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Paris to the Pyrenees by David Downie (2013, Hardcover)
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Authors : Downie, David. List Price (MSRP) : 27.95. With Jacket Cover. Condition : New. Publisher : Pegasus Books.
- Buy It NowParis to the Pyrenees: A Skeptic Pilgrim Walks the Way of Saint James, Downie, D
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About this product
Product Identifiers
PublisherPegasus Books
ISBN-101605984329
ISBN-139781605984322
eBay Product ID (ePID)143650740
Product Key Features
Book TitleParis to the Pyrenees
Number of Pages352 Pages
LanguageEnglish
TopicEurope / France, Agnosticism
Publication Year2013
IllustratorYes
GenreTravel, Religion, History
AuthorDavid Downie
FormatHardcover
Dimensions
Item Height1.3 in
Item Weight19.2 Oz
Item Length9.4 in
Item Width6.3 in
Additional Product Features
Intended AudienceTrade
ReviewsDavid Downie's pilgrimage/anti-pilgrimage has two things no oneelse does. One is his inimitable wit. The other: he travels not just in space,but in time, creating constant delightful surprise and reassuring familiarity.An atheist who starts the Way of Saint James necessarily sees the world with acertain irony. One who finishes the trail from Paris to the Spanish borderwon't let that irony consume him. It is the conversation between the two thatmakes this such a special book., David Downie is the master of educatedcuriosity. With him we discover Paris, a seemingly public city that is, infact, full of secrets--great lives, lives wasted on the bizarre; forgotten artisans;lost graves. I have walked some of the city's streets with him, and readingthis book is just as tactile an experience., A wonderful book: historically, culturally and spirituallyfascinating, refreshingly honest without being self-aggrandizing, full of humorand sharp observation of the people and the landscape. Downie is a greatcompanion on the road., Richlyillustrated with Alison Harris's color photographs, it is not only afascinating journey through France on foot, with illuminating glimpsesinto French history from prehistoric times to the present. Downie alsoshares his idiosyncratic observations and provocative musings aboutconnections between the Roman and American empires, the character ofFrancois Mitterrand, and the shadow of both Nazi collaboration and theFrench Resistance. It is also an intimate, personal journey, the authorsharing his candid ruminations. There are moments of comedy, many grinsand even some laugh-out-loud moments. A word of advice? Don't peek!Every page of this book is worth reading, and in order to understand theending, you'll have to have been there for the whole journey., Bristling with knowledge and often with theinsights of good fiction, Downie takes you on a trip that is as much acompelling intellectual journey as it is a rich revelation of place. It's ahard book to put down., Richly illustrated with Alison Harris's color photographs, it is not only a fascinating journey through France on foot, with illuminating glimpses into French history from prehistoric times to the present. Downie also shares his idiosyncratic observations and provocative musings about connections between the Roman and American empires, the character of Francois Mitterrand, and the shadow of both Nazi collaboration and the French Resistance. It is also an intimate, personal journey, the author sharing his candid ruminations. There are moments of comedy, many grins and even some laugh-out-loud moments. A word of advice? Don't peek! Every page of this book is worth reading, and in order to understand the ending, you'll have to have been there for the whole journey., In the tradition of Patrick Leigh Fermor, David Downietakes off on foot. Such a rigorous, slow journey--the polar opposite ofairport-to-airport travel--gives him the gift of time, and the chance to absorb,taste, and experience the places he sees. Downie's adroit, learned, andambitious book re-invigorates my sense of travel, taking me back to the happyknowledge that the world is still large, and history unfathomably deep., Richly textured, meticulously detailed, a compelling, picaresquenarrative of adventures on the road and a sophisticated meditation on the past,present and future of France., Evocative and moving... Downie's quest is unconventional in tone and spirit as well as route. A lively wordsmith, Downie brings a deep and impassioned knowledge of French history, culture, and language to this pilgrimage. He also brings something more, a longing that he himself can't pin down at the beginning... they encounter a memorable succession of taciturn, deep-rooted local farmers and gregarious, transplanted-from-Paris innkeepers. They also encounter the multi-layered, interweaving pathways of French history, commerce, religion, and spirituality--and manage to tuck in a few sumptuous celebrations of French food and wine, too. The result is an extraordinary account that illuminates France past and present and casts a light on something even greater: the truth that, however we choose to label our journey, we are all pilgrims on a common quest, to answer why we wander life's question-paved path.
SynopsisPart adventure story, part cultural history, this "enjoyably offbeat travelogue" explores the phenomenon of the spiritual pilgrimage ( Booklist )., Part adventure story, part cultural history, this "enjoyably offbeat travelogue" explores the phenomenon of the spiritual pilgrimage ( Booklist ). Driven by curiosity, wanderlust, and health crises, Downie and his wife walk across Paris on the old pilgrimage route Rue Saint-Jacques then trek about 750 miles south to Roncesvalles, Spain. The eccentric route would take 72 days on Roman roads and The Way of Saint James, the 1,100-year-old pilgrimage network leading to the sanctuary of Saint James the Greater in Spain. It is best known as El Camino de Santiago de Compostela - The Way for short. The object of any pilgrimage is an inward journey manifested in a long, reflective walk. For Downie, the inward journey meets the outer one. More than 20,000 pilgrims take the highly commercialized Spanish route annually, but few cross France. Downie had a goal: to go from Paris to the Pyrenees on age-old trails, making the pilgrimage in his own maverick way., Driven by curiosity, wanderlust, and health crises David Downie and his wife set out from Paris to walk across France to the Pyrenees. Starting on the Rue Saint-Jacques then trekking 750 miles south to Roncesvalles, Spain, their eccentric route takes 72 days on Roman roads and pilgrimage paths--a 1,100-year-old network of trails leading to the sanctuary of Saint James the Greater. It is best known as El Camino de Santiago de Compostela--"The Way" for short. The object of any pilgrimage is an inward journey manifested in a long, reflective walk. For Downie, the inward journey met the outer one: a combination of self-discovery and physical regeneration. More than 200,000 pilgrims take the highly commercialized Spanish route annually, but few cross France. Downie had a goal: to go from Paris to the Pyrenees on age-old trails, making the pilgrimage in his own maverick way. 32 pages of color photographs by Alison Harris.
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