because you just want it and you could hear it settling in the bones of those lucky enough to have it. What now?

Tamar noticed that she had never met a person she felt so comfortable being silent with.

[Maria Roxana · Rating 5 out of 5]

O carte splendidă!
O poveste relatată de David Grossman cu onestitate, chiar dacă realitatea israeliană expusă este una brutală, chiar dureroasă! Lectura acestei cărți este asemenea unui carusel al emoțiilor în care tronează mai ales suspansul, dar și duioșia!
O recomand cu căldură!

[Mihaela Juganaru · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nu am mai citit Grossmann si ii vad stilul de a scrie, sacadat, ca si cum ar ciopli in carne, dureros si totusi, luminos, atractiv. Personajele cartii sunt foarte frumoase. Personajul principal, curajoasa Tamar, are un fel de alter-ego, fratele pe care il salveaza de la pieire. E ca si cum Tamar se lupta cu propriii demoni, o adolescenta sensibila, foarte talentata, dar cu ganduri si trairi profunde si dezechilibrante. Cartea e o metafora a maturizarii, lupta cu ea insasi, cautarea sinelui.
Asaf pare un satelit al ei, care o completeaza si ajuta sa faca pasi importanti pe drumul maturizarii. De aceea Asaf este un personaj plin de calitati - e ca o pojghita sau o glazura pe o prajitura.
Mi-a placut enorm cum este lasat personajul Teodora sa plece in lume, iesind dintr-o "inchisoare de-o viata", cum dispare in strada, in soare, in viata. Ca o femeie care incepe sa traiasca cu mare bucurie, ca o fata care pleaca la prima intalnire sau la primul bal. Imi evoca o Mary Poppins altfel.
Personajul Lea este continuarea : fata inocenta a capatat experienta de viata, fiind nevoita sa devina dura, a luat contact cu oameni rai, care au ranit-o si a invatat sa se apere. Dar nu si-a pierdut bunatatea, generozitatea. Si Teodora si Lea sunt fatete ale lui Tamar. De parca scriitorul vrea sa fie sigur ca vom intelege bine personajul principal. Si creeaza aceste planuri, aproape necredibile.
O carte speciala prin ce mi-a transmis, sub aparenta tristetii si durerii ei.

[Roberto · Rating 4 out of 5]

Il mondo era negli occhi dell'altro

La vita di due sedicenni, Assaf e Tamar, che inizialmente non si conoscono e non sanno nulla l'uno dell'altra, si interseca per un evento casuale grazie a una cagna, Dinka.

Due storie diverse, raccontate in parallelo ma con tempi sfasati. L'uno cerca l'altra, senza sapere perché né chi sia la persona che sta cercando. Difficile all'inizio raccapezzarsi nel romanzo, nonostante la scrittura chiara e limpida, a causa della destrutturazione della storia. Siamo noi che dobbiamo mettere insieme tutti i tasselli e pian piano comporre vicenda e personaggi, in una ricostruzione che termina solo verso la fine del romanzo.

Una fiaba che parla di tanti temi importanti. C'è un po' di tutto: adolescenza, crescita, rapporto genitori-figli, droga, delinquenza. E sopra tutto, l'amicizia.

Interessante l'antagonismo tra adolescenti e adulti; gli adolescenti problematici, insicuri, che si rapportano con difficoltà con gli adulti, che cercano di fare pensando di essere più bravi di chi è venuto prima di loro, che vogliono essere diversi ma che cercano l'omologazione, che rischiano, che cercano qualcuno di cui fidarsi. E gli adulti, incapaci di capire gli adolescenti, indifferenti, rassegnati ma talvolta anche prepotenti.

In cosa possono confidare questi adolescenti? In qualcuno che li capisca, in qualcuno con cui parlare e con cui confidarsi, qualcuno che li ascolti. In un amico, appunto. Qualcuno con cui procedere fianco a fianco, qualcuno con cui correre. Grossman ci vuole dire che ogni difficoltà è superabile, se abbiamo un amico al fianco.

"Io e te siamo come guerrieri solitari che cercano di sopravvivere in territorio nemico, attenti a non rivelare il nostro segreto agli estranei. E tutti sono estranei."

