View Full Version : Books to bring hiking
AlbertaHiker23
04-07-2007, 03:49
I'm looking for some suggestions for books to bring on the trail. I would like to read something that is simple, yet thought-provoking at the same time. I'm thinking something along the lines of philosophy/spirituality... that kind of thing, books about life in general. The one I have right now is: How to succeed at the game of life, by C. Klemesh.
Anybody else have suggestions?
hammock engineer
04-07-2007, 04:02
I am planning on bringing the original version of Frankenstein. Nothing like scaring the crap out of yourself in the middle of the woods, at night, and by yourself.
firemountain
04-07-2007, 08:14
Check out 'The Celestine Prophecy' by James Redford.
Pale Blue Dot or Demon Haunted World.:-?
mnof1000v
04-08-2007, 00:44
anything you can find in a dover thrift edition... they're lighter than most books and like 1 or 2 dollars....
can't go wrong with Zen and the art of Motorcycle maintinence
can't go wrong with Zen and the art of Motorcycle maintinence
Yes! That's what I was reading, back in the day. When I had time to read, that is. Amazing book.
SGT Rock
04-08-2007, 08:49
I heard a review on a new book called "The Raw Shark Text" that sounds like a winner. I have to go find a copy.
insure ants
04-08-2007, 14:37
But here are a few:
Ishmael
Endurance: Shackelton's Incredible Voyage
Siddartha
Grizzly Years
The Long Walk
hammock engineer
04-08-2007, 17:08
can't go wrong with Zen and the art of Motorcycle maintinence
I'll have to look into that. Planinng on getting a motorcycle next spring. The DIY'er in me wants to know how to fix it.
I'll have to look into that. Planinng on getting a motorcycle next spring. The DIY'er in me wants to know how to fix it.
well, that book is mostly about fixing yourself, not your bike. Well worth the read though.
The trail is littered with classics that people think they ought to read and think that the trail is the perfect place to do it. Just pick the one book you wish you had always read and take it, who cares what it is, then have a library for others to send you as you need them. If you cant read one 3 nights in a row, drop it at a hostel and ask for the next one. Remember, there is a reason that Moby Dick and Huckleberry Finn are required reading in high school, its because no one wants to read them on their own. Well worth the read but most are too lazy to be challenged.
Earl Grey
04-08-2007, 23:43
Im taking the Godfather and maybe Into The Wild.
hammock engineer
04-09-2007, 00:17
well, that book is mostly about fixing yourself, not your bike. Well worth the read though.
Ahh, well I could use some of that too.:rolleyes:
Kerosene
04-09-2007, 09:53
anything you can find in a dover thrift edition... they're lighter than most books and like 1 or 2 dollars....Here is a link to all of the Dover Thrift Edition books (http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw/103-8483278-1767808?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=dover+thrift+edition&Go.x=10&Go.y=12) sold on Amazon. They range in weight from 2-6 ounces and in price from $1-$5. You'll quickly note that most of the titles encompass the "classics", not all of which I'd want to try to tackle after a hard day of walking. They're printed on something like onionskin, which dramatically reduces the volume of the pages and weight.
Cedar Tree
04-09-2007, 13:39
Endurance: Shackelton's Incredible Voyage
Great book to read prior to a Thruhike.
CT
Jester2000
04-09-2007, 13:45
Yes! That's what I was reading, back in the day. When I had time to read, that is.
Everyone has time to read.
In 2000 "Shkesphere" carried a book containing the complete works of Shakesphere. He was making a statement as "Tuba Man" did the same year. Most people tear out and carry just the trail guide pages they will need to get to their next mail drops. Same with maps. Books weigh alot and many are taken but most end up as fire starters in shelters where they are left to save weight. In the south you will find bibles in many shelters and magazines and newspapers are not unusual on the entire trail, "Arrow" downloaded several books on her palm pilot to save weight. If you want to carry a book purchase a used book or paperback, tear out only as many pages as you can read between mail drops and mail the rest ahead. Burn what you have read each night. I do not recommend this if you are reading "The London Art Journal of 1889" but only a cheap book you can purchase anywhere. Do not bring a book of value on a long distance hike. Also, if ypu keep a jpurnal and write in it every night you may be on your way to writing your own book.
