Post written by Laura
Another year and another 100% focus on travel books only! Well, almost I think… Travel books enable me to lose myself into the world and location of the author and fill the void between the time I spend actually travelling, planning travelling and reflecting on travelling! Some of these books have been highly inspirational and many gave me ideas for future trips.
All except one were purchased and downloaded from Amazon and read via the Kindle app on my iPad. This year, these exclude travel reference books such as Lonely Planet or Rough Guides.
Below is a summary of each of the travel books I’ve read throughout 2023:
Book read: The Journey In Between by Keith Foskett
This is Keith Foskett’s experience of walking the Camino Frances, the ‘French Way’ pilgrim trail to Santiago de Compostela in Spain.
I was eager to read this as I began it around the time I had just booked the trip to walk the last 117 km of El Camino with my friend Bridget. At the end of the Camino Frances our section was from Sarria to Santiago. Keith didn’t focus too much on that last section and as this is the busiest and most touristic part I can understand why.
Many people who who spend several weeks walking the main Camino Frances traditionally start in St Jean Pied de Port in the French Pyrenees however Keith started much further back in France in a place called Le Puy. This meant a total walking distance between Le Puy to Santiago de Compostela of 1000 miles. Keith seemed to prefer the landscape of the French side which took him through southern France and the foothills of the Pyrenees before reaching St Jean Pied de Port.
I’ve read several of Keith’s books previously and with his dry sense of humour and honest descriptions weaving his feelings and observations into his hiking this one didn’t disappoint.
On his website home page:
“Thru-hiking is not about giving up a few months of your life. It’s about having a few months to live.“
What an wonderful quote! Taking time out of your everyday life to achieve something amazing and make lasting memories is a life well lived!
Book read: Journey Through India by Mark Probert
This was an account of 5 weeks of independent India backpacking by two retired sixty-somethings! I enjoyed following their adventures which were well written and informative. As a result of such inspiration I have at last booked a trip to India for 2024 a place I’ve always wanted to visit. The only issue I had was to narrow down an area to explore in this vast country! I shortlisted either a 10 day trek in Kerala or a venture towards the Himalayas in Northern India. I decided on the north and booked ‘Mountains and Mystics of India‘ with Intrepid, leaving Kerala for another time…
Nepal is next to India and as I’ve not been to India, the above photo of Kathmandu is the nearest image I have which I guess may be similar to the parts of Northern India I’ll be visiting.
Book read: In Search of SiSu: A Path to Contentment via the Highest Point on Every Continent by Geordie Stewart
This was an excellent adventure book – unlike the two above which I enjoyed but I would just read a few pages at a time, this was one that I wanted to keep reading! A real page turner for me. At 22 Geordie was the youngest Briton to reach the highest peak on each of the summits on the 7 continents. It was interesting to learn what goes into the preparation needed to be able to climb these magnificent summits as well as great descriptions of the conditions, the climbs and what each entailed. This was also an emotional journey for Geordie who simultaneously gave an honest account of the struggles he faced as a teenager together with his amazing achievements at such a young age.
The picture above is of Langtang Lirang captured from the lower summit of Kyanjin Ri which at 4,300 m is my altitude personal best! (And about half the height of Everest).
Book read: Thinking on My Feet: The small joy of putting one foot in front of another by Kate Humble
I purchased this book while at Destinations, the Holiday and Travel Show which is held in Olympia in early February each year. Kate Humble, a well known UK TV personality gave an excellent and motivating presentation at the show which was eagerly watched by my friends Bridget, Roger and myself as we sat in the audience. She has lead a fascinating life of travel and adventure and as well as presenting TV wildlife shows she lives on a smallholding writing books and doing some cooking.
After listening to Kate I was eager to read this book which had great reviews and has been shortlisted for book prizes. The book is made up of short stories as Kate walks her way through a year of hiking and trekking in various locations in the UK and internationally. However I picked it up and put it down 2 or 3 times throughout the year, read a little bit at a time and never actually finished it.
As the only physical book I’ve looked at all year, I took it with me on a couple of trips but unfortunately never really got into it. Apparently the second half is better so I may give it another try in 2024.
Book read: Pilgrim: Finding a new way on the Camino de Santiago by Carolyn Gillespie
Another book continuing to fuel my excitement of walking the final 117 km of this great trek! I read this in March, 5 months in advance of my booked El Camino trek in August. I engaged well with Kari’s (the author) writing style which was just right for me. Not too detailed, some wonderful descriptions which gave me a good idea of what to expect and some interesting insights. I felt I was on the journey with Kari and didn’t skip any of the book!
The only issue is that I now want to spend a few weeks walking the rest of the Camino Frances and cover the additional 680 km from Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port in France to Sarria (where we were starting from).