Una fiaba, dicevo, con il relativo lieto fine. Assaf cerca disperatamente di salvare la bella Tamar, contro tutti e contro tutto, in un mondo di adulti cattivi. E ci riesce, superando tutte le (a volte poco realistiche) difficoltà.
Durante la fiaba però assistiamo anche al processo di maturazione di tutti i protagonisti, forse proprio a causa delle grandi difficoltà incontrate. E qui sta il valore educativo del libro, che ritengo sicuramente interessante soprattutto per giovani lettori.

Un libro ben scritto quindi, avvincente nella parte centrale e con una morale molto importante. Peccato per l'inizio, complesso e difficile da seguire, per la discreta prevedibilità che si avverte dai tre quarti in poi e per la fine, buttata via troppo velocemente.

Beh, ho dimenticato la cagna Dinka. Come non innamorarsene?

[KnownAsLavinia]

Non ce l’ho fatta. Abbandonato dopo esattamente 100 pagine.
I due bambini non mi stanno simpatici, il resto è tutto troppo irreale. Chissà magari in futuro ci riproverò!

[Mariel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm watching and hating August Rush on tv right now. Watching and really hating this schmaltzy and embarrassing exploitation of street kid musicians movie reminded me of how much I liked David Grossman's Someone to Run With when I read it in 2006. It's a great dogs are awesome, street adventure, finding someone you wanna run away with story. (After they save the tragically gifted and drug addicted street musician brother, that is. In my inner fantasy while reading it [the whole book played out in my mind as an elaborate instant inner street fairy tale] the brother became my guitar hero John Frusciante.) I'd want to hide in the natural history museum. My dog would prefer an art museum with preferably good furniture to chew on, but I'm not about to let him pick. My running away fantasies stem in part from reading From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil Frank E. Weiler, hence the museums. Anywhere beautiful will do (Morvern Callar). [When I was young my fantasies leaned more towards Everybody-else-was-abducted-by-aliens-and-I'm-the-only-one-left lines. They sent me a cool space dog. Now I think I'm probably the spacedog.] I just need a really cool dog (sorry, my pup, but you're annoying and would make for a bad traveling companion. Too whiney. I'd get road fever and quickly sick of stopping to constantly pee. Not Lassie either 'cause she'd not stop at saving Frusciante, she'd wanna save Flea and Anthony K. too and I don't care about them. Labs would be the best running away with dogs. Labs seem a heroic breed, especially the golden ones. And bigger dogs have bigger bladders? Except for my damnation, who is most definitely is NOT invited). They'd understand everything I was trying to say better than C3P-0 for R2-D2.
I read a bunch of Grossman's books in '05 and '06. Like my similar J.P. Donleavy gorge fest around the same time, folks would grab my books and then sadly conclude I should be reading something else instead (the cover of this one was the back head shot of the shaved scalp [What was with the trend of back of head shaved scalp book covers? Parrots were infesting cover art for a while, too]). At least no one said August Rush or I'm afraid I'd have had to crack some (shaved) skulls. (Not really. I'm too cowardly lion to say anything. The dog would know I was pissed. Two barks for really pissed.)
This review is in need of some lists. Best cities to run away to? Best cities to be a street musician in? I've only seen a couple of street musicians in G'ville. There was this blind guy that played an accordian for freaking years (think he's dead now). I felt sorry for his seeing-eye dog having to listen to that sombre Dick Van Dyke shit all day long (one bark for "At least learn one polka song"). The other dude was an electric violin player. I was too scared for him playing in that tiny road barrier in heavy traffic. I also wasn't going to risk my life to pay him (he wasn't Owen Pallett). The term is busking, Mariel! Elsewhere they are always so earnest, and like to play Oasis. I'm not paying for that, either. Maybe they were beaten and forced to play Oasis! Maybe they'd have preferred Blur. Who knows? I was going to do best songs about running away. I had half a list done. It all went wrong when I asked my twin for suggestions and she started singing dozens of bad '80s songs about teen runaways. Those songs are all in my head and I can't think of anything else.
Running away movies!
1. Morvern Callar
2. Rain Man (shout-out to Kristen!)
3. Night of the Hunter
4. The Wizard of Oz
5. A Hard Day's Night
6. Freeway
7. Times Square
8. Manny & Lo
9. Two for the Road
10. Taking Off
Wait, or worst people to run away with (like Charles Starkweather). Or a list of why The Runaways film was no good (except for Michael Shannon as Kim Fowley). Druggie musicians in need of saving?

