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从巴黎到比利牛斯：一个怀疑论者的朝圣之旅
这次旅行将法国的过去与现在完美连接起来，这段漫长旅程的更大意义也许在于：它让我们明白，无论怎样定义旅行，我们都是在铺满问题的人生之路上寻求答案的朝圣者。
美食旅行作家大卫·唐尼一向持有怀疑主义态度，对“灵性”和“信仰”不以为然。然而，人到中年的一场大病却让他有机会从另外一个角度，重新认识人生和世界。
《从巴黎到比利牛斯》融合了探险故事与欧洲文化历史介绍，唐尼夫妇徒步探索了从法国到西班牙的朝圣者大道。从巴黎的圣雅克路开始，他们向南走了一千二百多公里，沿有着一千一百年历史的古罗马朝圣路，经过七十二天的跋涉，抵达西班牙的龙塞斯瓦列斯。这条朝圣路是联合国教科文组织收录的世界遗产，每年有超过二十万人通过西班牙境内的这条大道朝圣，但很少有人能穿越法国步行来此……
美食旅行作家大卫·唐尼一向持有怀疑主义态度，对“灵性”和“信仰”不以为然。然而，人到中年的一场大病却让他有机会从另外一个角度，重新认识人生和世界。
《从巴黎到比利牛斯》融合了探险故事与欧洲文化历史介绍，唐尼夫妇徒步探索了从法国到西班牙的朝圣者大道。从巴黎的圣雅克路开始，他们向南走了一千二百多公里，沿有着一千一百年历史的古罗马朝圣路，经过七十二天的跋涉，抵达西班牙的龙塞斯瓦列斯。这条朝圣路是联合国教科文组织收录的世界遗产，每年有超过二十万人通过西班牙境内的这条大道朝圣，但很少有人能穿越法国步行来此……
448 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2013
86 people are currently reading
634 people want to read
About the author
David Downie
99 books69 followersBestselling author of novels (crime, thrillers) and over a dozen nonfiction books, has divided his time between France, Italy and California since 1986. A former journalist and guide. Creator of the Commissioner Daria Vinci series; the first Daria Vinci Investigation is Red Riviera (June 2021), the second Daria Vinci Investigation is Roman Roulette (summer 2022). www. davidddownie.com
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 120 reviews
April 26, 2015
My usual disclaimer: I'm not typically one to do written reviews. But every once in a while I find I can't stop thinking about a book and need to comment on it. This is one of those times.
Knowing of my love (read: obsession) for narratives about pilgrimages along The Way, a friend recommended this book to me. I immediately discerned from the title that this wasn't the typical "Way" narrative, which usually starts somewhere on the edge of France, proceeds across the Pyrenees through Galicia, and ends at Santiago de Compestela. Downie and his photographer-wife Alison Harris instead fashioned a pilgrimage along Chemins de Saint-Jacques-de-Compostelle, traveling from Paris to the Pyrenees. In so doing, they followed in the footsteps of countless medieval pilgrims who started on their "Way" from Paris, and simultaneously retraced the 'way' of the ancient Romans and peoples of Gaul before them.
Downie and Harris deliberately chose the roads that are today less traveled from Paris through rural France. They stopped their pilgrimage at the edge of the Pyrenees in Roncesvalles, which marks the traditional beginning for the modern-day Compestela pilgrim. Although the paths chosen by Downie and Harris may be less traditional for Compestela narratives, they are no less compelling.
I've often said that my personal goal in life is to ask intelligent questions. A leitmotif of Downie's lyrical prose is his quest to understand the nature of pilgrimage, which he sees as being less about finding the 'right' answers and more about discerning and framing the "infinity of questions." With this philosophy, the paths chosen and even the ultimate destinations aren't what really matter; it's the journey that counts.