Book read: Retirement Rebel: One woman, one motorhome, one great big adventure by Siobhan Daniels
I was eager to read this book as I’m drawn to the idea of living or at least spending lots of time in a camper van exploring remote corners of the UK and Europe and the freedom I imagine this would bring. Interestingly I shared a few similarities with the author, i.e. we both sold 3 bedroom houses in our mid 40’s, both took a one year career break at 47 to travel the world and both downsized to a flat. And, as mentioned above, I have considered retiring at 60 to travel around in a camper van.
However I found myself skimming through quite a bit of the book. I get that the book is the story of the author overcoming her negative experiences of the menopause and her depression but I began to get a bit fed up with constant ‘women empowerment’ statements. I ploughed on hoping to be inspired by her adventures and was looking forward to finishing the book when I came across an interesting little nugget!
There was a page towards the end where she reflected on her personal growth as a result of ‘stepping out of her comfort zone’ to volunteer with horses. If I were to leave an Amazon review, that page would have nudged up my score! It made me think about some of my own travel experiences and particularly the times I’ve travelled solo and the personal growth and confidence I gained as a result.
The photo for this book review was taken as Chris and I drove towards Oban in May 2017 in order to board the ferry to Mull, a journey the author had taken.
Book read: The Earth Beneath my Feet: A 7,000 Mile Walk of Discovery into the Heart of Wild Nature Book 1 by Andrew Terrill
Wow! I was hooked as soon as I read the prologue! What an incredible book and another where I was able to relate closely to the views of the author. At the beginning he explained how he felt about being pushed down the ‘standard’ path of college/job/marriage/mortgage/kids and how “nobody suggested following my dreams was an option“. It took an accident where he came close to death for him to carefully question what he wanted to do with his life and to pursue it. For this reason I’ve tried to ensure my kids realise they do have options in their lives and understand:
“Do not take the agenda that someone else has mapped out for your life”
The above is a quote I came across by John Maxwell. But equally I’ve come to realise there is no right or wrong way to live your life and bringing children into the world is an amazing experience in itself and doesn’t necessarily prevent you from an adventurous life.
In this book, part 1, Andrew the author walks from Calabria in the very south of Italy and heads north through mountains up towards Austria, documenting his many challenges along the way.
Andrew has produced a great photographic summary of this part of the walk on his website. But do read the book!
Book read: On Sacred Ground: A 7,000 Mile Walk of Discovery into the Heart of Wild Nature Book 2 by Andrew Terrill
Book 1 ended in Austria while Andrew was part way through and was so good I was keen to continue virtually walking with Andrew on his discovery! This second book is every bit as enjoyable as the first and these two books are in my list of favourite all time books, brilliant.
The photo above is of Roldal, the Norwegian village where Chris and I stayed when we hiked the Trolltunga in September 2015. This is one of the places the author walked through. Another inspiring quote on page 14 of the book:
“Life is a fragile gift too precious to waste”
Book read: A Rolling Stone: Taking the Road Less Travelled by Geordie Stewart
Having already read and thoroughly enjoyed ‘In Search of SiSu’ (reviewed above) I had high hopes for this book also by Geordie Stewart. This follows his 14 month 13,000 mile bike ride across Europe and Asia documenting the reality and hardships he encountered which were particularly tough in a tent in freezing Kazakhstan in the winter and the barriers he faced in the Xinjiang Province of China.
Geordie skipped really quickly through the beginning with very little detail as he cycled through Europe. After all of the hardships he faced in Kazakhstan and China he became much more positive again as he entered South East Asia and met his first fellow cycle tourists in many months, a Dutch couple in rural Laos.
While I enjoyed it and it kept my attention for the entire book I didn’t enjoy it quite as much as ‘In Search of Sisu’ or in my view as gripping as other cycle touring books I’ve read.
Book read: Driving over Lemons: An Optimist in Andalucia by Chris Stewart
An interesting concept and well written book which recounts the true story of Chris and his wife Ana who began a new life in rural Spain about 30 years ago. They brought an old farm with no running water or electricity and started to integrate with the locals who feature a great deal in the book.
But I found it slow going as it seemed very detailed… I would read a few pages at a time but soon put it down. I persevered for several weeks and tried to struggle through but wondered why I was putting myself through this when I wasn’t really enjoying it so gave up about a third of the way through. This book has mostly good reviews so it is probably me… I have a low boredom threshold when it comes to too much detail so don’t let my reflection put anyone off reading it!
Book read: A Widow’s Walk Off-Grid to Self-Reliance: An Inspiring, True Story of Courage and Determination by Annie Dodds
I’m not sure if this would be considered a full travel genre book, maybe scraping in under my definition of travel books and my paragraph at the top of this post of ‘losing myself in the world and location of the author’… Set in Texas middle aged Annie Dodds after losing her husband and home with few belongings she decided to pursue her lifelong dream of living off-grid. To begin with she had nothing but a shack with no running water.