You suck! I wouldn't even slip Robin Williams to Cugo under the dinner table to not offend my hosts. I guess I should've seen it coming. Kristen Sheridan wrote and directed Disco Pigs, that I really liked, and co-wrote In America, which I also liked, with her sister (their dad Jim directed). (Samantha Morton, best actress ever, starred.) The poster art was some cheesey ass shit of the little girl with angel wings that had nothing to do with the film. Maybe she picked the poster art before she trans-mutated into a sappy Robin Williams.

P.s. I liked that the boy protagonist was not an annoying pansy who whines about how smart he is and under appreciated by hot girls. The girl was not a marginalized fantasy. I've often wondered if male authors of ya knew how to write anyone else in an effort to reach out to a generalized public. Like adults who forget how to talk to kids. I just feel they try too hard not to remember anything else about what it was like.

[Marc · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a mixed bag to me. On the one hand, the stubborn boy Assaf's long search for the girl Tamar, and the equally resolute mission of that Tamar to save her brother from the clutches of a Mafia gang, are interesting and well told. Grossman knows how to gradually build up the tension and maintain it well, and from time to time you do sit on the edge of your seat. Some characters really captivate, such as the Greek nun Theodora, the singing talent of Tamar that elicits ecstasy, and the faithful dog Dina who connects almost all characters.

But at the same time I found the character of brother Sash rather superficial, the chemistry between Tamar and Assaf a bit too melodramatic, and the final denouement outright cheap and predictable. The whole story is also set up a little too broad, with occasional side stories that are not absolutely necessary (such as the distant relationship of Assaf with his parents). What touched me though, was the gripping brutality that Grossman portrays during the actions of the Mafia gang. It is as if he explicitly wanted to point to the downside of the seemingly well-ordered Israeli society. All in all, not a bad book, but certainly not Grossman's best.

[Gabril · Rating 4 out of 5]

Un romanzo di formazione con il ritmo di un thriller. Avvincente.

[MihaElla · Rating 5 out of 5]

If my most dearly beloved Cherry and Bijoux would read in fact they do read and speak but not in Romanian and I have this novel only in native language I would gift them this wonderful book Someone to run with so that they could learn about Dinka, a very brave and energetic Labrador, who is one of the most important and charismatic protagonists in this thrilling and fascinating story. Not only that Dinka linked all the characters in the book but fully and intensively has supported in a very difficult rescue mission, one of which I would believe my puppies would be proud to take part into, too. Of course, just a wishful thinking :))

[Sebastian Porta · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I was living in Buenos Aires years ago I used to spend a lot of time in all the bookstores that you can find throughout Cabildo Avenue. I was totally fascinated by them because you wouldn’t find so many interesting and rare books back in my country (I was born and raised in Paraguay). I started in the world of literature reading all the books that I found in my father’s bookshelves. Some books were gold for a young boy, but must of them were cheap books, ancient books or merely bad literature since my father wasn’t keen on reading, really. But those books helped me to develop a hunger for books that never left me after. In other words, I became a bookworm. So imagine how I felt when I first entered El Ateneo Grand Splendid, the largest and most magnificent library in Buenos Aires. For me, it was the ultimate expression of Borges’ idea of Paradise.

I was recalling those days because in those bookstores I had a couple of encounters with David Grossman’s books. The first book of his that caught my attention was The Book of Intimate Grammar and I was about to buy it if it weren’t for the fact that I wanted other books from authors that I actually knew. Then I came across See under: Love and The End of the Land. Thus, David Grossman became part of my list of Authors that I’d love to read if there weren’t so many other good authors to read for years.

Why did I feel so interested in his books? David Grossman wasn’t quite a well-known writer after all and I hadn’t read any review about his work at that time. Add to this the fact that I had a slight prejudice towards writers from the Middle East since Orhan Pamuk disappointed me with his novel The New Life, too pretentiously lyrical, sentimental and mystical for my taste (and I’m not even mentioning Salman Rushdie and his overwhelming novel Midnight Children). Call it an intuition, something about the cover of his books or the titles that attracted me, I don’t know exactly. Who can really tell why we feel curiosity toward a book we don’t know nothing about? I guess they simply call us and we answer to that call as naturally as we answer to someone who gave us a really good first impression and we don’t need to rationalize it that much. Well, that happened me with David Grossman.

