An interesting journey
589876
Knowing Enright was a short story writer before I began this book helped in the beginning as characters were introduced and began to develop.  Finished it a few days ago and am still pondering.
2713052
This was one interesting journey that was written like a string of Indie Rock songs, unique, without concrete structure while expressing bold thoughts freely. I enjoyed reading through the clips of activities and thoughts even though unconventional and offensive at times.

I found the spots of vicious in the mix, oddly honest mindgrapes of a jaded student views on drugs, girls, undertakings with mentions of his mate Sam convicted of a murder to be unusual & the writing style unparalleled which may it all the more intriguing to read.
465973
Easy read - I enjoyed it.  It is not a book that I feel I would like to call all my friends and tell them they must read it - and it certainly does not hold you riveted to it (i.e. a page turner) but it was a nice break from my usual reading.  And the book moves along.  The characters he meets along his journey are well introduced and described without going on ad nauseum.  His journey moves on each day and so do the places and the people he meets.
868233
This is an excellent account of a unique journey.  I read it slowly, savoring each passage and episode.  The writing style is light and lively, with effective use of foreshadowing of future events, and interesting digressions.  The photographs are not reproduced to a high standard (in my soft cover edition, at least), but are a perfect complement to the text.

My wife and I traveled overland to India on a motorcycle in 1974.  Some of the challenges overcome by Max and Herbert were not so severe - health issues, mainly - but it was remarkable how often I found myself exclaiming "Yes, just so!".  Therefore, I recommend this book as a valid, useful comparison of experiences for anyone who loves to travel, to compare the circumstances today to those of the 1930s, and to compare experiences in other countries to those covered in the journey recounted in this book.

Naturally, there are some dated ideas and behaviors described, but not so many as one might think and certainly not so much as to spoil the read or the admiration for these travelers.
2319142
I liked it quite a bit, even if the journey might have gone a bit too easily
4526101
Wasn't sure about the premise of the book or about where it was going but by the time I finished it I realized it had been a worthwhile journey.
1199133
Road trip books are very popular these days, both as memoirs and settings for novels.  So hats off to author Merullo for presenting a journey into America's heartland as background for what otherwise could have been a rather dull story of spiritual discovery.  Otto, a food book publisher, husband and father of two teens, as a favor to his sister drives Rinpoche, a robed guru, from the East coast to the family farm in North Dakota.  With stops at a bowling alley, Notre Dame, and Wrigley Field. The end result being that both Otto and Rinpoche are both enlightened.  Rinpoche claims not to be a Buddhist, or rather not just a Buddhist but a Buddhist, and a Catholic, and a Sufi, and a Protestant, and a .......He gives Otto some answers to his questions on The Meaning of Life but of course Otto is expected to eventually discover many of the answers to his own questions from deep within.  The messages are very nice, and I would imagine most readers will pause and reflect on some of the points made.  It's a good book though I didn't find it life changing.  I am not about to join an ashram, but I probably will  read at least the Lunch sequel and maybe the Dinner one.
1752016
A decent read, but the author does seem a bit young and self centered in his exploits as the story will reveal. Still, a remarkable journey and well written account of his travels. A worthy read if you have interest in the subject / geography.
3639161
Sacred Encounters is a travel narrative, but like any good travel narrative the physical journey is mirrored by an equally fascinating spiritual journey. The book recounts Tamara's adventures as she follows the traditional pilgrims path from Rome to Jerusalem. This sort of pilgrimage generally is used as a means to encounter the divine along the way. But beyond expecting to catch glimpses of God in traditional holy sites, Tamara structured her journey to encounter the sacred in others. So along the journey one reads of her seeking out strangers on benches and asking them to describe God. The result is a spiritual exploration that reflects the diversity of ways to encounter God. As she travels amidst Jews, Muslims, Christians, and agnostics she attempts to understand her own faith and define what she is looking for on the journey. What she discovers are not exactly answers, but a global faith community that speaks the same language despite differences.

