Run For It

In Matt Christopher's 'Run For It,' readers meet Theo Gordimer, a 13-year-old who loves his video games more than sports. When his beloved aunt receives a cancer diagnosis, Theo feels helpless but is determined to do something meaningful. He finds his purpose in a local 5K road race benefiting cancer research, despite his complete lack of athletic ability. This chapter book follows Theo's journey from couch potato to aspiring runner, highlighting themes of family love, perseverance, and the power of setting and achieving difficult goals. It's a heartwarming story about finding inner strength and contributing to a cause, suitable for late elementary and middle school readers.

Theo Gordimer is a classic 13-year-old couch potato: he prefers video games and TV shows to playing sports. Then his favorite aunt is diagnosed with cancer. Theo wants to do something to help her, but what? Then his friend Paul tells him about a 5K road race coming up. The money collected from the race goes toward cancer research. Theo panics: running the race seems like the perfect way to help out his aunt, but 5K is more than three miles! Theo can barely run a quarter of one mile without having to stop. How will he be able to finish the race?