And what a journey this is! Downie's musings range far and wide yet remain physically connected to his travel narrative. As he walks, he mentally meanders through such diverse topics as how to "visually embed" scenery to memory, the complexities and progression of French history over the millennia, connections between the Roman Empire and contemporary American culture, the relevance and preservation of architectural witnesses to history, and the appropriateness and irony of a secular intellectual following a religious pilgrimage route (an irony pithily summarized in the subtitle "A Skeptic Pilgrim Walks The Way of Saint James"). Harris' gorgeous photographs enhance the reader's journey with a different kind of visual embedding.
This is the kind of pilgrimage I want to make and the sort of book I'd want to write afterwards. Circumstances dictate that for now I must settle for the occasional armchair pilgrimage. Fortunately, rereading Paris to the Pyrenees will be a joyful literary journey, and I'm pleased to recommend this book to other readers. Thank you, David Downie, for taking us along on your way.
(Also posted to my blog: historicaldilettante.blogspot.com).
Knowing of my love (read: obsession) for narratives about pilgrimages along The Way, a friend recommended this book to me. I immediately discerned from the title that this wasn't the typical "Way" narrative, which usually starts somewhere on the edge of France, proceeds across the Pyrenees through Galicia, and ends at Santiago de Compestela. Downie and his photographer-wife Alison Harris instead fashioned a pilgrimage along Chemins de Saint-Jacques-de-Compostelle, traveling from Paris to the Pyrenees. In so doing, they followed in the footsteps of countless medieval pilgrims who started on their "Way" from Paris, and simultaneously retraced the 'way' of the ancient Romans and peoples of Gaul before them.
Downie and Harris deliberately chose the roads that are today less traveled from Paris through rural France. They stopped their pilgrimage at the edge of the Pyrenees in Roncesvalles, which marks the traditional beginning for the modern-day Compestela pilgrim. Although the paths chosen by Downie and Harris may be less traditional for Compestela narratives, they are no less compelling.
I've often said that my personal goal in life is to ask intelligent questions. A leitmotif of Downie's lyrical prose is his quest to understand the nature of pilgrimage, which he sees as being less about finding the 'right' answers and more about discerning and framing the "infinity of questions." With this philosophy, the paths chosen and even the ultimate destinations aren't what really matter; it's the journey that counts.
And what a journey this is! Downie's musings range far and wide yet remain physically connected to his travel narrative. As he walks, he mentally meanders through such diverse topics as how to "visually embed" scenery to memory, the complexities and progression of French history over the millennia, connections between the Roman Empire and contemporary American culture, the relevance and preservation of architectural witnesses to history, and the appropriateness and irony of a secular intellectual following a religious pilgrimage route (an irony pithily summarized in the subtitle "A Skeptic Pilgrim Walks The Way of Saint James"). Harris' gorgeous photographs enhance the reader's journey with a different kind of visual embedding.
This is the kind of pilgrimage I want to make and the sort of book I'd want to write afterwards. Circumstances dictate that for now I must settle for the occasional armchair pilgrimage. Fortunately, rereading Paris to the Pyrenees will be a joyful literary journey, and I'm pleased to recommend this book to other readers. Thank you, David Downie, for taking us along on your way.
(Also posted to my blog: historicaldilettante.blogspot.com).
February 15, 2015
Ugh. I give Downie two stars for keeping me reading this book. It's more likely that my love of France kept me reading it. The subtitle, "A Skeptic Pilgrim walks the Way of St. James" is entirely misleading. It should have read "hostile skeptic"; he's hostile at times and often snarky to belief whether it be Druid, Buddhist or Christian. And he and his wife did not walk the Way of St. James, but made it up as they went along. It's fine to meander, but then don't title your book as if you followed some path. His discussion of prehistory, Gallic, Roman, Christian, and modern history was so jumbled it was difficult to follow (although knowing all the characters, I had less of a problem). And I just about died when he was too good to get the Credenciel in the first part of his journey, but when it became necessary to get a place to stay he changed his tune. Such principles. OK..so what did I like? The descriptions of landscape, people, and food and the wistful sorrow at the lost of a very local type of France that we all knew when we were younger. I wish his wife, with her mysterious candle lighting all along the journey, would write a book.
