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sillydoll said:My worst camino book? Spanish Steps by Tim Moore.
Red Kite said:1 Tim Moore's 'Spanish Steps: Travels with my donkey'. (Simply the best book about the camino...very, very funny, warm and compelling)
Is that a malapropism? You do mean 'dear' old Paulo??
jl said:To the Field of Stars (A Pilgrim's journey to Santiago de Compostela) by Kevin A Codd.
For years, there has been a single book illuminating the art, architecture, history and culture along the Camino Frances. The Pilgrimage Road to Santiago: The Complete Cultural Handbook by David Gitlitz & Linda Kay Davidson stood for years as the sole beacon but now we can add a second. Meet William Bonville and his latest work, A Traveler's Highway to Heaven: Exploring the History and Culture of Northern Spain.
People in rental cars who sleep over at Burgette can drive to Roncesvalles in the morning in order to get their pilgrim passport and attend the pilgrims mass for a blessing.
If so, you may wish to put up overnight in Burguete, just below Roncesvalles, convenient so that you may attend the pilgrims' early morning Mass at the Royal Collegiate Church and obtain both your passport and the priest's blessing as you embark upon your journey.
As for the hundred kilometers afoot, the walks we describe following the Way through the towns, villages and cities along the Camino qualify for much of it. Keep notes on the kilometers you walk and where, add selected walks such as from the pass down to Roncesvalles where you begin the pilgrimage in the Pyrenees, or from the Mount of Joy to the cathedral of Santiago at the end. Those notes, plus your stamped pilgrim's "passport," will be proof enough for the churchmen .
Finally, at Santiago de Compostela, with the last stamp in place, the Cathedral Secretariat awards the badge of the cockle shell (most call it a scallop shell) and the certificate- the Compostellana -that announce to one and all the pilgrim's achievement of special favor in the eyes of St. James.
Should you desire to walk or go by horseback or trail bike along the ancient pilgrimage trail, there is but a single source that provides anything like reliable instructions. It is The Pilgrim Route to Compostela, written originally by Abbé Georgés Bernés for the Editiones Randonnés Pyrénéennes.
Trudy said:"The Cockleshell Pilgrim: A Medieval Journey to Compostela", Katherine Lack
Please can you mail me the errors and multiple duplicated paragraphs so that they can be corrected."Many errors including multiple duplicated paragraphs, silly drawings"
I agree and lets not forget dear old Paolo didn't even walk the Camino !!! :evil:
I have just finished Bill Bennetts new book on the Camino. Bill is one of our own on the forum and his book is based on the blog of his own Camino this year. The book is funny and thought provoking and I enjoyed it thoroughly. It is called The Way, My Way and is available on Amazon and Smashwords.
Absolutely, this should count. Probably the first thing I ever read that gave me a clue that the Camino existed.I don't know if this counts, Rambler, but I became enchanted by reading the lengthy "Santiago de Compostela" chapter in James Michener's lengthy Iberia: Spanish Travels and Reflections (1968). My gosh, he passionately loved that country.
For my money, the worst book about the camino has to be The Pilgrimage by Paolo Coelho. Turgid, pretentious and humourless. Dull, dull, dull. And did I mention pretentious??
Bedbugs and Bliss-ters, True Tales From the CaminoI have read over 13 personal accounts and spiritual books now on the Camino. I want to continue on but want to be a little more selective on what I choose to read. So I wanted to get everyone's top five books that they have read and then I will post a poll to let everyone vote on which ones are the most popular. these are the ones I have read so far:
-Walk in a Relaxed Manner: Life Lessons from the Camino
-Roads to Santiago
-My Father, My Daughter: Pilgrims on the Road to Santiago
-Camino Chronicle: Walking to Santiago
-The Journey: A Guide For The Modern Pilgrim
-Pilgrim Stories: On and Off the Road to Santiago, Journeys Along an Ancient Way in Modern Spain
-El Camino: Walking to Santiago De Compostela
-The Pilgrimage to Santiago (Lost and Found Series)
-The Pilgrim's Guide to Santiago De Compostela
-The Pilgrimage Road to Santiago: The Complete Cultural Handbook
-El Camino De Santiago: Rites of Passage
What others are on your top five list?
Rambler
Tweedy 48, when are you walking in September? My husband and I are leaving SJPP on September 12th and will be staying in Orisson. Maybe we'll meet along "The Way".Thank you everyone for your thoughtful lists. I am walking next September with my daughter and have just started my reading. Presently I am almost finished Buen Camino by Natasha and Peter Murtagh and have enjoyed it immensely.
Happy reading all.
