95 Comments

Lately I revisited Bruce Springsteen's Born to Run! I believe that surely suffices the thread

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I've got this playlist curated over the years for up-tempo music that (mostly) keep my feet drumming along to a high beat: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6Qt6vox3a1fw4XAc34c26W It spans a few genres and sometimes I'm not in the mood for every song. But, playing it on Random has kept it fresh for me over a few hundred miles.

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I like listening to running podcasts, most recently Nobody Asked Us by Kara Goucher and Des Linden. I'm between playlists at the moment -- looking forward to trying the one linked to below by Julie Gabrielli.

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I’m an “oldies” fan. Something to consider... if I’m watching a movie and I hear music or a song I like, I’ll grab my phone, find the song, download it and add it to a “running playlist”.

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Usually I listen to audiobooks or the Political Gabfest to start my runs but I just got Sirius XM and have been listening to some of their "workout" stations -- the ones with music from the 80s and 90s have been kind of a fun change of pace.

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I love when you do this question because I always get ideas for audiobooks. The Paris Apartment and Cormac McCarthy it is!

Currently, I am alternating between books set in New Mexico and a podcast...my very first. I listened to Bless Me Ultima by Rudolfo Amaya a coming of age story set in NM in the mid 1940s. It has a lot of Spanish words and a lot of mysticism, so not for everyone. The other set in NM but in the 1880s-1900, Death Comes to the Archbishop by Willa Cather is beautifully descriptive and has some historical accuracy. Loved them both.

The podcast I am listening to, and here I am making a confession of major nerdiness, is the Prancing Pony Podcast all about Middle Earth, JRR Tolkien. I'm catching up from the start of the podcast and I LOVE it!

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I like the MTA podcast

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I listen to drum and bass mixes, running in time to the music which is usually around the 175bpm mark.

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Listening to podcasts, I’ve found 2x speed keeps me focused on my tasks, and if I miss a bit that’s fine too!

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i've been listening to NPR lately. before i had a baby and started running with him, i would listen exclusively to loud music in my headphones. now with the stroller, or alone with my dog, i have to keep my ears out so just play NPR with no headphones, sometimes a podcast and listen to the sounds (traffic) around me.

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I can't do audiobooks when I run, I end up tuning out and then have to keep rewinding to the last part I heard. So I listen to my breathing instead. I read something once about a Sensory Run, focusing on what you see, hear, smell etc on a run. On long runs I do that to distract me when I'm struggling.

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The last thing I want to hear is my breathing, especially on my speed days. If I could only breathe through my nose it wouldn't be so bad.

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Steve absolutely correct running on the beach is a more intensive and difficult workout.

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A lung infection put me down for six months and I've just started running again. I've made music playlists for how I'm feeling when I start off... slow and mellow to hard rock. I've just started to learn the violin. I've recorded music on how it should sound, not like what I currently sound like.

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Steve, I'm so sorry to hear about the lung infection -- but I'm also glad to hear you're on the mend. And taking up the violin, that's so interesting! Had you always wanted to?

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Love the sound of it but my life was too busy before. Now that I’ve got the time, I found a teacher and have taken it up... Going to take years...

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Audio books for me....mostly thrillers....keeps me out there because that is pretty much the only time I listen. When I’m at home I usually read a different book. Recently came across Frieda McFadden...she writes psychological thrillers. I will listen to music on shorter runs or like someone said earlier “ to take the long run home!” Usually it’s oldies with a good beat! Can’t wait to try The Paris Apartment!

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It's SOOOOO good... the audio book has different voice actors for each character, so it feels more like an old-style radio drama than a podcast.

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Hi all, I had to chime in on this, I use the time I spend running in mediation. I used have to have something in my ear but I learned that it is hard to listen to the people that way.

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Very, very true, Mike -- do you do meditation as a practice, like TM or anything like that?

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“Tubular Brass,” which is exactly what the name implies: “Tubular Bells” (aka the Exorcist song), played by a brass ensemble (also helpfully called Tubular Brass). Takes a song many of us have experienced as scary (see: Exorcist) and reframes it as a font of joy and exhilaration.

