Title: A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail

Author: Bill Bryson

Publisher: Broadway Books 2010

Genre: Nonfiction - Travel Memoir

Pages: 397

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: UnRead Shelf Project

Back in America after twenty years in Britain, Bill Bryson decided to reacquaint himself with his native country by walking the 2,100-mile Appalachian Trail, which stretches from Georgia to Maine. The AT offers an astonishing landscape of silent forests and sparkling lakes—and to a writer with the comic genius of Bill Bryson, it also provides endless opportunities to witness the majestic silliness of his fellow human beings.

For a start there's the gloriously out-of-shape Stephen Katz, a buddy from Iowa along for the walk. Despite Katz's overwhelming desire to find cozy restaurants, he and Bryson eventually settle into their stride, and while on the trail they meet a bizarre assortment of hilarious characters. But A Walk in the Woods is more than just a laugh-out-loud hike. Bryson's acute eye is a wise witness to this beautiful but fragile trail, and as he tells its fascinating history, he makes a moving plea for the conservation of America's last great wilderness. An adventure, a comedy, and a celebration, A Walk in the Woods has become a modern classic of travel literature.

Our book club selection for May. We really wanted to get away from historical fiction specifically WWII historical fiction. This definitely delivered on that point. Instead of historical narrative, we get Bryson’s account of his attempt to walk the Appalachian Trail. At times I found Bryson and his various hiking companions to be insufferable but at least he can acknowledge that fact. I kept having flashbacks to reading Wild by Cheryl Strayed and how much I hated that book. I finally pinpointed that one of my issues with Strayed was her philosophy of life. Many times it cam across as “everyone should do this to live a fulfilled life.” I just didn’t get that from Bryson at all. He had more of an attitude of “I got this idea of walking the trail, I attempted it, I had some thoughts about my own life, but you do you.” In the end, I found that I really enjoyed this book and need to add some of his other books to my TBR list.

Next up on the TBR pile: