I already put this post on my writing blog but am repeating it here because it may be of interest to walkers.
The above is Susie Kelly's book about walking across France from La Rochelle to
Switzerland. I recently read and enjoyed this book very much. Susie has a
wonderful sense of humour and a nice turn of phrase.
And
this is Susie's book about she and her husband cycling from
Fontainebleau to Paris and then out of Paris and back in again,
following in the steps of Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI of France as
they were captured by the revolutionaries, escaped and were recaptured.
Unlike the royal couple, Susie and her husband cycled. This is another
very amusing and also very informative book.
Susie has
recently read my book "Vic's Big Walk from SW France to NW England". She
has done a wonderful review which I reproduce below. The review appears
on Amazon and Goodreads. In addition Susie has blogged about my book,
Tweeted and Facebooked. Here is the review on Amazon:
5.0 out of 5 stars
La Grande Randonnée, 16 May 2012
This review is from: Vic's Big Walk (Kindle Edition)
To celebrate the debut of his eighth decade, Vic Heaney decides to walk
from his current home in the French Pyrenees to the town where he was
born in England. A distance of a mere 1900 kilometres, or 1,100 miles,
in 70 days. The second reason behind Vic's Big Walk is to raise money
for research into pancreatic cancer, which killed his first wife. With
the whole-hearted support of his second wife Gay, who plans his route
and drives the campervan in which they spend their nights, Vic sets off
to walk the length of France and almost half the length of England.
La
Belle France has a vast network of hiking trails through glorious
countryside of hills and valleys, waterfalls and tumbling streams. On
websites and in brochures you see images of tanned and joyful GR hikers
striding out in groups beneath cloudless skies. But, when you are
walking a very long distance in a relatively short time you have to opt
for the shortest route, and unfortunately that doesn't always mean the
most scenic. And contrary to what the tourist brochures might suggest,
mid-summer in France isn't always hot and dry. Vic has set himself a
strenuous schedule that means he had to walk every day. He's pretty fit
for his years, but its still a physical challenge. And then there's the
coffee problem. Unlike England, a far smaller country where even the
remotest village will usually have somewhere you can find a cup of
coffee and something to eat, you can walk all day in rural France
without finding anywhere, and even if you do there's a fairly strong
possibility that it will be closed for no apparent reason. And for
vegetarians like Vic and myself, meal choices, if you are lucky enough
to find somewhere open, can be rather restrictive.
Written in the
form of a diary, Vic's Big Walk records his journey as he trudges,
scrambles, and sometimes just ambles along, undeterred by rain, roads
that lead to nowhere and campsites operating on the lines of prisons. He
meets friendly people (but never on the beautiful hiking trails!) who
instantly donate to his cause, others who promise to but don't. People
happy to stop and chat, and others who ignore him.
I so much
enjoyed this read. His easy and chatty style, spiced with his dry
humour, carries you along effortlessly, and I could totally relate to
his highs and lows, triumphs and frustrations. having done something
similar myself. I was SO pleased when he got lost even with the benefit
of GPS!
Chapeau, Vic. A tremendous achievement.
All the proceeds from Vic's book sales go to Pancreatic Cancer Research. It's a good read for a good cause. Download a copy.
Reviewed by Susie Kelly, author of Best Foot Forward - a 500-mile Walk Through Hidden France