Chaco Taco
04-09-2007, 18:05
When I met Mr Happy a few weeks ago, he was reading The Dharma Bumbs by Kerouac. Well, I just finished it and it would be an awesome book to read while on a hike!
jambalaya
04-10-2007, 01:14
I have some fond memories of books I read on my thru last year. I left home with "Leaves of Grass" and ended up trading it in, then trading that book in, etc. and reading a dozen cool books. The Bhagavad-Gita was the best spiritual/philosophical one. But one of my favorite trail experiences was finding a book randomly at a shelter or hostel or bookstore in town. Seemed like whenever I finished one, there was another conveniently waiting for me. You're on the trail , and books are lying 'round everywhere -- just let the random literary greatness come to you.
Pale Blue Dot or Demon Haunted World.:-?
Carl Sagan's books are great, and Comos is a fantastic one as well. Just watch out, you'll be questioning a lot of the hoopla most people revolve thier lives around.
AlbertaHiker23
04-10-2007, 03:21
Good stuff, I actually heard of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. A university instructor mentionned it in a class, said it was a book that you need time to contemplate...i will definetly look into that one.
AlbertaHiker23
04-10-2007, 03:22
Just watch out, you'll be questioning a lot of the hoopla most people revolve thier lives around.
I'm pretty sure I am already there...
Carl Sagan's books are great, and Comos is a fantastic one as well. Just watch out, you'll be questioning a lot of the hoopla most people revolve thier lives around.
It is just so unfortunate for our planet to loose such a forward thinking individual. I haven't read all his works as of yet; but, they have me wanting to return to school, and contribute what little I may still have to offer.:sun
Yes, his death was very unfortunate, and his books do inspire one to better one's self. The man could write too, which along with his brillance in other areas, was astounding.
For those who don't know about him, this is his Biography from his website:
CARL SAGAN was the David Duncan Professor of Astronomy and Space Sciences and Director of the Laboratory for Planetary Studies at Cornell University. He played a leading role in the American space program since its inception. He was a consultant and adviser to NASA since the 1950's, briefed the Apollo astronauts before their flights to the Moon, and was an experimenter on the Mariner, Viking, Voyager, and Galileo expeditions to the planets. He helped solve the mysteries of the high temperatures of Venus (answer: massive greenhouse effect), the seasonal changes on Mars (answer: windblown dust), and the reddish haze of Titan (answer: complex organic molecules).
For his work, Dr. Sagan received the NASA medals for Exceptional Scientific Achievement and (twice) for Distinguished Public Service, as well as the NASA Apollo Achievement Award. Asteroid 2709 Sagan is named after him. He was also awarded the John F. Kennedy Astronautics Award of the American Astronautical Society, the Explorers Club 75th Anniversary Award, the Konstantin Tsiolkovsky Medal of the Soviet Cosmonauts Federation, and the Masursky Award of the American Astronomical Society, ("for his extraordinary contributions to the development of planetary science…As a scientist trained in both astronomy and biology, Dr. Sagan has made seminal contributions to the study of planetary atmospheres, planetary surfaces, the history of the Earth, and exobiology. Many of the most productive planetary scientists working today are his present and former students and associates").
He was also a recipient of the Public Welfare Medal, the highest award of the National Academy of Sciences (for "distinguished contributions in the application of science to the public welfare…Carl Sagan has been enormously successful in communicating the wonder and importance of science. His ability to capture the imagination of millions and to explain difficult concepts in understandable terms is a magnificent achievement").
Dr. Sagan was elected Chairman of the Division of Planetary Sciences of the American Astronomical Society, President of the Planetology Section of the American Geophysical Union, and Chairman of the Astronomy Section of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. For twelve years he was the editor-in-chief of Icarus, the leading professional journal devoted to planetary research. He was cofounder and President of the Planetary Society, a 100,000-member organization that is the largest space-interest group in the world; and Distinguished Visiting Scientist, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology.