What I enjoyed most about the book was how raw and real it was. It wasn't some highly structured narrative that merely instructs the reader on religious dogmas and historical events. It was the honest spiritual quest of a woman who wasn't afraid to face her fears or acknowledge the reality of a situation. She doesn't overspiritualize anything and we get the gritty details of her journey alongside the spiritual insights. I like reading when she's just too tired to visit one more church, or too sick to care. I liked how she wasn't afraid to acknowledge her prejudices and admit when she didn't understand something. It made the book real and more accessible.

So if you'd like to discover more about pilgrimage holy sites or simply want to understand what an open-minded spiritual quest looks like, I recommend checking out Sacred Encounters.
4666262
Nearing has taken us on a journey that some may not be able to appreciate.  Open your mind and let it all sink in. Richard has some crazy adventures in what can only be described as the true America. On On
1719955
Mr Theroux's journey takes a look at the Africa that most tourists would never get to see, as he arrogantly points out several times throughout the book.  Arrogance aside, his narrative is very interesting and there is a lot of adventure packed into his travels making this book well worth the read.
4775956
I enjoyed a great deal.  I know one of the guys on the trip, so had a personal interest.  What an adventure they had, will be able to look back on those memories.
1188689
A curious and captivating journey for a man facing a hard life and a difficult past. Ricky's path winds through the gritty and strange, as he and an unlikely crew try to solve unusual happenings. The narrative voice is a captivating guide, at once pragmatic, poetic, and peculiar; taking us through an odd shadowy world alongside our familiar cities
375194
I really enjoyed this book.  It started a little slow, but the character development became intriguing.  I felt the journey to the end of the book was worth the time.  The challenge to Christians to get out of their pews and into the world is laid out pretty clear and may make readers uncomfortable, and hopefully make them think as well.
2621463
Journey Without Maps is a non-fiction work filled with reflections, character sketches, and sometimes dreamlike images. It's not easy to compare it with any other book, for me; it's essentially a travel diary, an account of a rather irrational trek across Liberia that Green undertook in 1935, accompanied only by his cousin and the team of hired bearers who carried their hammocks, water filtration gear, etc. The book is fairly short and episodic, though it occasionally drifts into memories of England; even a couple of the author's dreams are included, nor do they seem out of place; the recounting is largely chronological, but it's always in limited detail--these are sketches--and much of what Greene recalls here is strange, perplexing, suggestive--these are, after all, a man's memories of far-away places, in a time before the Second World War. While the journey is occasionally dangerous, this is not a thriller: the danger comes mainly from local politics. For the most part, the journey is simply exhausting--especially near its end. The trek doesn't end up "proving" anything; it simply happened.

The treat here of course is Graham Greene's prose. It's a constant frustration to me (and surely others!) that his novels aren't offered yet on Kindle (except as audibles), so the chance to re-read, at very least, Journey Without Maps on my Kindle was a very welcome surprise--but, at the same time, it does remind us we can't yet enjoy The Comedians, Brighton Rock, etc., on Kindle. Still, this is English writing of the very finest sort, so straightforward and unembroidered, and yet of (somehow) such near-magical lucidity--if you've read Greene before, you will know what I mean; if you haven't, well, at least there is now this little bonbon available. I expect to read it many more times.
4365648
I bought this book on a whim, but ... wow ... what a journey. Hudson has been intimately involved in combing through the journals and reports of the De Soto expedition, cross-referencing the reports with examinations of the geography of the areas covered and archeological/anthropological studies of the 16th century inhabitants of the region.
Hudson's approach to the expedition is interesting. He is a partisan arguing in favor of the route he delineates for the expedition, but he lays out the journey in a fairly straightforward manner that is very engaging. The Afterward, however, gives a quick rundown of the differences in opinion over the route, the still-unfolding evidence to support Hudson's claims, and what remains to be proven.
All it all, it is a vivid retelling of the first planned European expedition into southeastern North America, which was quite a different place than when much of it was colonized by Europeans a century later. The native cultures were near the end of the moundbuilding Mississippian culture, and Hudson notes how the disruptions of De Soto and his men may have contributed to the eventual changes in native society.
Fascinating.
1227652
I throughly enjoyed this book.  It was interesting during his long walk.  A number of surprises which it very different.