Hey petite walker, I am in Bradenton. I actually had chance to meet Jane. Hers was one of the first books I read. I am headed to Europe in 17 days and then to Madrid on the 21st. Feel free to pm me!Tweedy 48, when are you walking in September? My husband and I are leaving SJPP on September 12th and will be staying in Orisson. Maybe we'll meet along "The Way".
Two of my favorite reads were Grandma's on the Camino which was the first book I read and gave me the confidence that being over 60 is not a barrier to walking the Camino and Women of the Way by Jane V Blanchard from my hometown of Sarasota, Fl. Her twist on the Camino was to interview women from all walks of life and ages and share their stories with us.
I feel a bit bemused as (apart from Pilgrim Snail) the three books that I have particulalry enjoyed are not in anyones list....
To the Field of Stars (A Pilgrim's journey to Santiago de Compostela) by Kevin A Codd. This book, written by an American Priest living in Belgium, is a joy to read and comes with a warning in the introduction - and here I qote:-
"May I advise you exercise a modicum of caution in attending to what follows, for the story of stars dancing over a field in a faraway land may so draw you away from the ordinary business of daily life that you find yourself, quite to your surprise, in a world of unexpected adventures and remarkable people and some profound mysteries. If this should happen to you, if the story of stars............... And if you leave home to see these stars cavort for yourself it will surely change you. You will come to see that which was previously unseen. You will witness miracles. You will, in the end, find yourself coming to know what is most true about these brief lives we have been given to live out on this tender earth. ..............
...........for the journey to the Field of Stars, to Santiago de Compostela, is a journey that has the power to chane lives forever." (and can't we all relate to that last sentence!)
This was a thoughful and though provoking book that I found difficult to put down, and I am surprised that it has not appeared on anyones list. I hope the above quote piques an interest! Cheers, Janet
Hey Kris, don't know how to pm you, I'm not so good at computer stuff. Leaving in 17 days must be very exciting for you. I hope you are ready! Buen Camino!Hey petite walker, I am in Bradenton. I actually had chance to meet Jane. Hers was one of the first books I read. I am headed to Europe in 17 days and then to Madrid on the 21st. Feel free to pm me!
I liked it too in part because of the things she did not do - like take some good advise until way late in the walk, etc.Just reading, and enjoying, " Grandma's on the camino" by Mary O'Hara Wyman.
Given to me by my dear and lovely friend, met on the camino last September.Thank you Theatregal.
Hey petite walker, I am in Bradenton. I actually had chance to meet Jane. Hers was one of the first books I read. I am headed to Europe in 17 days and then to Madrid on the 21st. Feel free to pm me!
Hi Olivia, Buen Camino to you! I'm starting from SJPP on September 12th.Hey there!
I am in Orlando and starting off on June 2nd from Ponferrada.
¡Buen Camino!
Does anyone know where I can purchase an English camino guNice one Rambler, I like this game. Here's my top five.
1 Tim Moore's 'Spanish Steps: Travels with my donkey'. (Simply the best book about the camino...very, very funny, warm and compelling)
2 'The Cockleshell Pilgrim' (an excellent little book about a medieval pilgrimage)
3 'Pilgrimage to Heresy' (the best novel about the camino??)
4 'Following the Milky Way; A Pilgrimage on the Camino de Santiago' (what it was like to walk the camino in the 1980s)
5 'Foot by Foot to Santiago de Compostella' (the first book I read about the camino).
does anyonSTARKIE, Walter. The road to Santiago: pilgrims of St James. - London: John Murray, 1957. [reissued by John Murray, 2003] - 324 pp.
By some distance my favourite.
This is not intended to offend in any way but just to highlight the difference between what one person enjoys and another doesn't. If I had read "The Year we Seized the Day" before I booked my ticket to Spain, it would have put me off going entirely. I did enjoy "Sinning Across Spain" and the unique concept behind her walk and the book by Tony Kevin "Walking the Camino." While "The Day was Made For Walking" by Noel Brown was well written and informative, he decidedly looked down on those who don't carry everything and stay at non albergue accommodation as not being true pilgrims. Just my thoughts to add to the mix.Thanks to everyone for all the fantastic recommendations.
I'm an avid reader of Camino memoirs and the two most recent, which now appear in my Top 5, are, firstly, Bill Bennett's "The Way, My Way". Like Wayfarer (hi Wayfarer, I really hope that your recuperation is going well for you) and Jabbapapa, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Bill is so open and honest, and he has that wonderful Aussie larrikin sense of humour which had me chortling away while reading in the wee small hours when I should have been fast asleep! I couldn't put this book down.