But, truth be told, the first book that I actually read by him wasn’t a novel, but a little book of essays on Literature and Politics called Writing in the Dark. A powerful and touching testimony of what it means to be a writer in a country of constant conflicts and crises like Israel; an unstable place, surrounded by enemies and unable to bear the weight of its turbulent and excessive history. Reading this book you’ll also realize that the writer’s craft isn’t just about being good at telling a story or mastering the tools of language to create something. It’s a visceral work of self-discovering and a spiritual journey in which we struggle to understand the Otherness; thoughts, feelings or a worldview that isn’t ours. David Grossman state that, through our imagination and empathy, we are able to get into the skin of our characters and become another. “I invent characters. At times I feel as if I am digging up people from the ice in which reality enshrouded them, but maybe, more than anything else, it is myself that I am now digging up”.

So after I devoured that book, I decided it was time to read a novel written by him. The first book that came to mind was See Under: Love but I decided to start with Someone to Run With after reading its compelling blurb. It tells the story of Assaf and Tamar; two young people separated by social status and the kind of life they lead. Assaf is extremely shy and introvert and he tries to have a normal life like any other teenager of his age, but at the same time he grows tired of those people that pretend to be their friends. Tamar’s life, in the other hand, is much more thrilling and dangerous than Assaf’s in such a way that, at a first glance, one believes that it’s impossible to relate them in any way. She comes from a wealthy family, she’s outgoing and wants to become a singer. The thing that they share in common is that they’re both capable of leaving everything behind and go into hell itself for the people they care about. How to bring these seemingly antithetical characters together? Here’s where David Grossman uses man’s best friend: a dog called Dinka, Tamar’s closest friend, whose role in the story is vital.

Assaf is entrusted with the task of looking for Dinka’s owner by the town hall where he’s working temporarily. Tamar escapes from the comfort of her home and begins a search of her brother, a talented guitar player who is lost in the abyss of drugs and has been forgotten by his own parents. She starts a life as a street singer and elaborates a meticulous plan in order to save her brother from the bad people who enslave him. Thus begins a thrilling adventure full of dangers and uncertainties but also of learning and growth where both, Assaf and Tamar, will discover how fucked up the world really is and the unsuspected strength they had to fight against it. They will be forced by circumstances to become adults at a very young age.

David Grossman wrote: “When I invent a character, I want to know, feel and live, as much as possible, their mood, even those things to which it is difficult to give a name (…) I experience one of the greatest pleasures of writing: the possibility of allowing my characters to be themselves inside of me.” The author really meant it since you’ll feel Assaf and Tamar breathing through the pages, running across the streets of Jerusalem, going towards the unknown on perilous lands to that light of hope that shines beyond the horizon. That light will make their paths converge and link their fates.

I’ve shed some tears, I’ve felt Tamar's fear and insecurity when she had to sing for the first time in the streets or when Assaf had to fight against some vandals for something he believed was right. I’ve felt a fierce rage against Pesaj and his henchmen and the way they play with the lives of low-income artists as if they were merchandise and an indescribable joy when our two protagonists finally met and found the support they needed. I cursed the author for the situations in which he submitted his characters and I've loved him for conveying me so vividly what they felt. So I can only say thank you, Mister David Grossman, thank you for your truthful and powerful pen and for writing a book like few that has reminded me why I love literature and why there is always hope even in the darkest places of the human condition.

[Maharet · Rating 3 out of 5]

