One Foot in Front of the Other

No one could accuse Bruce Kidd of peaking too soon, not after reading this rich and fascinating memoir of a teenage sports celebrity turned global traveller, educator, activist, historian, political strategist, community builder, creative university administrator, social critic, and perpetual gadfly. It’s hard to believe that the author, a vital, joyfully argumentative man, was named Canada’s Athlete of the Year a full sixty years ago. He is still only in his seventies, working as the University of Toronto’s ombudsperson, conquering the occasional mountain (not just metaphorically), and even now, one hopes, giving complacent, conservative power brokers grief with his distinctive blend of fierce intelligence, boundless energy, long-game persistence, undeniable (if often prickly) humanity, and happy self-confidence that borders on cockiness — a forceful combination of qualities on display throughout A Runner’s Journey.

Kidd effectively left behind the...