March 16, 2015
I'm afraid I'm going to have to disagree with Jacki Lyden of National Public Radio, who assures me on the cover that "David Downie is fabulous company!" David Downie is unbearable company. He has filled three hundred-odd pages with faux-philosophical meanderings about French history and... whatever else he's on about, never really arriving at any particular point or even making much sense at all. A sample from p. 295:
"Gravel and rocks, polished by fifteen thousand years of scuffing feet, now slipped under my boots. I picked my way down on the ancient path, my mind drugged from pain and lack of sleep. How could I sleep in that room, looking from the same window that Mitterrand had looked through, watching the Nazis trundle up and down the valley, past Matisco, where Caesar's armies had camped, where the amphorae of wine had entered Gaul on Roman ships? How could anyone sleep with just one night to look upon the black silhouette of the Roch de Solutre, the lair of migratory hunters, the mysterious stalkers of wild horses those many millennia ago? Where had they come from? Where did they go? Did they worship the Earth Mother and keep the eternal flame burning, camped among dolmens and menhirs? My ignorance of history and religion was vast. I could spend my next lifetime exploring layer after layer. If only I could believe in a second or third lifetime, or a reincarnation."
Ugh.
The title of this book is mostly a lie, in that precisely 300 pages of its 313 deal with just one small section of the trail he hiked, in Burgundy. The least infuriating and most interesting part came in the epilogue, when Downie (in a horribly saccharine and falsely constructed little flashback) briefly summarizes the portion of their trip that took them through Auvergne, Midi-Pyrenees, and Aquitaine.
Bottom line: there is almost no way this book could not have been better if written by almost anyone else on earth.
"Gravel and rocks, polished by fifteen thousand years of scuffing feet, now slipped under my boots. I picked my way down on the ancient path, my mind drugged from pain and lack of sleep. How could I sleep in that room, looking from the same window that Mitterrand had looked through, watching the Nazis trundle up and down the valley, past Matisco, where Caesar's armies had camped, where the amphorae of wine had entered Gaul on Roman ships? How could anyone sleep with just one night to look upon the black silhouette of the Roch de Solutre, the lair of migratory hunters, the mysterious stalkers of wild horses those many millennia ago? Where had they come from? Where did they go? Did they worship the Earth Mother and keep the eternal flame burning, camped among dolmens and menhirs? My ignorance of history and religion was vast. I could spend my next lifetime exploring layer after layer. If only I could believe in a second or third lifetime, or a reincarnation."
Ugh.
The title of this book is mostly a lie, in that precisely 300 pages of its 313 deal with just one small section of the trail he hiked, in Burgundy. The least infuriating and most interesting part came in the epilogue, when Downie (in a horribly saccharine and falsely constructed little flashback) briefly summarizes the portion of their trip that took them through Auvergne, Midi-Pyrenees, and Aquitaine.
Bottom line: there is almost no way this book could not have been better if written by almost anyone else on earth.
July 22, 2013
Hmm. Shoulda loved this; didn't. It's a journey I wish I could take (but know myself well enough to know I'd hate the walking part). What I didn't like was how self-absorbed Downie was. Yes, the book is not simply a travel book, but about his own search for ... something. Whatever it turned out to be. But since he went with his wife, you'd think she'd be more than a shadow. And you'd think, since he lives at least part of the time in Paris, and conducts touristic tours of France, that he'd have more sympathy, or empathy, with the French. Also, probably for publishers' terms of length, the whole seems aborted. It's thick with the early part of the journey, through Burgundy and the Morvan, but then thin on the closing parts, where he and his wife actually reach their goal of the Abbey of Roncevalles in the Pyrenees, all of which, from Puy-en-Velay onward, is recounted in rushed retrospect. Having been many of the places he writes about, I had trouble reconciling his arch, supposedly ironic observations, with the reality I experienced.