A Pulitzer Prize winner for the book The Dragons of Eden: Speculations of the Evolution of Human Intelligence, Dr. Sagan was the author of many bestsellers, including Cosmos, which became the bestselling science book ever published in English. The accompanying Emmy and Peabody award-winning television series has been seen by a billion people in sixty countries. He received twenty-two honorary degrees from American colleges and universities for his contributions to science, literature, education, and the preservation of the environment, and many awards for his work on the long-term consequences of nuclear war and reversing the nuclear arms race. His novel, Contact, is now a major motion picture.
In their posthumous award to Dr. Sagan of their highest honor, the National Science Foundation declared that his "research transformed planetary science… his gifts to mankind were infinite."
Dr. Sagan's surviving family includes his wife and collaborator of twenty years, Ann Druyan; his children, Dorion, Jeremy, Nicholas, Sasha, and Sam; and grandchildren.
I recommend Rules for Old Men Waiting by Peter Pouncey. It's small and very deep.
Spirit Walker
04-11-2007, 01:59
I don't generally read much when I'm starting a long hike. At first, the trail and the people around me are enough to think about. Plus I'm tired, so don't have a lot of energy for reading at the end of the day - it's hard enough to write in my journal. But as I get more in shape, and as the days get longer, I find I enjoy escaping for a while into the world of fiction.
On my first long hike, I thought I would read various classics that I'd never had time to read. Well, I didn't read them on the trail either. They got left behind in the hiker boxes. When I am hiking, I want something that will take me completely into another world for an hour or two, not something realistic or dense. So I read sci-fi/fantasy or adventure novels or mysteries - light stuff that was a complete change from guidebooks and the usual discussions of the AT. Tolkien worked well. So did Heinlein. Or Grisham. The only non-fiction I read that worked for me was some adventure travel type literature - Lady Isabella Bird, The Longest Walk, etc. But only because that was sufficiently different from my reality to be a mental break.
Uncle Silly
04-16-2007, 17:54
I read "The Life of Pi" when I was on the trail -- donated by a NYC librarian. Great trail read. I also read Hunter S Thompson's "Hell's Angels", which was amusing to no end, but I would've enjoyed it whether on the trail or not. "Pi" however was good food for thought.
rswanson
04-16-2007, 18:36
I'd recommend taking along sections of Daniel J. Boorstin's The Creators. In short, its a historical account of the creative works of man, from the beginnings of religion to art and literature in the modern age. Really a fascinating book from an amazing writer.
I'd recommend Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon. Ol' fashioned page turner, keep ya up. Interestingly, on E-bay often you can get the entire work on audio CDs, unabridged, for less than the new book.
if you want an exciting page-turner, read The Scarlet Pimpernel. Sure, it's not the most intellectually stimulating book on the shelf, but it's well-written, especially for the sore hiker looking to lose himself in a good story for an hour or two.
books are my one luxury i bring on the trail. i usually bring anything by steinbeck and most recently i brought "the boys of winter" which details the 1980 usa hockey victory at the olympics. wonderful choice if you're a hockey fan.
the only book i ever regretted bringing on the trail was "in cold blood" by truman capote. truely an excellent book without so much as one comma out of place. unfortunately the book inspired my imagination a little too much and i spent too much time looking over my shoulder fearing some thrill killer was lurking in the shadows. great book, just the wrong time to read it.
if you're looking for book to inspire a new sense of spirituality, then i would have to agree with a previous poster's recommendation of the "celestine prophecy". the message and insights can be life changing.
RadioFreq
04-18-2007, 00:38
Many years ago I began my subscribtion to Asimov's. A couple of years ago I fell about a year behind in my reading. Today I am still about a year behind. I figure by 2010 I will still be a year behind. On the trail is where I plan to catch up. I find that at the end of a strenuous day short stories are ideal to help me fall asleep.
FFTorched
04-18-2007, 15:29
I would recommend Edward Abbey's "Desert Solitaire." Great book to get lost in and evaluate what is happening to the wilderness of this country.
