Middle Distance: A Graphic Memoir Paperback – September 12, 2023 by Mylo Choy

Description

This heartfelt graphic memoir takes us through the highs, lows, twists, and turns of the author’s relationship with running, down the long road toward self-acceptance.

A charming, heartwarming, and poignant story of running and self-acceptance, author/illustrator Mylo Choy’s Middle Distance combines exertion and introspection in an exploration of the physical body’s connection to the human experience.

An exciting graphic addition to a growing field, this sports memoir recounts Mylo’s history with running and how their love for that famously solitary sport pushed them to grow over time. It explores such themes as the interrelatedness of mind and body, the Buddhism with which Mylo was raised, emotional growth through effort but also repose, and the necessity of carving out space for nuance and acceptance. Concrete narrative scenes contrast with more abstract sequences to convey Mylo’s journeys, both inner and outer, and how these inextricably intertwine. Each of the book’s chapters takes its name from a kind of runner’s training: “The Race,” “Speedwork,” “Rest,” and “The Long Run.”

The approachability of comics as a medium, coupled with the relatability of Mylo’s search for self-knowledge, results in an honest, searching work of particular interest to transgender and nonbinary runners.