Oh, yeah - if you read this, don't read the e-book; find a real book, because his wife's photos would be worthwhile in print, but not in pixels.
Oh, yeah - if you read this, don't read the e-book; find a real book, because his wife's photos would be worthwhile in print, but not in pixels.
Read
May 29, 2020Returned this. Probably my 20th book on the Camino, but too mean-spirited and jocular at others' expense to continue. I've read other delightful books by skeptics; this author is simply unpleasant.
ETA finished it to see if it improved. Not really, and it's not really a Camino narrative.
ETA finished it to see if it improved. Not really, and it's not really a Camino narrative.
January 27, 2015
I guess I was expecting much more. Downie is a good writer, and I hate to say this, but he's just the wrong person to write this book. He's a jaded Parisien transplant who's already tasted all the great things France has to offer, so he takes a begrudging walk with his wife (photographs are exquisite, btw) through part of France in order to lose some weight.
The awe and spendor of the French countryside receive a cursory treatment at best. Downie has already seen most of the area by car, and as I read his descriptions of the scenery I feel his disenchantment. We get some caricatures of the stereotypically grumpy locals, and since Downie is atheist, the other pilgrims are mostly a nuisance to him.
The one redeeming factor of the book (and you can quickly tell it's Downie's true interest) is the journey into France's history - something I knew little about. As he wanders through the backwoods of Burgundy, down to Macon, then southwest, he ponders on the page about the WWII French Resistance movement, back to Vercingetorix (parenthetically, his favorite word), and Celtic and Roman conquests of Gaul.
What I'm really longing for is something more akin to Jason Elliot's "Mirrors of the Unseen: Journeys in Iran."
tl;dr - I enjoyed the historical treatise, but the travelogue fell short
The awe and spendor of the French countryside receive a cursory treatment at best. Downie has already seen most of the area by car, and as I read his descriptions of the scenery I feel his disenchantment. We get some caricatures of the stereotypically grumpy locals, and since Downie is atheist, the other pilgrims are mostly a nuisance to him.
The one redeeming factor of the book (and you can quickly tell it's Downie's true interest) is the journey into France's history - something I knew little about. As he wanders through the backwoods of Burgundy, down to Macon, then southwest, he ponders on the page about the WWII French Resistance movement, back to Vercingetorix (parenthetically, his favorite word), and Celtic and Roman conquests of Gaul.
What I'm really longing for is something more akin to Jason Elliot's "Mirrors of the Unseen: Journeys in Iran."
tl;dr - I enjoyed the historical treatise, but the travelogue fell short
April 11, 2013
Pay attention to the sub title..." a skeptic walks the way of St. James". Skeptic indeed.Entertainingly well written, it is both a travel narrative and musings on what it's all about....(the journey NOT a destination is my read).Having lived in FRance a while back, his descriptions of the people of the Morvan (in particular) absolutely ring true.The author's skepticism/cynicism shines through in many instances...particularly when it comes to the pomp & circumstance of catholic pagentry and Francois Mitterand....A very enjoyable memoir.
October 23, 2017
Continuing my own literary pilgrimage, once again, I find myself exploring the Way of Saint James, but not along the traditional route from Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port (SJPDP) where most peregrinos begin their 500-mile walk to Santiago de Compostela, but from Paris, the city where author David Downie calls home. From the City of Light, it's 750 miles to Roncesvalles, Spain; the first leg through Burgundy, followed by the second from Le Puy-en-Velay to SJPDP to Roncesvalles--the legendary village immortalized by the "Song of Roland" in northern Spain.
Throughout his pilgrimage, Downie channels Janus himself, the god of beginnings and transitions typically depicted as a man of two faces simultaneously looking backward as well as forward; as he regales the reader with remarkable insight into the past--resurrecting influential figures and events as he describes his present surroundings. I can't tell you how much I learned about the many places that Downie visited: the history, the locals' ancestry and the vestiges of fallen empires.