Another good book would be "Slaughterhouse-5" by Kurt Vonnegut. I read it during my Combat Medic training in my free time and even though it's an anti-war book, I was still entertained by it. Unfortunately Vonnegut just died last Thursday. "So it goes."
I really enjoy reading in the woods on a log or something. I feel as if I can really enter the book and not be distracted by what's around me.
leeki pole
04-18-2007, 16:05
Anything by Tom Clancy. Makes me appreciate this great country.:)
lastrada
04-18-2007, 16:11
I don't know if it's been metioned yet but I really enjoyed "The Alchemist" by Paulo Coelho. It's a tale of a journey by a shepherd boy. If your looking for one of theose books that gets you thinking about life, this would be one of them.
BigwaveDave
04-20-2007, 15:59
Albertahiker23,
Get you a copy of "A Confederacy of Dunces" by John Kennedy Toole. One of the funniest books you'll ever read. Laughter is the best medicine.
can't go wrong with Zen and the art of Motorcycle maintinence
This one's lookin' like the winner, and no, it's not about fixing your motorcycle, but ironically, he did make his start as a writer writing instruction manuals. I guess he decided it made more sense to teach some common sense.
"The Fabric of the Cosmos" by Brian Greene. Cosmic concepts.....
Nightwalker
04-21-2007, 01:19
They're printed on something like onionskin, which dramatically reduces the volume of the pages and weight.
Woah! Way cool...
:sun
Nightwalker
04-21-2007, 01:27
I like a lot of the titles listed above. A couple of other classics are Catch 22, by Joseph Heller, and Slaughterhouse Five, by Kurt Vonnegut.
I've very much enjoyed reading my Bible out on the trail as well. It seems a perfect place to enjoy and contemplate such a thing. The Solemates read through the entire old and new testaments on their thru in '05. I finally managed to read the five books of Moses while out there, basically by not bringing anything else to read but my Bible, as I always read 30 minutes or so at night to relax before going to sleep.
Thanks,
Frank
Many years ago I began my subscribtion to Asimov's. A couple of years ago I fell about a year behind in my reading. Today I am still about a year behind. I figure by 2010 I will still be a year behind. On the trail is where I plan to catch up. I find that at the end of a strenuous day short stories are ideal to help me fall asleep.
I completely agree. I prefer short stories on the go and full books at home. Comedies work best for me (either real stories/travel/fantasy/sci-fi). If I pick up anything else, I get caught up in the book and want to finish it--then I'm out of stories to read.
You might browse essays and poetry.
I never did finish Briane Greene, and I have a copy of Hawking's Universe in a Nutshell I never finished either (too nice to carry along).
Anybody ever read George Washington Sears, a.k.a. Nessmuk?
stickman
04-21-2007, 17:00
ead "Follow the River" by James Thom. This true story will make you realize what wuss-asses we have become, compared to this 18th century frontier woman (who lived very close to where the trail runs now).
Stickman
Catcher in the Rye.
Nothing says anti-social behaviour more than a solo hike.
Catcher in the Rye.
Nothing says anti-social behaviour more than a solo hike.
I never understood what was so radical or interesting about that book. I thought it was kind of boring, but I am pretty damn anti-social.
Jester2000
04-24-2007, 00:42
Catcher in the Rye is best read when one is sixteen or so.
Catcher in the Rye is best read when one is sixteen or so.
It was the first time I came across the expression "cold as a witches teat..", I was about 12, and I laughed and laughed....:p
Jester2000
04-24-2007, 18:16
A couple of other classics are Catch 22, by Joseph Heller, and Slaughterhouse Five, by Kurt Vonnegut.
I've very much enjoyed reading my Bible out on the trail as well.
I wonder what the folks in your first sentence would think about your second sentence.
I read the New Testament while I was on the trail, amongst other things, and found it very inspirational (Jesus being the first lightweight hiker and all).
insure ants
04-24-2007, 23:44
I heard a review on a new book called "The Raw Shark Text" that sounds like a winner. I have to go find a copy.
Just finished it. Excellent.
