Step By Step: A Pedestrian Memoir [Hardcover]

Several years ago Lawrence Block, author of over 60 mystery novels, told me that he could write a cookbook and it would probably be shelved in the mystery section of bookstores. As a novelist for the past half-century, Block has created some of the greatest mystery series of all time --- from the dark stories involving alcoholic private eye Matt Scudder to the lighter mysteries featuring burglar Bernie Rhodenbarr to the stamp-collecting hit man known as Keller.

But now he has written a memoir that deserves to join his mysteries on the bestseller list, if not the mystery shelf. STEP BY STEP is a memoir, not of the writing life, but of the walking life. It is also the story of an intellectually honest and adventurous man who has struggled to overcome his demons and excel in living. Unlike many recent memoirs, this is not a book about victimization; it is about living a life to the fullest.

Both the journalist and novelist have some personal cover while practicing their craft. The reporter can take refuge behind facts; the novelist behind his imagination. And readers of the latter can discover the writer's voice in his or her style or tone. They can also strive to get glimpses of the author through his characters or the settings in which they exist. At the end of the day, it is, after all, fiction, and any resemblance to those living or dead is, as they say in the movies, purely coincidental. But real life is rarely so simple.

STEP BY STEP is written in the same conversational, graceful style that has made Block the ideal writer to study for those interested in learning the craft. Indeed, his only nonfiction titles before this one were four instructional books for writers, two of them gleaned from his work for many years as the fiction columnist for Writer's Digest magazine.

So how do you write a memoir about walking? Well, this isn't exactly strolling down to the grocery store for a six-pack of beer and newspaper, which I have practiced for many years and am very good at. Much of this book involves racewalking. That is the rather odd-looking sport that definitely is not running. It consists of the stiff knee, leg in constant contact with mother earth, arms swinging at the sides, a sort of rapid propulsion forward. As the Supreme Court once said of pornography, you would know it when you see it.

And Block excelled at it. In 2006, at the age of 68, he competed in 18 races, including six marathons and two 24-hour races, covering a total of 375 miles. Between 2005 and 2007, he took part in 52 races, including 11 marathons and seven "ultras." We learn that ultras are races that can go for 24 hours or even days and cover hundreds of miles. Block covered 70 miles in one 24-hour race.

Indeed, we meet in these pages many highly motivated athletes who take part in the sport. If you walk 100 miles in 24 hours, you become a Centurion. If I did it, I would become a corpse. But to each his own.

Block traces his enthusiasm for walking back to his early years growing up in Buffalo, New York, and his inability to learn how to ride a bike at the age of 10. A boy in Buffalo had to have a bike to get around. So Block started walking instead and grew to love it. He knew early on he wanted to be a writer. And he settled in New York City's Greenwich Village to do it in the late '50s. And while all New Yorkers walk as a matter of everyday necessity and pride, Block had no idea what racewalking was for 21 years. Then after drinking himself out of his first marriage, he walked up to Washington Square Park one day and just took off running.

"I did this in street clothes --- jeans, a long sleeved sports shirt, a pair of leather dress shoes," he writes. "God knows what I looked like. People probably thought I'd stolen something, or perhaps killed someone, and was trying to escape. But they left me alone. It was New York, after all, and why interfere?"

Yet another reason to love New York.

Block began seriously jogging. But the point of jogging is training. And you train for races. For four years, he entered races. He started as a traditional runner until he hurt his knee and became a racewalker. In 1981, at the age of 43, he entered and finished 40 races, including five marathons, covering 374.5 miles.

Then he decided one day that he was "finished" with racing and did not compete for another 22 years. But he was not exactly through walking. In 1991, he and his wife, Lynne, took part in a three-month, 650-mile pilgrimage over the Spanish Pyrenees --- the Camino de Santiago. They did not make the pilgrimage for religious reasons. But Block points out, "There was something transformational in covering vast distances, true geographic expanses, on foot. Who looks at the map of Spain and sees a country it would be possible to walk across? And yet by the time we were done we had done precisely that, one day at a time, one precious step at a time."

What makes this a fun read is the voice of Lawrence Block: witty, acerbic at times, inquisitive and, above all, honest. He writes, "My life, too, has been rich and satisfying, but it hasn't stayed the same over the years. Enthusiasm has come and gone, passions have waxed and waned." His passions could be viewed as compulsions. Block admits that he started his racing career soon after he stopped drinking and has attended many "meetings" with "like-minded" people over the years. Perhaps AA? And he gives Lynne a reason for participating in a 24-hour marathon in his late 60s: "Given the choice, I'd rather be hospitalized for exhaustion than depression."

The book takes a poignant turn toward the end as he realizes that age is slowing him down and racing now involves serious pain from his feet to his back. And he admits that his fictional characters might be reaching the end of the line. Publicly, of late, he has talked about retiring from writing, much to the chagrin of his long-time fans.

But whether it is in writing or racewalking or life itself, Block acknowledges that we simply go on, step by step. That simply understated, redemptive message of hope shines through here.

Lawrence Block does not have to write another mystery novel to ensure his place in American literature. He long ago earned his spot in the pantheon. But if STEP BY STEP is a coda of sorts, it shows one of America's greatest writers still working at the top of his game. This is a richly human, wonderful book that will stay with you for a long time.

--- Reviewed by Tom Callahan

It's not often I like a book so much that I order a copy for myself. After reading the first third of Step By Step, I knew I had to have my own copy, so I ordered one from Amazon. The wry, insightful, funny writing had captured me. Then I read on.

This book even tells the story of how this book came to be written, and it's obvious that once the first half was done - in a burst of passion - that Lawrence Block really struggled to write the rest. It shows. For the first half, he gives us wonderful stories about his life, his friends and his travels. Think Farley Mowat or Eric Newby at their best.

Then all of a sudden we get nothing but tedious accounts of races and walks - no more travel, no real fun, and very little to recommend it. Finally near the end we find out that Block is now really tired of writing, and having a tough time finishing the book - which I am sure coincides with the sudden failure to write interesting, compelling narrative.

And from what I've seen of him on Craig Ferguson, this may be his last book. I surely hope that this is not the case - it would be a shame for so fine an author to end on this disappointing note.

Nor is it Scudder or Bernie, but being a diehard Block fan, I bought it and read it. It was enjoyable reading, but only because Lawrence Block is an enjoyable writer to read. His musings, insights, and revelations of his personal life are like having a conversation with someone you'd like to know better. And after this book, I think I understand more about Keller, Bernie and Matthew than I did before. But I still don't understand runners or racewalkers or why these people put themselves through such maneuvers just to say they've done it. But then, I don't understand people who climb mountains, either, and that's not stopped anyone from climbing them.

› Go to Amazon.com to see all 16 reviews  3.7 out of 5 stars