The second book is Hape Kerkeling's "I'm Off Then" - like many Forum members, I loved this book. Hape was so refreshing - the book was hilarious (his encounters with Jorge from Ecuador and the discussions on Jorge's 3 favourite German books is an example), there were unexpected beautiful, profound insights and the story of a promise honoured which touched my heart. In my view, the story of the promise honoured is worth the purchase price of the book alone.
So, to the top 5 -
Cheers everyone - Jenny
- "The Year We Seized The Day" - Eli Best and Colin Bowles.
- "The Way, My Way" - Bill Bennett
- "Sinning Across Spain" - Ailsa Piper
- "I'm Off Then" - Hape Kerkeling
- "The Camino - A Journey of the Spirit" - Shirley MacLaine. This book opened the door to the Camino for me over a decade ago.
Yes its not on Kobo or Amazon - I have both, a hard back (purchased here in Oz - now autographed), but I found it electronically via a google search for around $12-13 (Australian dollars). I have just finished Spanish Steps (Camino with my donkey) - laughed til I had tears in my eyes; Year We Seized the Day - with a fair bit of Aussie humour - you need to understand what (zero) preparation they did; their quasi relationships and a few other events besides. So yes maybe its more " how not to walk the Camino" than a " how to" book.Hmm, disappointng..but Alisa Pipers book doesn't seem to be available in any of the format's I can locate! Anyone wanna sell their used copy??
I have read over 13 personal accounts and spiritual books now on the Camino. I want to continue on but want to be a little more selective on what I choose to read. So I wanted to get everyone's top five books that they have read and then I will post a poll to let everyone vote on which ones are the most popular. these are the ones I have read so far:
-Walk in a Relaxed Manner: Life Lessons from the Camino
-Roads to Santiago
-My Father, My Daughter: Pilgrims on the Road to Santiago
-Camino Chronicle: Walking to Santiago
-The Journey: A Guide For The Modern Pilgrim
-Pilgrim Stories: On and Off the Road to Santiago, Journeys Along an Ancient Way in Modern Spain
-El Camino: Walking to Santiago De Compostela
-The Pilgrimage to Santiago (Lost and Found Series)
-The Pilgrim's Guide to Santiago De Compostela
-The Pilgrimage Road to Santiago: The Complete Cultural Handbook
-El Camino De Santiago: Rites of Passage
What others are on your top five list?
Rambler
Great book ,one of my favourites.Hi Karen. I love "The Year We seized the day". However, unlike Colin and Eli we always saw peregrinos along the route. You won't be lonely.
Sharon
I also loved "The Way, My Way" - the book is written in such an engaging way and was so open and honest and full of humour as you say, also some beautiful insights.By far my favorite memoir book of the Camino is Bill Bennett's "The Way, My Way". It' s honest but full of humor. Couldn't put it down. Hilarious account of walking the Camino Frances. Was hoping for a sequel and today we got it. Mr Bennett, an Australian film director, has released his newest Camino book "Photo Camino: A Personal Guide to Photography on the Camino". It's available on Amazon in the Kindle version. The photographs are excellent with full instructions ho how to get the best photos. Thanks to co authors Jennifer Cluff and Bill Bennett, we can all come home with better photos if even those using an iphone.
I have read many personal narratives over the years. Although I was --and am--a walking pilgrim, I have always loved Bettina Selby's book, "Pilgrim's Road." Another favorite is Kevin A Codd's "To the Field of Stars." I find myself referring to them again and again.
I would like to add my journal for your consideration. Whatever route you choose to walk to Santiago or Rome, or if your Pilgrimage is the daily journey of life "Journal Your Camino," has photos from the Camino, insights and quotes to give some guiding tips, and blank pages for you to record your own reflections on journey along the "Way." It also makes a great gift and motivator for your walking and wannabe friends. "Journal Your Camino," is available from Amazon, by David Jennings. Check it out.I have read over 13 personal accounts and spiritual books now on the Camino. I want to continue on but want to be a little more selective on what I choose to read. So I wanted to get everyone's top five books that they have read and then I will post a poll to let everyone vote on which ones are the most popular. these are the ones I have read so far:
-Walk in a Relaxed Manner: Life Lessons from the Camino
-Roads to Santiago
-My Father, My Daughter: Pilgrims on the Road to Santiago
-Camino Chronicle: Walking to Santiago
-The Journey: A Guide For The Modern Pilgrim
-Pilgrim Stories: On and Off the Road to Santiago, Journeys Along an Ancient Way in Modern Spain
-El Camino: Walking to Santiago De Compostela
-The Pilgrimage to Santiago (Lost and Found Series)
-The Pilgrim's Guide to Santiago De Compostela
-The Pilgrimage Road to Santiago: The Complete Cultural Handbook
-El Camino De Santiago: Rites of Passage
What others are on your top five list?
Rambler
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