I just finished Theodore Rex, Edmond Morris' 2nd book on TR.
http://www.amazon.com/Theodore-Rex-Modern-Library-Paperbacks/dp/0812966007/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/103-0667528-1679841?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1177777637&sr=8-1
If you're a history buff, it's a great read!
Jester2000
04-28-2007, 14:17
I just finished Theodore Rex, Edmond Morris' 2nd book on TR.
Plus Theodore Rex can be used to pound in tent stakes.
Brrrb Oregon
04-28-2007, 18:14
I like a lot of the titles listed above. A couple of other classics are Catch 22, by Joseph Heller, and Slaughterhouse Five, by Kurt Vonnegut.
I've very much enjoyed reading my Bible out on the trail as well. It seems a perfect place to enjoy and contemplate such a thing. The Solemates read through the entire old and new testaments on their thru in '05. I finally managed to read the five books of Moses while out there, basically by not bringing anything else to read but my Bible, as I always read 30 minutes or so at night to relax before going to sleep.
Thanks,
Frank
I wonder what the folks in your first sentence would think about your second sentence.
I read the New Testament while I was on the trail, amongst other things, and found it very inspirational (Jesus being the first lightweight hiker and all).
I think Vonnegut (who wrote Palm Sunday: An Autobiographical Collage, and who reportedly preferred the Revised Standard Version to the King James) and Heller (who wrote God Knows, based on the story of King David) would tell you that even a humanist novelist knows the world's finest literature when he reads it.
An added advantage, above its literary quality, is that most if not all of the Bible was written in order to be heard, not read. It has rhythms and structures that stick in your head, that lend themselves to being memorized or mulled over long after you put the book down.
Last but not least, for the purpose of this discussion, is that the Bible has been so popular and such an object of daily reading for so long that it is not difficult to find Bibles or sections of it (e.g., the New Testament or the Psalms) in small versions published on very thin and very durable paper. Very often, you can even get them for free!
It isn't for everyone, but in terms of miles to the ounce, a person wanting to take just one book would be hard-pressed to do better than a travel version of the Bible.
Plus Theodore Rex can be used to pound in tent stakes.
chuckle....yeah, the hardback version was over 300 pages - but 100 were of footnotes, references - so you could get the paperback and tear out the references and footnotes!
The River Why, by David James Duncan.
S
OrionTheRanger
04-29-2007, 17:30
Not sure if you would like it but I read a decent book called Cryptid Hunters about 2 kids lost in the Congo Jungle. But I think it was written for kids.
Nightwalker
04-29-2007, 20:25
I wonder what the folks in your first sentence would think about your second sentence.
Maybe that I'm a brainwashed sheeple for believing all of that stuff that they don't believe? Then, maybe, they'd lock up when they realize that they are two of my favorites, so what does that say about them. Hmmm...
Probably doesn't matter anyway. They're both passed in/under/over/thru. And though they now know whether it is me or they that is/are the foolish one(s), they're currently unavailable for comment.
Of course, either way, Vonnegut would probably tell me to go take a flying funk at a rolling doughnut. But at least I'm a 13! (Different book.) :banana
Nightwalker
04-29-2007, 20:29
P.S. I decided to start re-reading Catch 22 on my hike of the last few days. I'm loving it again. It's also nice to know that there are less sane minds than mine...
(YOSSARIAN LIVES!!!)
Brrrb Oregon
04-30-2007, 11:53
Maybe that I'm a brainwashed sheeple for believing all of that stuff that they don't believe? ....
A) The evidence is that both of them thought the Bible was a good read, whether or not they took the literature in it the same way that Christians might. (And let's face it: to say that Christians disagree as to what the Bible is saying would be to put it mildly.)
B) I think either one of them might suspect that a person could be a brainwashed sheeple for even taking their writing as some sort of inspired scripture, but that anybody can read nearly anything written by someone with any decent kind of muse and find something for their mind to chew on and even, perhaps, to take to heart in some way.
Whether or not you think it inspired, the Bible has inspired many. That, in and of itself, makes it something of an inspiring read.
