Liz Robbins's poems have what only the very best poems have: a sturdy toughness undergirding their tenderness. Though the body spins dervishly-almost blindly- for love and beauty, it must also accept the jolts of pain, of physical labor. As with the flowering pear trees in "On the Verge of Spring," we are ever" hopeful, / hopeless--with [the] smell of sweat suggestive/ of work and of fear." There's a refreshing honesty in these poems as well as a tremendous amount of skill with a sensuous musical language. Each poem is a delight, something to savor. -Nance Van Winckel

When 39,195 competitors thunder over the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge to begin the thirty-eighth running of the famed New York City Marathon, they experience one of the most exhilarating moments in sports. But as they cross five towering bridges and five distinct boroughs, carried 26.2 miles by their own indomitable wills, grueling challenges await them. "New York Times" sportswriter Liz Robbins brings race day to life in this gripping saga of the 2007 Marathon, weaving the unforgettable stories of runners into a vibrant mile-by-mile portrait of the world's largest marathon. If the women's race plays out like a mesmerizing chess game, then the men's race quickly turns into a high-speed car chase. South Africa's Hendrick Ramaala, eager to recapture glory at age 35, surges to lead the pack as Kenya's Martin Lel and Morocco's Abderrahim Goumri stay within striking range. While the professionals offer insight into the intense, often painful experience of being an elite athlete, the amateurs provide timeless stories of courage and obsession that typify today's marathoner: Harrie Bakst, a cancer survivor at 22, who is a first-timer; Pam Rickard, a 45-year-old mother of three from Virginia, who is a recovering alcoholic; and 65-year-old Tucker Andersen, who has run the race every year since 1976. Enlivening the history of the New York City Marathon with stories of such legends as the late Fred Lebow, the race's charismatic founder, and nine-time champion Grete Waitz, "A Race Like No Other" provides a curbside seat to the drama of the first Sunday in November.