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I will check it out! Good to see you here, Ron! 👋

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I can't imagine listening to just the my surroundings for long runs. I need the rhythm to push me along, and I also have certain songs carefully placed throughout my playlist for when I am getting up in miles. I also live in suburban NY, so the sounds are not as soothing or interesting as those in some of the more scenic areas of the country. For my next long run, I am going to try an audio book or podcast. Something that will make the time go by. I'm definitely looking into those Zombie runs!

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It's different in a city, isn't it? Atlanta, especially if you live in the part of the city we call "inside the Perimeter," isn't so soothing either -- you have to get out to the Chattahoochee River, or the less-dense areas way outside Atlanta, to get a feel for any kind of nature here. What kinds of podcasts do you like, btw?

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I'm not a huge podcast listener. I was hoping for some suggestions. :) Maybe true crime.

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The Morbid Podcast is pretty good.

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For long runs, I pick a Grateful Dead concert and just listen to the music play!

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That's what I do on the treadmill -- find a concert on YouTube and listen to the whole thing (or as much of it as I can).

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I prefer not to listen to anything! I always get distracted anyway when I run while listening to a podcast. I prefer to use running as a time to think or daydream.

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Love that, Rosalie! That's what I do when I run outside too -- it's prime daydreaming time 😃

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This is such a great topic! I’ve been in a rut listening to the same few podcasters and I’m now excited to try some of the suggestions here. I also added a couple of the suggested music playlists to my Spotify. Thanks for all the great recommendations, and I plan to check back here for more. I’ll wrap this up with an amusing story. Last week I was out of town running in an unfamiliar park. I was about 2 miles into my run when I realized I forgot my headphones and wasn’t listening to anything. I literally burst out laughing when I realized this. The lesson learned is that it might only take a new route to break up the tedium of a long run. Visual distractions instead of audio distractions!

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If I did that my wife would say I'm getting old and forgetful.

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Oh that's a great story! It is amazing what we notice and don't notice when we're out there, you know?

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https://www.washingtonpost.com/wellness/interactive/2023/birds-song-nature-mental-health-benefits/ As the article details there is a wonderful impact from tuning into our natural surrounding's. As such I have avoided any tech while running. Listening to the birds, the sound of my feet, the pulse of my breath and heart reinforce my place in our ecosystem. There's also a safety issue I am concerned about after losing a dear cousin in a hit n run 10 years ago. I do use a very nice bluetooth speaker, NoxGear 39g, when I cycle - which I pin on my cycling jersey. This way I have some music in the background and can remain alert to my surroundings.

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Oh, no! I'm so sorry to hear about that John... that's very much worth considering, and making sure we listen to our headphones only when it's safe to do so. I'll definitely give that article a read -- I have read about the good it does for us to run/walk/bike outdoors, to take in all the stimuli. Great thought.

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Loving Avery Trufelman’s Articles of Interest, a podcast about what we wear and why we wear it. Many fun topics on clothing and apparel.

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I've got to give that a listen! Thanks for the suggestion, Sam 👍

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It’s great. Her series on how Ivy League prep style became the “default” fashion of modernity is great. https://open.substack.com/pub/articlesofinterest/p/american-ivy-chapter-1

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I love stories like this -- anything about subcultures (of any kind) interests me instantly. Putting this in my Podcasts app now...

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Great thread of comments. I mostly listen to nonfiction audiobooks but have been known to toss in a Jonas Brothers' song here and there. (This is a "what's said here stays here" type of comment thread, right?)

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Yes it is! (Just like Vegas 😉 )

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Silence

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I have a Spotify playlist called Get Happy. It includes rock classics, punk, rap, hip hop, etc. I’m happy to share it to anyone interested. It’s gotten me through a lot of mile 8s and 9a on the Half Marathon!

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I’d love to see it!

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Here you go! I had a Lizzo phase a while back, but I stand by it. 🙃 https://open.spotify.com/playlist/26xYSBjUf0vRM0ed9cPxgF?si=IS1kdNHRR_i3X65m-68DWQ

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I love this playlist!

Espresso love is my preferred GU flavor, I had no idea it was named after a song

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That whole album - "Making Movies" - is one of my alltime favorites. 😊

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I love these threads....They are so interesting (You've got the BEST community.). Okay--1) After being sidelined for close to two years with profound back issues, fingers crossed, I'm running again. ("Running" is a generous descriptive at the moment.) So right now, I'm listening to the very annoying "Constance" telling me when to jog versus walk briskly on the Couch to 5K app.