For instance, I have been in the company of Dominicans (as in the Catholic religous order of preachers, not the citizens of the Caribbean country) who have made the I Ching the topic of their dinner conversation. You don't have to subscribe to a religion to find religious texts thought-provoking.
Now OTOH, if when you finally let your feet rest after many miles of deep thought your whole goal is to read something mindless, some cotton candy for your head that might give you a laugh and slow that freight train down enough to allow you to get some sleep, then it might well be that the Bible wouldn't do it for you. That's nothing I would expect somebody to apologize for. Some find the Bible comforting, some don't.
IOW, although I couldn't see somebody who has actually read the Bible rejecting it on the grounds that it is shallow literature, I can well imagine someone rejecting it on the grounds that it is not, that they find it too challenging or, because of associations they have with it, too upsetting. It is literature with some mileage on it, not all of it good. There are people who have been hurt by it, and by no fault of their own. I can respect that, too.
floyd242
05-01-2007, 13:32
If you've never read "Dune" it would be a great trail read.
Stranger in a strange land by Heinlein
or the Illuminatus Trilogy if you're feeling saucy.
Jester2000
05-01-2007, 19:09
A) The evidence is that both of them thought the Bible was a good read. . .
Um, really? What sort of evidence would that be? The kind where you just say that?
PS -- I think it funny that your major antagonists on this portion of this thread are two people who have read the Bible while on the trail.
AlbertaHiker23
05-02-2007, 21:17
I got my 2 books today, Zen.... & The meaning of things, applying philosophy to life by A.C. Grayling. Hopefully those will do the trick.
Nightwalker
05-02-2007, 22:29
PS -- I think it funny that your major antagonists on this portion of this thread are two people who have read the Bible while on the trail.
Especially considering who they are.
I'm looking for some suggestions for books to bring on the trail. I would like to read something that is simple, yet thought-provoking at the same time. I'm thinking something along the lines of philosophy/spirituality... that kind of thing, books about life in general. The one I have right now is: How to succeed at the game of life, by C. Klemesh.
Anybody else have suggestions?
Any of the "Joshua" series, by Fr. Joseph F. Girzone (retired Catholic priest, reflecting on "religion" vs "what would Jesus do?")
"Conversations with God", by Neale Donald Walsch.
"In Search of the Big Bang" or "In Search of Schoedinger's Cat" by John Gribbin (quantum physics for idiots, like me.)
"The Hobbit" by JRR Tolkien. (Just a good story to walk to.)
"Man's Search for Meaning" by Victor Frankl (classic 'why are we here' stuff.)
"The Religions of Man" by Huston Smith (classic comparative religion. there's an old one and a revised edition, slight difference in names, but i forget which is which.)
Any Anthology of Plato/Socrates makes for good thinking material.
"The Pensees", by Blaise Pascal (yeah, the math dude-he did philosophy too), a study of Christianity and what he had learned about it over the course of his life. Unfinished at his death, found among his notes and later published.
"On Friendship" by Cicero.
"Mr God, It's Me, Anna", by Flynn.
Any of the "Celestine" series, by James Redfield.
Brrrb Oregon
05-03-2007, 16:44
Um, really? What sort of evidence would that be? The kind where you just say that?
PS -- I think it funny that your major antagonists on this portion of this thread are two people who have read the Bible while on the trail.
The kind of evidence where I looked up their fans' websites and did a little research, based on my prior knowledge that there are a lot of non-believers who nevertheless consider the Bible a) some of the world's best poetry, b) one of the (if not definitively THE) oldest, most-studied, and most-argued-about written texts in world literature and c) an extremely important contributor to Western thought. It isn't just a bunch of rules about how to be good girls and boys. It is a good read, and an important one. (And you will not find the quote, "Cleanliness is next to Godliness" in the whole thing.)
Those web sites are where I found out that Vonnegut had a preferred version of the Bible--reasonable evidence in itself that he actually thought it worth reading in the first place--and that Heller thought the King David character worth the investment of his own imagination.
