''Flanagan's Run'' is a 1982 novel written by Scottish athlete and author Tom McNab. Set in 1931, the story covers an epic footrace across the

continental United States The contiguous United States, also known as the U.S. mainland, officially referred to as the conterminous United States, consists of the 48 adjoining U.S. states and the District of Columbia of the United States in central North America. The te ...

. 2,000 runners run the 3,000 miles from

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

competing for a prize of $150,000. The fictional race was inspired by the actual 1928 Bunion Derby, which covered the same route. On its publication in 1982, the book sold several hundred thousand copies, topped ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...

'' bestseller list in the UK, and was translated into 16 languages. An

audiobook An audiobook (or a talking book) is a recording of a book or other work being read out loud. A reading of the complete text is described as "unabridged", while readings of shorter versions are abridgements. Spoken audio has been available in sch ...

version of ''Flanagan's Run'', read by actor

Rupert Degas Rupert Joel Degas (born 17 August 1970) is a British and Australian actor. He is best known for his voice work in animation, audiobooks, and advertising. Early life and education Degas was born Rupert Joel Degas on 17 August 1970 in London, to ...

, was published in 2010. Movie rights are owned by

Miramax Films Miramax, LLC, formerly known as Miramax Films, is an American independent film and television production and distribution company owned by beIN Media Group and Paramount Global. Based in Los Angeles, California, it was founded on December 19, ...

References

1982 British novels Sports novels Fiction set in 1931 Novels set in the United States Hodder & Stoughton books {{1980s-novel-stub