Questo è uno di quei libri che avrei davvero, davvero voluto amare alla follia, uno di quei libri che sembrano scritti apposta per piacermi: trama interessante, uno scrittore che m'incuriosiva tantissimo e recensioni super positive.
Insomma, avevo altissime aspettative.
Purtroppo, come spesso capita con le cose per cui abbiamo troppe aspettative, questo libro ha finito per deludermi, nonostante lo consideri comunque un libro molto bello.
Più volte ho pensato di abbandonarlo, le prime 180-200 pagine sono state un parto, lentissime, scritte in modo molto pesante e a volte noioso; in più la storia mi sembrava troppo, troppo assurda, non riuscivo ad entrarci in sintonia.
Riuscivo a leggere solo poche pagine alla volta, poi dovevo metterlo giù e progredivo rapidamente solo nei punti in cui si raccontavano le vicende di Assaf.
Il personaggio di Tamar mi è stato antipatico fin da subito, non riuscivo a farmela andare giù, mi sembrava solo una ragazzina egoista e stupida, che crede di sapere tutto e che si infila in un casino dopo l'altro incurante del dolore che può causare ai genitori o ai suoi amici: sinceramente m'è parso che andasse alla ricerca del fratello più per dimostrare di essere in grado di farcela da sola e di essere furbissima che spinta dal desiderio di aiutarlo.
Insomma mi stava sulle scatole e le parti dedicate a lei spesso mi annoiavano.
In più non mi è andato giù il colpo di scena che la riguarda, m'è parsa veramente una forzatura e una presa in giro.
Però poi da pagina 200 in poi la storia diventa decisamente meglio, la lettura è più scorrevole, più agile, più appassionante e il personaggio di Assaf, un personaggio davvero meraviglioso, diventa più presente e quando i due ragazzi s'incontrano mi sono davvero emozionata.
E' un libro bello, scritto benissimo e con delle pagine davvero meravigliose: Grossman ha davvero una penna incredibile, poetica, ma anche dura.
Quindi difetti a parte è stata una bella lettura, ma, nonostante sia un libro scritto per gli adolescenti, non lo consiglierei a tutti: bisogna tenere duro un bel po', ma alla fine si scopre davvero una piccola perla.

Voto: 7/10

[I. Mónica del P Pinzon Verano · Rating 3 out of 5]

Llévame contigo, es la novela con la que estreno a David Grossman. Si bien es una historia en la cual parece que a Grossman no le interesa guardar el polvo bajo la alfombra, no me inspira ningún imaginario sobre Jerusalén, más allá de los diferentes fragmentos culturales que la componen.
Esta es una historia desarrollada en el Israel de hoy. Arranca con el periplo de Asaf, un muchacho de 16 años, para encontrar el dueño de una perra pérdida que vagaba por la ciudad. En ese recorrido conoce a Theodora, y por su voz se entera de la existencia de Tamar. Así Grossman intenta hacer una historia generosa, del paso del tiempo, de la memoria, de encuentros, desencuentros e ideales. Es una prosa con muy buen ritmo durante todo el libro, pero que para mí no se tradujo en rapidez; pese a que avanzaba rápido en las líneas leídas, sentía la historia estancada. Tampoco me pareció natural la relación que se establece entre los protagonistas, ni tampoco me fue fácil imaginármelos; por ejemplo, gran parte de la novela percibí a Asaf como un niño.

No tuve un buen comienzo con David Grossman, aunque por la prosa sé que amerita leerlo y lo volveré a hacer sin duda. En realidad, me costó; sentí indiferencia, no me sentía en ningún lugar y no tuve relación con los protagonistas (excepto Teodora, un personaje que casi familiar). Creo que la historia también quiere mostrar las “otras cosas” que suceden en Jerusalén, pero se difuminan entre tantas vueltas y repeticiones que le da el autor a otros asuntos.

En conclusión, estoy segura que Grossman es alguien que merece ser leído, pero esta no es su mejor novela. De no ser por la prosa, lo hubiera dejado.

[Titi Coolda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Parte basm modern cu personaje dickensiene altele desprinse parcă din tragediile antice, thriller cu suspans bine dozat, o frumoasă poveste despre prietenie, iubire, alteritate ,altruism și puterea universală de-a învinge răul. A, și o Dinka adorabilă.

[Radu Popovici · Rating 4 out of 5]

3,5 *

[Vio · Rating 5 out of 5]

A dat cu virgulă computerul aseară, cînd voiam să scriu ceva despre.

***
Mppppffffff, ce carte!!!!!!!!!!!

A durat ceva pînă m-a prins, poate chiar un sfert din carte, deși nu am ce să-i reproșez efectiv părții respective - poate eram eu doar prea intimidată în fața lui David Grossman, citisem doar o carte și nu îmi plăcuse cine știe ce. Dar și cînd m-a prins, aproape nu am mai putut s-o las din mînă!

Nu prea știu ce să scriu, ca să nu arunc cu spoilere în stînga și în dreapta.