Call it what you want, people don't fight so much as that over vapid literature. If you only think it is literature, well, so be it. Read on. I'm a believer, but I don't think that someone who simply reads the Bible as a read is going to be struck by lightning.
The only problem is, you might come away understanding Mark Twain's quote a little too well: "Christianity is a great religion. Someone should try it some time." ;)
Route Step
05-03-2007, 16:47
"Climate of Fear" is an eye opener for all the global warming types
Some of these have already been mentioned. Take me listing them as a second vote.
Authors:
Douglas Adams -- His "Hitchhikers" "trilogy" is legendary on the trail, but many people never get around to reading his other great works. The
Ooops - hit enter too early.
Some of these have already been mentioned. Take me listing them as a second vote.
Authors:
Douglas Adams -- His "Hitchhikers" "trilogy" is legendary on the trail, but many people never get around to reading his other great works. "The Salmon of Doubt" has a lot of great short stories in it.
Tolkien -- It dissappoints me how many people have only seen the movies and never actually read the books. Both the Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings are mostly about hiking through the wilderness, and are great reads for the trail.
Jack Kerouac -- This beat writer from the 50's and 60's writes about aimless wonderings, by foot, hitchhiking, bus, or car. He and his buddies were sort of like thru-hikers only without a destination in mind, or all the fancy equipment.
Specific Books:
The Tao of Pooh
The Alchemist -- this book has already been mentioned but it is worth a second vote. One of my favourite "Soul searching" books of all time, perfect for the trail.
Novel's such as Tom Clancy are good for entertainment and passing time, and escaping for the present. Sometimes, however, it is best to just stay in the present. Not always though.
Seeker -- How the heck do you get through something like Cicero on the trail? I could barely read it when I was asked to for homework.
Nightwalker
05-03-2007, 23:35
If you've never read "Dune" it would be a great trail read.
Stranger in a strange land by Heinlein
or the Illuminatus Trilogy if you're feeling saucy.
Any of the 80 or so books in the Dune trilogy will take you to an alternate universe and change your thinking for awhile. I never thought of taking them on the trail, but they might cause less hiking and more reading. :)
Brrrb Oregon
05-05-2007, 13:34
Seeker -- How the heck do you get through something like Cicero on the trail? I could barely read it when I was asked to for homework.
Now, see, I find reading a book for myself and reading it for a class two entirely different experiences....and I liked school.
Besides the Bible, I'd read Machiavelli's "The Prince", or Plato's "Republic", or Lao Tzu, or essayists like Lewis Thomas, or any of those, because to me, you don't have to read very much of them to have an awful lot to think about. That's what I look for when I can only take one book somewhere.
There are those, OTOH, who absolutely do not want something to think about as the last thing they read before they try to sleep. They want something entertaining, something that is not thought-provoking, something that is not a lot of effort to slog through. They may want something that lets their imagination take them somewhere else or maybe something to just give them another slant on the place they are.
When you choose a book for the trail, you need to know what kind of thing you like to read at the end of a strenuous day. Otherwise, the added pack weight of a book that doesn't interest you under the circumstances is going to be quite a disappointment.
It is kind of like choosing the food to take along. You have to ask yourself what you're like at day's end. If it is Agatha Christie you like when you're tired, take Agatha Christie.
A confederacy of dunces is a great laugh out loud classic.
Tipi Walter
04-06-2017, 14:05
How the heck do you go back 10 years and find this old thread AND THEN respond to it???
How the heck do you go back 10 years and find this old thread AND THEN respond to it???
Very carefully.
Good Books don't go bad :-)
How about something like Reader's Digest? Small. short topics. tear out pages finished for t. paper, fire starting. soaking water etc.
gwschenk
04-06-2017, 15:14
The two books I've most enjoyed in the backcountry were The Winter of Our Discontent and The Autobiography of Malcolm X. Two of the best books I've ever read.
One Half
04-06-2017, 19:56
What to say when you talk to Yourself by Shad Helmstetter
Who moved My Cheese?
The US Constitution and the Declaration of Independence (pocket versions)
The Richest Man in Babylon
All of these are small books, thought provoking and can be life altering.