The overall story is inspiring and Annie is hugely courageous but again, like the previous book it wasn’t exactly a page turner for me. It was too detailed and I started to find it boring. I struggled through reading a couple of pages at a time, persevered but eventually after about 2 months I gave up about half way through and downloaded 3 more books to my Kindle app…
I was unable to find any relatable pictures to illustrate this review so above is a remote tree taken a few days ago while Chris and I were in England’s Peak District.
Book read: A Walk from the Wild Edge by Chris Evans
This book is about the author doing a lot of walking around the UK but at the same time documenting his mental health journey. He sets the scene well and is completely honest and open about the mental health struggles he faced and his overall poor physical health with his destructive drinking and drug taking.
As well as walking much of the UK coast path he also diverts and follows some of the other great national footpaths such as the Great Glen Way and the Pennine Way.
I found this book inspirational – it encouraged me to think more to plan some long distance UK walks. But not for a few years yet… maybe as a retirement thing? While working full time I’m restricted to 6 – 7 weeks of annual leave each year and so have limited opportunities for taking off on a long walk somewhere.
I chose a photo of Brighton for this book review. Brighton features regularly as Chris the author spent quite a bit of his time there. And my daughter lives in Brighton so I also go there from time to time 🙂
Book read: Abroad in Japan by Chris Broad
This fascinating book covers the 10 years the author, Chris Board, spent living in Japan. Chris began as an inexperienced assistant language teacher in rural Japan and after building on his hobby of making video’s he transitioned into a well known youtuber.
Chris’s dry sense of humour as he learns and experiences the culture of life in Japan ensures this is an enjoyable and easy to read book. I learned so much about Japan as a country and this started me thinking about planning a return visit to Japan at some point.
For anyone interested in learning more about ‘the land of the rising sun’, it is worth googling ‘Abroad in Japan’ and watching some of Chris’s youtube videos.
Book read: Bliss(ters): How I Walked from Mexico to Canada One Summer by Gail M Francis
I really enjoyed reading this book as Gail the author takes us along on her 5 month thru-hike of the Pacific Crest Trail which stretches 2650 miles from the Mexican border and up into Canada. Gail had decided to complete this adventure for her 40th birthday and while at tough at times she pushed on to complete it successfully.
As a reader of this book, Gail provides you with a fascinating account of what it would be like to hike the trail with great descriptions of the varying terrain (from lava fields to mountains to deserts), the conditions she faced and the interesting cast of fellow hikers she met on the trail.
Part of the PCT runs through Mount Rainier National Park in Washington state and the above picture was taken in May 2018 when Mount Rainer was covered in snow.
Book read: Finding Hildasay: How One Man Walked the UK’s Coastline and found Hope and Happiness by Christian Lewis
I had watched the author Christian Lewis when he featured in one of TV presenter Ben Fogle’s episodes of ‘New Lives in the Wild’ and had been following him on social media for a while before I read this book.
Chris is an ex-paratrooper who, having sunk into deep depression with no money and no direction in his life decided to walk… and walk the entire coastline of the UK… Beginning from Swansea in Wales, he wild camped and lived on practically nothing as he focussed on raising money for SSAFA, the armed forces charity.
He walked every inch of the UK coast, also circumnavigating many of the islands including Anglesey off the Welsh coast and the Hebrides, the Shetlands and the Orkneys of Scotland. The entire journey took him over 5 years and during that time he acquired a dog called Jet, and later a partner called Kate and eventually baby Magnus! However the book doesn’t include too much about Kate as it ends while he is in Scotland. I’m guessing book number 2 will cover the second half of this incredible walk but this is probably still in progress!
This captivating book is very well written, easy to read and kept me engaged throughout. Chris comes across as such a likeable and honest person, the sort you would like to have as a good friend. I really do hope he will release a second book 🙂
Book read: Woman in the Wilderness: My Story of Love, Survival and Self Discovery by Miriam Lancewood
Miriam and her husband Peter were also featured in a Ben Fogle ‘New Lives in the Wild’ episode so I was familiar with them before I began reading the book. By the time they were on the TV they were living wild in Bulgaria however this book starts in New Zealand, Peter’s home country.
Miriam was born in the Netherlands and at a young age had already had global adventures in Africa and India where she met Peter, 30 years her senior. They travelled together before heading to New Zealand to live.
Fed up with the restrictions of ‘normal’ life of a home and a job, Miriam was drawn to the wilderness. They gave up everything and headed off into the depths of New Zealand to live a primitive life of camping, hunting and cooking on fires.
As I write this, at the end of December 2023, I am just over half way through the book. So far, this has been an interesting read, it is well written and quite fascinating however it seems to be taking me a long time to get through it. They are still living somewhere in the forests and mountains of New Zealand however I’ll continue with the book as I’m intrigued to find out how they get from the wilds of New Zealand to the wilds of Bulgaria with no money!
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