Traducerea e splendidă, bravo Ioana Mocan! Pe lîngă asta, în 380 de pagini, editura Niculescu a reușit performanța de zero typo! Deci se poate! Sau asta era doar prin 2006 posibil? (Ok, o singură dată apare ”drept pentru care”, dar poate chestia asta e ceva mai nouă în limba română? În rest, nu tu o virguliță ceva acolo, nimic.) BRAVO!!!

Vreau neapărat să văd filmul. (Evident, made in Israel, nu se găsește. Hm. Poate pățesc ca și cu Etgar Keret, care era chiar din SUA și tot nu m-a ajutat în vreun fel treaba asta.)

Nu mi-am imaginat că se pot descrie așa fain stări poetice cum o face Grossman și nici pe departe nu credeam că nu mă vor plictisi defel (oare am destule negații în fraza asta??). Atmosfera de candoare e cea care m-a impresionat cel mai mult. Restul, pentru mine, sînt aspecte secundare.

Am intrat în carte fără să știu la ce să mă aștept (ok, titlul e poetic, poate e ceva despre alergat?? :D) și *spoiler minuscul* nu mă omor după suspans.

Cam atît. Recomand.

[Shampoo Per Menti Marce · Rating 5 out of 5]

Un libro delicato
"Delicato" è l'aggettivo giusto.
Delicati non sono la storia e gli avvenimenti. Piuttosto questi sono tristi, cruenti e pieni di angoscia.
Delicati non sono nemmeno i protagonisti. Umani e sensibili ma anche dannatamente veri e pieni di difetti. Riuscirai ad amarli e ad odiarli. In molte cose riuscirai anche a capirli e a rivedere parti del tuo carattere.
Delicato è il modo in cui l'autore descrive il tutto. Esemplare il modo in cui vengono esaminati i caratteri e descritta la storia. Un libro che ti scivola di mano proprio per la semplicità con cui viene raccontato. Lo leggi avendo la sensazione che tutto sia reale. Ti senti vicino ai protagonisti e avverti la loro presenza. Assaf, Tamar, Dinka, Teodora, Karnaf. Tutti si incastrano perfettamente ed il risultato è emozionante.

"Non sapeva dare un nome a ciò che vedeva, alle sensazioni nuove che provava, le parole che conosceva esplodevano una do-po l’altra. Se c’era al mondo la possibilità di fare un’indigestione di vita e di morirne, quello era il momento."

[Alice · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book. Such an interesting premise. Far fetched, did someone say? I don't care. The main character is wonderful, and the Jerusalem scenes of the lives of street kids are gripping. Beautifully written. David Grossman, well known and regarded in Israel, wasn't familiar to me. He doesn't seem to be well known in the USA. Take a chance on this one! (I actually read this one twice -- once a year or two ago on the recommendation of my son, and now again as it was accepted as the subject of our book club. The second time around I liked it even more.)

[Massimo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Un bel libro! Una storia che ti coinvolge e ti costringe a proseguire la lettura. I due protagonisti (Tamar e Assaf) sono caratterialmente completamente differenti, eppure tutto li porta a finire insieme. Il cane Dinka è la corda che fa vorticare le storie dei due protagonisti sempre più veloci verso l'inevitabile unione (come due stelle in rapida rotazione che devono collassare l'una sull'altra). Molti passaggi creano ansia nel lettore, ma l'inevitabile buon fine aleggia in tutto il racconto. Tanti gli spunti di pensiero: amore, amicizia, droga, arte, adolescenza.

[Racheli Zusiman · Rating 4 out of 5]

איזה ספר נהדר. כתיבה כל כך יפה. העלילה עצמה מעניינת, מקורית ומותחת, אבל העיקר כאן עבורי היתה הכתיבה הרגישה והנהדרת, והיכולת של גרוסמן לתאר רגשות, מחשבות, מצבים - ובעצם כל דבר - בצורה כל כך חודרת. מקסים.

[Katerina · Rating 3 out of 5]

(А я и не знала, что это израильский Джон Грин, мне его рекомендовали как современную классику, что вызвало у меня еще больше вопросов. В целом, понимаю, как многим роман понравился, но сама осталась равнодушна и местами даже недовольна.)