As I mentioned above, I learned much about the history of France and the places Downie visited, but I found myself craving more personal reflection throughout. Finally at the end, especially in the epilogue, I was rewarded when Downie shares how his pilgrimage opened his eyes a little wider than before.
Having read a number of books about the traditional Camino de Santiago pilgrimages, all of which began in SJPDP and ended in Santiago de Compostela, this book is unique in that it traverses France via ancient Roman roads and trails blazed by leaders of long-gone civilizations, as opposed to the Camino de Santiago in northern Spain where on average, 200,000 pilgrims trek 500 miles from SJPDP to Santiago de Compostela every year!
If you're a pilgrim, past, present or future; or perhaps a descendant of Janus, you too will really enjoy this nontraditional fascinating pilgrimage of discovery to the past and present and future!
Throughout his pilgrimage, Downie channels Janus himself, the god of beginnings and transitions typically depicted as a man of two faces simultaneously looking backward as well as forward; as he regales the reader with remarkable insight into the past--resurrecting influential figures and events as he describes his present surroundings. I can't tell you how much I learned about the many places that Downie visited: the history, the locals' ancestry and the vestiges of fallen empires.
As I mentioned above, I learned much about the history of France and the places Downie visited, but I found myself craving more personal reflection throughout. Finally at the end, especially in the epilogue, I was rewarded when Downie shares how his pilgrimage opened his eyes a little wider than before.
Having read a number of books about the traditional Camino de Santiago pilgrimages, all of which began in SJPDP and ended in Santiago de Compostela, this book is unique in that it traverses France via ancient Roman roads and trails blazed by leaders of long-gone civilizations, as opposed to the Camino de Santiago in northern Spain where on average, 200,000 pilgrims trek 500 miles from SJPDP to Santiago de Compostela every year!
If you're a pilgrim, past, present or future; or perhaps a descendant of Janus, you too will really enjoy this nontraditional fascinating pilgrimage of discovery to the past and present and future!
May 19, 2016
I wanted to give this book 3 stars. I didn't, not because of the content. I enjoyed learning little snippets of French history and the kooky cast of characters the author meets, including the author. But the editing of the audiobook was not done well. At the end of chapters (or sections since there was no numbering of the chapter) the audiobook would rush into the next section not allowing the listener time to finish the thoughts of one topic before moving on to the next. This does not happen often when I listen to audiobooks but when it does it is very annoying.
Please note: this book is not what I would call a "traditional religious" pilgrimage book. He states very clearly in the beginning that he is a skeptic, not a typical pilgrim. That didn't bother me in the least. I still found it uplifting and insightful. I think the author did have a "spiritual experience" in a non-religious manner. He became more self-aware and reflective. And I think he also grew in understanding and appreciation of others' religious needs/habits/experiences, etc.
Please note: this book is not what I would call a "traditional religious" pilgrimage book. He states very clearly in the beginning that he is a skeptic, not a typical pilgrim. That didn't bother me in the least. I still found it uplifting and insightful. I think the author did have a "spiritual experience" in a non-religious manner. He became more self-aware and reflective. And I think he also grew in understanding and appreciation of others' religious needs/habits/experiences, etc.
October 3, 2013
Well the weird thing about this book, is that for the first 300 page you cross the one inch which is the portion of the book's map, in Burgundy. You spend the next 17 pages (in Epilog) crossing the much longer section of detailed map which leads up to Roncevaux Pass, barely the beginning of the Camino De Santiago Compostela. Granted, the author is atheist and despairs of all the yakky-doodle pilgrims they do come across once they finally get down to Basque Country. But it's still really weird to me how the shortest part of the book corresponds to the longest detail of the map, and the most detail (and granted, very well written historical sections) all take place in the smaller, tiny section of map which describes their route through Burgundy. A bit disappointing, as that the map comes first, at the head of the book. I like reading books about foot-and/or-bike journeys, and this one has its moments, but I was disappointed and startled by that salient point.
