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From the concrete canyons of lower Manhattan to the ruins of Ancient Greece, Marathon is a deeply personal tour de force of a woman who turns her back on the modern world in order to unravel the secrets of her past. In this impressive, multi-layered debut, based on a true story, W. William Winokur takes the reader on a journey that is at once historical, philosophical and spiritual in order to learn exactly what gives a life meaning.
Meet Marianna Gardner—intelligent, beautiful, successful, yet empty, sad and searching. Marianna is a partner in a prominent Manhattan law firm, but her rise to the top has come at a price: She has become so hardened that she missed her own father’s funeral. Enter Ion Theodore, a charming, lonely old man who has known Marianna since she was a child. A teacher, artist, and marathon runner, Ion is a man of uncommon experience and wisdom. When the two unexpectedly reconnect in a Queens nursing home, Marianna finds herself entranced by “Uncle” Ion’s quiet life force. Soon after their meeting, Marianna accompanies Ion on a pilgrimage to Greece. There she learns that an orphan holds the key to a decades-old mystery; she stumbles upon Ion’s hidden journals; and she sets out to find a lost obol that scholars believe to be priceless. As she unearths these secrets of the past, she also begins to see her own future and learns how her destiny is inescapably linked to Ion’s.
Framed by the story of Pheidippides’ celebrated run from Marathon to Athens, the novel is steeped in mythology and mystery. Winokur ponders the essential questions of life and death, the intersection of past and present, the struggle of duty versus passion, all while exploring one woman’s discovery of herself through ancient myths, lost journals, impossible loves, and timeless souls.
Marathon is a richly imagined work that sets the intrigue and mystery of the ancient world against the reality of contemporary life. Compelling, thought provoking, and thoroughly engaging, Marathon is a powerful statement about the choices we make in life, and how to create a life worth living.
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