Когда пишешь для подростков, особенно когда пишешь для подростков, нужно очень следить за своей интонацией. Нельзя быть своим в доску, нельзя привередничать и умничать, нельзя быть слишком умным, слишком обаятельным или слишком хорошо реагировать на очевидно глупые вещи. Чтобы быть признанным и принятым, нужно просто быть очень честным. И не красоваться. Мне кажется, у этой книжки немного не получилось: лично мне везде мерещилось, что автор уж слишком старается понравиться читателю, а эффект это имело прямо противоположный.

Добавлю, что, помимо остросоциальных тем и непременной строчки про холокост, отдельные приступы почти бешенства вызывало то, как автор тянет кота за нагнетает интригу: таинственная пещера, назад пути нет, побреюсь наголо, нет, родителям нельзя говорить, нет, и меня не отговорить, отступать некуда, позади Москва -- все это, конечно, призвано раздразнить любопытного читателя, и поначалу вполне работает, но к середине повествования неплохо бы уже заиметь совесть и рассказать, что это за дом странных детей и почему было совсем нельзя ехать в Италию на гастроли и не брить головы.

[gufo_bufo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mi è proprio piaciuto.
- Perché è scritto in prima persona senza averne l’aria: formalmente parla “di” Assaf, in realtà vediamo il mondo con gli occhi di Assaf, adolescente goffo, solitario, insicuro che sembra il clone della mia anima, prontissimo ad ignorare le proprie qualità e a vedere solo i suoi difetti.
- Perché è costruito narrativamente in modo classico e non sorprendente (e io detesto le sorprese), con le storie dei due protagonisti narrate a capitoli alternati, e sappiamo benissimo che si dovranno incontrare, e non vediamo l’ora che succeda, e l’attesa è trepidante delizia.
- Perché ha dei magnifici personaggi assurdi: la suora greca Teodora che nella sua torre nel cuore di Gerusalemme attende i pellegrini che non arriveranno mai dall’isola distrutta da un terremoto; la ristoratrice Leah, maternamente brusca, con le sue lunghe cicatrici sulla faccia e nell’anima; tutta la fauna degli artisti di strada.
- Perché Dinka è il modello ideale della caninità.
- Perché aggiunge una buona descrizione delle crisi d’astinenza alla mia collezione di cold turkey letterari, dopo il “Mare di papaveri” di A. Ghosh e “Shantaram” di G. D. Roberts.
- Perché il lieto fine della storia arriva dopo una serie di avvenimenti francamente poco credibili, ma non avrei potuto sopportare una fine diversa. Ma perché “il lieto fine” è maschile e “una fine diversa” è femminile?
- Perché ci sono almeno due frasi che avrei voluto scrivere io: “Alla fine aveva scelto Suzanne perché amava quella canzone e la voce calda, sconfitta e triste di Leonard Cohen” e “Era un uomo solo, energico ed entusiasta, che la vecchiaia aveva sorpreso nel bel mezzo dell’infanzia”.

[Arybo ✨ · Rating 4 out of 5]

«Wof» abbaiò Dinka e si mise a correre.

Mi è piaciuto tantissimo, ho adorato le scene con Dinka e sono stata risucchiata dalle personalità dei due ragazzi. Consigliato! Mi verrebbe da rileggerlo.

[Rainb0warri0r · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Quando gli sguardi di Tamar e di Assaf si incrociavano, lei si rendeva conto che i loro occhi vedevano esattamente la stessa cosa e nella loro mente forse si agitavano gli stessi pensieri. Allora provava un lieve sgomento come se, per un attimo, avesse sbirciato dentro di lui e ricordava, sorpresa, di avere sempre creduto che le mancasse quella parte di anima, quel mattoncino di Lego, che le avrebbe permesso di unirsi a un'altra persona. Ma ora quella convinzione andava forse riconsiderata."


Qualcuno con cui correre è un romanzo che appassonia, incanta, e colpisce nel profondo. Ti tiene incollato alle pagine, per il mistero sapientemente elaborato e progressivamente sviluppato, evitando però sempre luoghi comuni e forzature. Ti incanta: e vorresti impiegare un anno intero a leggerlo, per assaporare ogni singola parola. E ti colpisce nel profondo: per l'estrema densità della caratterizzazione dei personaggi, per la magia e la bellezza dei legami, fili invisibili, che li uniscono.