But otherwise--it depends on where I am. For example, I used to go to the west coast of Ireland (specifically, Connemara) every Christmas. My favorite run there traverses the "Bog Road"--a lonely stretch of--you guessed it--bog--where it's just you and the sheep. So of course my playlist was filled with U2--and specifically, One Tree Hill for when I needed a little push to get me through the last few miles.

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So glad you're back to running, Diana! My fingers are crossed for you too!! I love Ireland, so much. I've only been there once, but it's such a magical place -- and running among the sheep sounds just perfect. (And you know how much I love U2!!)

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Sidebar: The highlight of my concert going life was having front row seats to U2 in Boston. The stage was RIGHT THERE. The tickets were a gift--and truly, one of the best gifts a U2 fan could ever receive! (Kings of Leon opened.)

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Okay, now I’m seriously jealous! Which tour was this on?

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Vertigo-Fleet Center, May 2005. I nearly fainted. (Even then I was too old to be Bono-swooning, but swoon I did.) Later, when I was working in the Music Industry, we did business with Edge (installing Seymour Duncan pickups in his guitar.) Once again, there was swooning. (Although I didn't ever get to meet him. Sadly.)

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Audiobooks are really fun—I like murder mysteries or thrillers while running because the right ones can really keep you going. (But there's a bit when the climax is building or you're about to find out who the villain is and sometimes it seems like everyone on the path has disappeared and you're the only one running... super spooky.)

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YES!! This 💯 . One of the best audiobooks I ever listened to is Lucy Foley's 'The Paris Apartment,' which I listened to almost entirely when I was running. I was glued to every single word.

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Thank you for this suggestion - I am thoroughly enjoying The Paris Apartment!

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I’m a huge podcast fan but I find I need music to push me along when I run, and I hate listening to my own breathing. So I have searched for a bunch of running and workout playlists on Spotify, but I admit I’m getting tired of some of those. Most of them are either classic rock or 80s stuff that was popular when I was in high school or younger. And some 90s and 2000s stuff. But they’re repetitive, so I’m following this to see if anyone shares any good playlists. I might make my own, but I haven’t had the patience or time yet to sit down and do it.

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T - Thanks so much for sharing this! I am getting tired of my playlists and not into audio books (tho will try out the Paris apartment after reading this chain!) - listening to someone else’s playlist will be a welcome break. Just did my longest run of 10 miles this morning ahead of next weekends Parks half marathon in Maryland.

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Good luck on your half!

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Oh thanks! I’ll try it!

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In my first year or two of running, the delightful storytelling of the “Zombies Run” app kept me going. It tells the post-apocalyptic story of “Runner 5,” with voice actors who come to feel like family, or at least neighbors. I stopped at some point after season 7--because I ran out of episodes or the storyline no longer kept me interested, or I felt like I needed to be more ‘present’ in my running? (My last ZR run, according to the app, was four episodes over 32km, possibly my last long run before the NYC Marathon.)

When coming back from a medical issue earlier this year, I used the Zombies Run 5k to restart. And there are several more ‘seasons’ of stories, plus several new and completely different (non-zombie) storylines to explore, including the new “Marvel Move!” series, which I supported as a founding member. The stories seamlessly integrate with my playlists, so I get the best of both worlds: the music that syncs my cadence, and the stories that give me a fictional ‘why’ to keep running when it’s hard.

I quit using “Runner 5” on my race bibs a couple of years ago, but the Six-to-Start team and my cadence-based music playlists still help me get through my runs.

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Okay so that's really interesting, Steph -- I'd never even heard of the Zombies Run app. I can find it in the iPhone app store, right? I'll have to check this out...

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Yep, App Store, search Zombies Run or ZRX. (Also, I actually leaned about Six to Start before I started running with their unique single-story walking app, “The Walk.”)

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i have never listened to music on a run. earplugs don't really stay in my ears and i just think it would bug me. prefer to listen to the outside sounds and whatever i hear in my head.

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Try Aftershokz!! I couldn’t run with buds or stuff in my ears, but the Aftershokz are perfect--I can hear the world around me + what’s coming through the speakers, and they’re super comfy.