July 19, 2017
I almost passed this book by, with its sepia cover (what kind of journey is sepia?) and its list of key people, places and events up front, rather than in the back. Very daunting. But once I started reading, I was so glad to be on the journey with this thoughtful, witty, charming couple. I hope one day to follow in their footsteps, and those of St. James.
November 29, 2022
The parts of the book describing their path less trod (the French countryside) were pleasant, but the rest was anything but. The author is just plain rude, to everyone. If he's nice to your face, he's calling you derogatory names once out of earshot. And his deep, philosophical thoughts are merely current culture tropes.
August 17, 2017
An ok, but-nothing-special account of walking The Camino.
January 25, 2023
Condescending, rude, and narrow minded. A complete and utter git.
August 10, 2013
I have been on a roll of reading about walking the Appalachia Trail and the Pacific Crest Trail, so I thought I would expand my knowledge base and go international with this book. To be honest, I didn't realize that James the Greater aka St. James was the same James of Jesus.
This is David Downie's recollection of his attempt to walk from Paris to the Pyrenees. His wife, photographer Alison Harris, is along for the pilgrimage. Downie is facing a health crisis and is searching for meaning in his life.
I find people who either a.) have moved out of the US or b.) never lived here have very strong opinions of things about which they know little. It's easy to watch the media and form opinions without talking to residents. It's also easy to forget that the US is one large country that covers many miles and many different people. For example, I have lived my entire life in Ohio (not bragging, just stating fact.) I know that when I traveled to Los Angeles, I felt as though I had landed in a different country. And people from LA have felt the same way about Ohio. So, even though we are one country, there are many differences by geography, by culture, etc. So for an American to assume that he knows every other American's background/politics/moral character is quite foolish. In other words, I didn't care for Mr. Downie's politics. At all. If you weren't in the US during September 11, then you don't understand the emotions.
As for the title, I would say he might have considered A Curmudgeonly Pilgrim instead of using skeptic. And he didn't quite make it to the Pyrenees, as his back and leg injuries would not allow it.
Overall, it was just okay. I am not a Francophile, so I didn't know most of the places through which they traveled. I did learn a great deal about my own ancestors (the Celts and the Germans). The writing was not stellar.
This is David Downie's recollection of his attempt to walk from Paris to the Pyrenees. His wife, photographer Alison Harris, is along for the pilgrimage. Downie is facing a health crisis and is searching for meaning in his life.
I find people who either a.) have moved out of the US or b.) never lived here have very strong opinions of things about which they know little. It's easy to watch the media and form opinions without talking to residents. It's also easy to forget that the US is one large country that covers many miles and many different people. For example, I have lived my entire life in Ohio (not bragging, just stating fact.) I know that when I traveled to Los Angeles, I felt as though I had landed in a different country. And people from LA have felt the same way about Ohio. So, even though we are one country, there are many differences by geography, by culture, etc. So for an American to assume that he knows every other American's background/politics/moral character is quite foolish. In other words, I didn't care for Mr. Downie's politics. At all. If you weren't in the US during September 11, then you don't understand the emotions.
As for the title, I would say he might have considered A Curmudgeonly Pilgrim instead of using skeptic. And he didn't quite make it to the Pyrenees, as his back and leg injuries would not allow it.
Overall, it was just okay. I am not a Francophile, so I didn't know most of the places through which they traveled. I did learn a great deal about my own ancestors (the Celts and the Germans). The writing was not stellar.
August 25, 2018
This memoir/travelogue (well, mostly memoir) written by a P.C. American ex-pat who obviously dislikes and disdains America comes across as rather pompous. While discussing his hike across France in a very disjointed, idiosyncratic manner, he takes every opportunity to critique everything from Christianity, rednecks, democracy capitalism, populism, NRA, anybody he thinks is a bigot, and even his own family. His family are folks he can no longer relate to because of their “proselyting’ (p. 173) while ironically unaware of the fact that his entire 313 page book consists of him doing that very same thing. As far as travel info his main focus seems to be the B&B’s, etc. that they stay at, food, philosophizing with the people he meets, and of course, the aforementioned rants. He does included some history but very little info about the towns they pass through. The photos add nothing as they are only minimally connected to the text and very artsy fartsy. While a few of the photos are interesting in terms of composition and/or oddity most are just ugly.
