The Old Ways: A Journey on Foot
Ratings17
Average rating4.2
15
Ratings17
Average rating4.2
THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER SHORTLISTED FOR THE SAMUEL JOHNSON PRIZE The original bestseller from the beloved author of UNDERLAND, LANDMARKS and THE LOST WORDS - Robert Macfarlane travels Britain's ancient paths and discovers the secrets of our beautiful, underappreciated landscape 'The Old Ways confirms Macfarlane's reputation as one of the most eloquent and observant of contemporary writers about nature' Scotland on Sunday Following the tracks, holloways, drove-roads and sea paths that form part of a vast ancient network of routes criss-crossing the British Isles and beyond, Robert Macfarlane discovers a lost world - a landscape of the feet and the mind, of pilgrimage and ritual, of stories and ghosts; above all of the places and journeys which inspire and inhabit our imaginations. 'Sublime . . . It sets the imagination tingling, laying an irresistible trail for readers to follow' Sunday Times 'Read this and it will be impossible to take an unremarkable walk again' Metro 'He has a rare physical intelligence and affords total immersion in place, elements and the passage of time: wonderful' Antony Gormley
Featured Series
3 primary booksLandscape and the Human Heart Trilogy is a 3-book series with 3 primary works first released in 2003 with contributions by Robert Macfarlane.
Reviews with the most likes.
The Old Ways is a philosophical examination of the act of walking and how the landscape that surrounds us impacts who we are, following MacFarlane in his travels around the British Isles and further afield to Spain, Palestine, and Tibet. Robert MacFarlane is a generous writer, and his deep-dive style of presentation along with his beautiful prose makes his books a completely immersive experience. I read it twice in quick succession because there was so much information to take in I was worried I'd miss something, and I have no doubt I'll read it again.
Journeys to landscapes I will never tread and voyages into history. A neat trick to combine the two and the reader did a great job.
Have a little walk
meander through time and space
pick up a cool rock.
Robert Macfarlane takes off on foot, and, as he walks along, he thinks, he explores, he ties ideas together, he contemplates. He travels to England, to Scotland, to Palestine, to Spain, to the Himalayas, and everywhere he goes, he shares what he knows, and what he knows is a huge web of information and a vast complexity of linked thought. You'd never guess a walk-and-talk could be so incredibly rewarding.
Featured Prompt
2,708 booksWhen you think back on every book you've ever read, what are some of your favorites? These can be from any time of your life – books that resonated with you as a kid, ones that shaped your personal...
