March On
A Walk in the Woods, Bill Bryson Far from being a stroll among the bluebells, the Appalachian Trail is a two thousand mile route that goes right the way along the East Coast of North America, from Georgia to Maine. Bill Bryson’s hilarious account of all the things that will kill you along the way will have you longing for a bit of adventure. This is a trek that’s a journey into the wild. Some don’t make it alive. Rest assured, if the bears don’t get you then the poison ivy will. Walking Home: A Poet’s Journey, Simon Armitage Most walkers complete the Pennine Way by going South to North but Simon Armitage decided it would be more poetic if he did it the other way around. He made the 256 mile journey from Kirk Yetholm on the Scottish border to his native Yorkshire, and the village where he was born. True to form, Armitage decided not to look like he was on a Duke of Edinburgh expedition but to wander as a lonely troubadour, penniless on the Pennine Way and give poetry readings in village halls, churches and pubs. It’s packed with Northern soul and would be best enjoyed with a pint of stout in a pub.
Now the weather’s improving and spring has almost sprung, it’s time to head outside and explore the great outdoors. OK, so this might be taking the month of March a tad literally, but how about taking it literary? Here are some of our top tips for great reads about epic journeys.
Walking, Henry David Thoreau According to Thoreau, in order to find happiness, we just need to spend more time outdoors. More specifically, not only do we need to constantly reconnect with nature but we need to be moving and discovering and taking long afternoon walks. As a writer he took inspiration from his surroundings and revelled in the wild and the free. Here he did his greatest thinking and he remains a hero among environmentalists and fans of American literature alike.
The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, Rachel Joyce This is an extraordinary story that begins with the most ordinary of objects: a letter. Harold Fry receives a letter from old flame and dear friend Queenie, who is now in a hospice and facing her mortality. Harold writes her a reply but then on a whim, decides he must walk the 600 miles to hand deliver it to her, leaving his wife upstairs doing the housework. It’s such an amazing and heart-warming story. Will Harold reach Queenie in time?
Rabbit-Proof Fence, Doris Pilkington, Nugi Garimara In 1931 the Australian government dictated that all Aboriginal and mixed race children should be removed from their homes and put into settlements to assimilate into white culture. This is the true story of three little girls who followed the rabbit-proof fence 1000 miles across the harsh Australian outback, all the way back home. Doris Pilkington’s mother was one of those girls and here she tells her mother’s remarkable survival story. It’s an absolutely unbelievable account of the human spirit and its resilience.
The Hobbit, J R R Tolkien If there’s one thing in life that hobbits enjoy more than anything, it’s comfort. From the sanctuary of his hobbit-hole, Bilbo Baggins is plucked by the wizard Gandalf and taken off on an extraordinary and most unexpected journey, deep into Middle Earth. Accompanying Gandalf and his band of thirteen dwarves, the world’s most reluctant hero must help them raid the treasures of Smaug the Magnificent, a dangerous dragon. Written for Tolkien’s own grandchildren, it’s the prelude to The Lord of the Rings and a fantastic odyssey into the unknown.