The books includes a glossary, map and photos.
The books includes a glossary, map and photos.
Read
June 22, 2015I got 36 pages through this and decided to exercise my right to quit a book by page 50 if I'm not enjoying it. It took me over a week to read as far as I did, just because I kept wanting to read (or re-read) other things, rather than continuing to read this. I'd read 2-3 pages, find myself drifting off, then would set it down for the day. Finally I just gave up.
For some reason, I didn't connect the the narrator at all. On a book like this, I think the narrator needs to establish some sort of connection first--why should I accompany him on his journey--and I really wasn't feeling it. The mix of personal detail, travelogue, and French and Roman history seemed all over the map (pardon the pun) and left me cold.
Back to the library it goes.
For some reason, I didn't connect the the narrator at all. On a book like this, I think the narrator needs to establish some sort of connection first--why should I accompany him on his journey--and I really wasn't feeling it. The mix of personal detail, travelogue, and French and Roman history seemed all over the map (pardon the pun) and left me cold.
Back to the library it goes.
August 10, 2014
I never gave a book 1 star before! This book had so much potential! To walk from Paris to the Pyrenees should of had some inspirational value, but not for this author. The book is largely about him and what he eats as he travels along the Way of St James. He is superficial at his best and downright boring most of the time. His few attempts at any sort of thought deeper than what he puts in his mouth are rudimentary at best. Calling this a very shallow, superficial waste of time is an understatement.
April 24, 2013
This was a quick, delightful read of a partial journey on the Camino de Santiago. The author and his girl walk from Paris to SJPP, and along the way enjoy the history, architecture, and a few eureka moments. Of particular interest to me, the author concludes that the appeal of the Camino to pilgrims is not necessarily an anticipation of divinity upon reachingSantiago, but that its the journey that draws them. It certainly is whats drawing me.
November 28, 2014
I have read a lot of Camino de Santiago books, and thought I'd enjoy this one which actually is about a walk across part of France leading up to the place that most people start the Camino Frances. However, I kept abandoning it to read other books, and just decided to give up on it. I just didn't enjoy the author's perspective on walking through France. That's not to say someone else might like this book, but it just didn't appeal to me.
August 22, 2013
The author is horribly obnoxious.
The two stars are for the history, which was interesting.
Any "musings" on the author's part were superficial at best, offensive at worst.
I don't think I've ever rated a book so low, but I finished it just so I could honestly give it this disappointing review.
The two stars are for the history, which was interesting.
Any "musings" on the author's part were superficial at best, offensive at worst.
I don't think I've ever rated a book so low, but I finished it just so I could honestly give it this disappointing review.
July 25, 2019
Picked this up at a local store. Thought it’d be a fun read but I stopped 60 pages in. Life is too short. Author is judgmental, not terribly observant, and, well, dull. I was hoping for a Bill Bryson type of adventure across France, but I don’t think I’d like to walk with this author.
June 27, 2013
More crank than skeptic...would have liked to hear his wife's voice more often...at least she was there in the background with pithy comments, such as telling him to "just eat your lunch."
December 16, 2013
Hard to follow and very pessimistic, some witty prose and a few gems of ideas, not well-concluded.
