Vertical Run, which was published 20 years ago, is a terrific thriller, kind of like "Die Hard" with a protagonist trapped in an office building with a bunch of trained killers, but with a much different plot and mystery. I first read it when it was a selection of the Book of the Month Club in 1995; it was one of three thrillers I chose as the opening selection, along with David Baldacci's Absolute Power and a third one that I don't recall now.
Anyway, I just re-read Vertical Run, and it was as much of a thrill-ride as I remember, so I highly recommend it to anyone who likes fast-paced, kinetic action books.
But what struck me on the re-read was how back in 1995, I had thought smugly that, at age 47, the main character (David Elliot) seemed kind of old to be doing all kinds of action-packed running and fighting. 47 seemed so far away ...
Fast forward to now, when I'm ... 47. It doesn't seem old at all. Obviously, I don't have the Special Forces background that David Elliot did, which you can imagine comes in handy in the novel, but in terms of running around and doing physical stuff, I'm better now than I was 20 years ago. I suppose this shouldn't be surprising, with recent research reinforcing the life benefits of vigorous exercise. But it's also a good reminder to me about trying to avoid the smugness of being younger now than whatever age I'm going to be down the road.
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