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Editorial Review:
Tim Krabbé is one of Holland's leading writers. He is also a cycling (and chess) enthusiast. In The Rider he has created a book unique in the ranks of sporting literature, and probably elsewhere. Already acclaimed as a cycling classic, this translation from the original Dutch serves not only to evoke the endeavour and exhaustive struggle of road racing, but also inspires as a study into the workings of the human mind, from the context of a racing cyclist. The narrative is driven by an analysis equal parts psychological and philosophical, strategic and surreal. The reader might feel that Krabbé is presenting the race or the rider as a metaphor for life in general, but the author might argue that it is more than that as he brings the ecstasy and the agony of the race, and the descriptions of his fellow competitors, to such a prominent position that all else is somehow of little significance. Perhaps Krabbé's real point is that only the rider can truly understand what makes the feelings engendered by the race so vital. For the rest of us, his description might be the nearest we get. Nevertheless, The Rider stands as a masterpiece, and alone of its kind. The feelings experienced by the actors of endurance sports have never been so well captured, nor the power and the pain of cycle racing captured in such a cerebral yet compelling manner.--Trevor Crowe
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 5.0 / 5.0
Tells it like it is Tim Krabbé superbly captures the very essence of road racing. The language is spare, almost lean and lends a hard, almost bleak edge to the narrative. And as road cycle racing is a lot like a microcosm of life, one can be forgiven for seeing allegories in the book. Krabbé, though, flatly denies that he was doing anything other than relating what it feels like to ride in a bike race. I don't often read books twice, but I very nearly started re-reading this the moment I finished it. Highly... more info
Short, but excellent. The book is relatively short at about 148 pages so doesn't take very long to read, but it's still a great book. There's no chapters as such, it's just one big chapter split up into paragraphs. I'm fairly new to cycling so some of the terms and phrases mentioned in the book are a bit alien to me, but anyone with more cycling experience won't have a problem with it. Although it didn't detract from the book at all. I've never raced before, so if you have then you may identify with it a bit more, as... more info
Very good An excellent novel, rooted with cycling anecdotes that lend a reality to the story. Felt like you were in the race there. Drew me in so I felt as if I was watching, and built up to the final dash for the line, like watching a real race. Excellent.
It's A Ride To The Sun, And A Ride To Zen It's A Ride To The Sun, And A Ride To Zen, August 6, 2005 Tim Krabbe, from Holland, is a much beloved writer by his country men and women. His books "The Vanishing" and "The Cave" have become known world wide, and made into very successful movies. He started out in life knowing he had to be a winner. His first love was that of chess. He played chess, he wrote books on chess, he joined tournaments, and then he realized he would never be the winner he wanted to be. So, at the age of 29, he turned to... more info