July 1, 2016
while the author might have reached some level of insight, he did not do a great job of communicating that
September 14, 2023
El Camino de Santiago de Compostela, or "The Way," is a thousand-plus year old network of trails leading to the sanctuary of Saint James. According to legend, the remains of Saint James were discovered in Compostela in northern Spain about 800 AD at a site where the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela now sits. For many centuries it has been the most popular Christian pilgrimage after Rome and Jerusalem, according to the book's author, David Downie. The most famous part of this trail network lies in Spain, but the network consists of trails in a number of other European countries as well. This book documents the months-long hike of the husband/wife team of author David Downie and photographer Alison Harris who journey from Paris to the Pyrenees Mountains, ending their trek at the Roncesvalles Abbey, that start of the Spanish Camino de Santiago. It is a lovely story with delightful descriptions of the French countryside they traverse on their journey, the colorful characters they meet along the way, and a fair amount of discussion of the areas rich Gallic-Roman history. One thing I would note is that their pilgrimage is one that not many could replicate. The couple stayed mostly in Bed-and-Breakfasts and what sounded like charming inns along the way, and a several-month long journey of this sort would probably not be within my budgetary means. All the same, learning about Saint James Way in France and some of the history of the area was a pleasant experience for me. If you enjoy travelogues as I do, I think this is a book you would enjoy.
July 17, 2022
This one took me a long time to read - and quite frankly I considered stopping in the middle. In preparation for my own Camino experience next year, I'm reading a variety of accounts by various voices. This book is a part of the collection at the Wichita Public Library and so I checked it out several months ago.
While I can appreciate that a skeptic (who remains skeptical and softens little) has important reflections to share about their own Camino experience - I barely connected with this book. An exception was the beautiful photography contributed by Alison Harris, Downie's wife. Based on his descriptions of her, I would have appreciated her walking memoir rather than his.
I was particularly bothered by the authors taunting and disrespect for people of true faith who undertake these journeys. Downie was particularly jaded about the Taize community - a place and experience I hold dear.
I'm intrigued by the route that this couple chose as their own Camino experience - as it is less traveled and therefore one that I've learned little about. Hearing more about the Roman roads and the local political history of France was engaging. And still, the whole work stemmed from cynicism that rarely appreciated or accepted the stories of others along "the way."
While I can appreciate that a skeptic (who remains skeptical and softens little) has important reflections to share about their own Camino experience - I barely connected with this book. An exception was the beautiful photography contributed by Alison Harris, Downie's wife. Based on his descriptions of her, I would have appreciated her walking memoir rather than his.
I was particularly bothered by the authors taunting and disrespect for people of true faith who undertake these journeys. Downie was particularly jaded about the Taize community - a place and experience I hold dear.
I'm intrigued by the route that this couple chose as their own Camino experience - as it is less traveled and therefore one that I've learned little about. Hearing more about the Roman roads and the local political history of France was engaging. And still, the whole work stemmed from cynicism that rarely appreciated or accepted the stories of others along "the way."
June 27, 2023
The author is pretentious, but when he sticks to the history and describing the land as he and his wife walk, it’s great. But even at the end when he has supposedly learned something, in speaking about religious people, he’s a jerk. He’s not likeable at all. He is snooty and struggling to believe in anything. I know it says a skeptic on the title, but you would hope for more of a life change in such a person. He’s cynical and annoying. He was angry and grumpy most of that time, and truly seemed to be a miserable person. His writing is great. He’s not. Brilliant people can have faith in God. Well-read and well-learned people can and do have faith. But from what I read, and how he described people of faith, Downie doesn’t believe this can be true. His utter contempt could not be disguised. He wasn’t searching. He wasn’t out to see. He never opened his mind to it, and even in the end, his faux epiphanies about being okay with religious people rang hollow. I don’t mind a skeptic or unbeliever and their struggle. But I do mind someone pretending to look into something that they never gave a chance and bashed the entire book. The Title is completely misleading.
August 15, 2017
I enjoyed the book. It pointed out my lack of knowledge of the history of France and the key players. I probably would have given it a 4 star rating but was disappointed by the ending. It was though one man wrote the book until he had to give up to recuperate in Paris and then when the trek resumed, it appeared to be a different man. Which can be after much retrospection during his convalescence but I would have liked to have read about his transition during those months and what made him a changed man.
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