Magari non è sperimentale come Col corpo capisco (anche se ci sono accenni al suo particolare tipo di flusso di coscienza), e magari non è così profondamente poetico come Che tu sia il coltello (ma ci sono certi passi che non puoi smettere di leggere e rileggere), ma le cinque stelline se le merita tutte.

La trama non è originalissima e magari plausibilissima, ma è il suo sviluppo a rendere il romanzo un capolavoro. E' una storia difficile, che rielabora temi tipicamente adolescenziali: la droga, l'abbandono, il sentirsi emarginati ed il volersi emarginare. Assaf è un adolescente tenero e un po' infantile; un adolescente puro, che coltiva hobby segreti e che non riesce mai ad esprimere agli altri le sue emozioni; Tamar è un'adolescente misteriosa, completamente chiusa in se stessa, in deciso rifiuto del mondo, e che coltiva poche ma significative relazioni umane con le quali dà libero sfogo alle sue sfaccettature. E poi c'è Shay, che ha trovato nella droga il mezzo di negazione estrema, attorno al quale si snoda il complesso (anche per la differenzazione dei piani temporali, che poi alla fine si riuniscono) intreccio narrativo.

E' una storia difficile, ma colpisce la profonda tenerezza con cui Grossman la dipinge: riesce con una sorprendente tranquillità a parlare di temi difficilissimi, caricandosi della accecante speranza propria dei suoi personaggi.



E' una storia bellissima, ed è, ancora una volta, una storia d'amore, di come l'amore, quello vero, che arriva improvviso, guarisca ogni ferita.

[Elisabetta Mei · Rating 5 out of 5]

Primo libro che leggo di Grossman, e devo dire che i molti commenti letti su di lui sono tutti giusti: quest'autore è un genio.

"Qualcuno con cui correre" racconta la storia di un ragazzo, Assaf e di una ragazza, Tamar.
Abitano entrambi a Gerusalemme e conducono due vite completamente differenti, fino a che Assaf non incontra una cagna straordinaria, Dinka, la dolcissima Dinka, la quale lo trasporterà in un viaggio per la città, alla ricerca di Tamar, la sua piccola padroncina.
Ed è proprio così che questi due ragazzi si incontrano, si aiutano a vicenda e Tamar trascina Assaf in un'avventura strepitosa e pericolosa al tempo stesso.
Assaf è dolcissimo, davvero dolcissimo; d'altra parte anche Tamar, la piccola e fragile ragazzina che cerca disperatamente di aiutare suo fratello, ti rimane dentro, una volta girata l'ulima pagina.

anche se la storia a volte tocca un po' di irrealtà...che male c'è a sognare? :)

E' davvero un libro d'oro, una chicca.
Leggete, leggete, leggete e amate questa storia.

[Martina ⭐ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Storia intima e inaspettata, a tratti quasi surreale.
Il racconto di due ragazzi così diversi e in punti lontani della propria esistenza, che però seguono i loro obiettivi con determinazione e lucidità d'animo.
Una coccola per le emozioni, un pò meno per la ragione.
Ho trovato un pò troppo lento il primo quarto di libro ma poi la lettura è diventata più scorrevole e coinvolgente.
Tutto sommato comunque una bella esperienza, emozionante e ispirante.

[Gaya Aran · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 כוכבים.
מקסים ומתוק. חבל לי שלא קראתי את זה כנערה מתבגרת, כי אני יודעת שזה בדיוק הספר שהייתי זקוקה לו אז.
גיליתי שיש ביוטיוב גם רשימת השמעה של השירים המוזכרים בספר, ונהניתי להקשיב להם תוך כדי, מה שהפך הכל ליותר אינטראקטיבי אני מניחה.
גיל 16 זה גיל נורא ואיום, שאני ממש לא מעוניינת לחזור אליו. אבל גרוסמן איכשהו בכל זאת גרם לי להתגעגע.

[Tom! · Rating 4 out of 5]

Questo libro mi ha fatto male dall'inizio fino a poco prima della fine. Il contesto dove si narrano le vicende non mi piace, ma tutto ciò che accade ha un impatto forte e veritiero.
Ho amato il finale ed è stato ciò che i protagonisti si meritavano dopo l'inferno che hanno passato. Nonostante tutto l'ho apprezzato molto e merita totalmente di essere letto.