Please see my thread "call me Ishmael " ( I don't know how to link) about how to download free audiobooks on your smartphone. No extra weight!
rocketsocks
04-06-2017, 21:36
Audio book Bill Bryson~"a short history of nearly everything"
cliffordbarnabus
04-06-2017, 23:16
anything by kerouac. anything by salinger.
done.
DownEaster
04-07-2017, 01:34
Assuming you're using a phone for GPS, music, and AWOL's guide, there's no reason not to also stock it full of classics nowadays (compared to 10 years ago when this thread was created). I'd recommend the complete works of Edgar Allan Poe.
Using the Kindle app on the smartphone works really great.
Just don't forget to really download your books into the device, not to rely on the content displayed in the MyLibrary Home.
Had my phone with me on a hike once and got stuck by bad weather for a full day without cell service - no problem, I've all my books with me - just to find out that the only downloaded book available was Black Hawk down - not exactly the perfect book for a cosy rainy day in the tent.
Delivering Happiness by Tony Hsieh
Sports Gene by David Epstein
"Climate of Fear" is an eye opener for all the global warming types
Hmm, written by an economist(one who studies the flow of money) not a scientist.
Might want to also read Merchants of Doubt or the movie by the same title.
rocketsocks
04-28-2017, 13:48
Hmm, written by an economist(one who studies the flow of money) not a scientist.
Might want to also read Merchants of Doubt or the movie by the same title.or "one second after" that kinda negates it all.
Heliotrope
04-28-2017, 20:08
When I met Mr Happy a few weeks ago, he was reading The Dharma Bumbs by Kerouac. Well, I just finished it and it would be an awesome book to read while on a hike!
Yes! Surprised that hasn't been made into a film.
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gpburdelljr
04-28-2017, 23:11
Roughing It, by Mark Twain.
double d
04-28-2017, 23:58
A pocket U.S. Constitution-great to read at night while hiking!
cliffordbarnabus
04-29-2017, 00:09
anything by kerouac.
anything by salinger.
you're set.
gpburdelljr
04-29-2017, 08:42
Every book is a TARDIS.
greensleep
04-29-2017, 13:27
Every book is a TARDIS.
very good, :D
Whack-a-mole
04-30-2017, 22:39
Atlas Shrugged is a great book. Start it Springer and it will last you a while. Should be required reading for all college freshmen.
MtDoraDave
05-01-2017, 06:38
I always bring a paperback from an author I know and like. If I finish it before I finish the hike, I'll leave it in a shelter for someone else to read - or use as fire starter.
If you are not an avid reader or tend to fall asleep as soon as your head hits your "pillow", it's probably a waste of weight and space to carry a book, but if you're like me, and need to read for an hour or so to go to sleep, a paperback is great. If you fall somewhere in between, you could carry something smaller; A collection or short stories or novellas can be cut into sections. For example, "Different Seasons" by Stephen King has 4 such stories, including the one The Shawshank Redemption movie was based on.
If you do choose to carry a book like Atlas Shrugged (1400 pages), The Clan of the Cave Bear (500 pages) or The Stand (over 1000 pages), you could do like many do with their AT guide and separate it into sections, carrying only part of it at a time.
Keeping it in a ziploc bag may be a good idea, too, because a wet book is both heavy and hard to read.
LIhikers
05-01-2017, 13:48
For those of you hiking with paper books here's a heads up.
At the Telephone Pioneers shelter in New York there's a book exchange library.
There's a box mounted to the front of the shelter where you can leave a book/take a book.
My wife and I did an overnighter there late this past winter and it was there then with a number of books in it.
Atlas Shrugged is a great book. Start it Springer and it will last you a while. Should be required reading for all college freshmen.
Reading real books should be required of all college students.
On the subject of Climate:
Read a Climatology textbook written in the 1960s. Before all of the definitions were changed to support The New Agenda.
Groove on this:
Without climate change, we would still be enjoying this -
https://www.google.com/amp/amp.history.com/news/little-ice-age-big-consequences
Wayne
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