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That is a problem I have too -- all the bouncing around and pounding from my feet on the pavement can jostle those things around :)

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At the risk of doing an old man repeat, I having been listening to The Real Life runners. I found it when my standard go to had not yet released a new episode. I enjoyed not only the content but the banter between the husband and wife team doing the cast. Decided to start at the beginning and haven’t stopped yet. It. Is almost Si Fi like to listen to when you already know what their future has been like. Especially right before the pandemic. I know I’m weird.

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I added it to my podcast feed a couple days ago, and plan to give it a listen soon!

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Might try episode 205. LOL

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Yes my youngest daughter Elizabeth is also a runner. At my old age of almost 66 and my leaky heart valve and A-Fib issues I can no longer keep up with her, but she still slows down to run the annual Turkey Trot 5K with me and runs with me once a month outdoors when it gets cooler in South Florida.

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That's a beautiful thing 🙌

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Hi Terrell, I don't listen to music when I run...well the birds. :) I do though for strength training...it motivates me to do it. Thunderstruck by AC/DC — #1 to pick up those weights.

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LOVE "Thunderstruck"!!! I'm about to (try to!) start some strength training... I'll use this suggestion, Julie! 😃

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Go for it!

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Terrell I also read the book and had it autographed by Raven. Yes I did run with him once. Since I don't drive my younger daughter took me and ran with us as my birthday present a few years ago.

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That is the coolest thing, Laurence!! What a lovely, lovely and thoughtful birthday gift. So your daughter is a runner too?

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Podcasts -- You Must Remember This, How Did This Get Made, Conan O'Brien Needs a Friend, Another Mother Runner, How Was Your Run Today?

I always run outside and music keeps me from being aware of my surroundings. With podcasts I can still hear traffic and people and dogs.

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I hear you on that -- music does take me to another world, and really shuts out everything. Which can be great in certain moments -- and less advantageous in others! These sound like great suggestions, btw!

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Less than an hour "Frampton Comes Alive". 2+ hours I created a Spotify playlist "Half Marathon Mix". Rock, Hip Hop, some Metal

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Love these, Brian! Interested in sharing your mix on Spotify?

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I’m also an audiobook listener. But lately, what with the heat and humidity, my runs have been “struggle runs,” and I’ve been listening to music. I have a playlist that hypes me up. And yesterday, for the first time since I started running, I listened to one of the “guided runs” on Nike Run Club. I friggin’ love Coach Bennett and I needed his kind and inspirational words, I guess. I’ve been toying with the idea of having 3 “listens” available for my long runs: 1) the kind of meditative coaching of Coach Bennett for the warmup 2) audiobook for the bulk of the run and 3) music to bring it home. But that seems overly complicated. Heh.

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That does sound like you'd need to do a lot of switching between listens in the middle of a run! So you take your phone with you, then? Or is all of this downloaded to/streaming from your watch?

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I do take my phone on runs. I like to stop and take photos to document my runs.

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I switch between listening to audio book/podcast, then try to run in silence/meditate for at least 20 minutes, and then music for the way home. I take my phone and switch off. I also take pics at times. Glad to know I have a kindred spirit out there. I may try a guided run now.

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I listen to the world when I'm out in the world, either on foot or on my bike. But at home I fill my brain with music that comes back to me when I'm out and about. This morning it's Keb Mo.

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That's so cool, Kent!

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Since I live in Southeast Florida in Southwest Ranches I listen to the country music of Robert Raven Kraft. For those of you who don’t know him he has run 8 miles on the sands of South Beach every day since January 1, 1975. Over 2500 different runners have joined him.

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I used to live in Jacksonville and worked the 3rd shift. I would get off work and run on the beach. As you know, it's not as easy as people think.

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Oh, I'm a HUGE fan of Raven -- if only from afar. I read the book Laura Lee Huttenbach wrote about him a few years ago, and even got to interview her: https://www.thehalfmarathoner.com/p/book-club-kickoff-a-conversation

He has such a great story -- have you ever run with him?

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I always listen to audiobooks. This week I began listening to The Passenger by Cormac McCarthy after I inadvertently listened to the first book it the series Stella Maris last week.

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So strange that this is the first reply I read on this thread. My husband and I are planning (I hope) to go to New Mexico in a few weeks. I love to read (listen to) books about a place before going there and this author came up when I did a search. I chose two other books set in New Mexico and was wondering which others I should listen to. Now I know. Thank you.

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