Sub-title: A mid-life journey into wild land
What a delightful gem of a book! This is an auto-biographical memoir of a Canadian woman driving from her home in the Toronto area to the west coast of Canada to canoe around the Queen Charlotte Islands and take the ferry north to the Yukon. It's a story of self discovery and finding an anchor in the storm of life.
She camps in a tent from her car, alone, which I found astounding. Some quotes:
"I like being alone when there's no one around. It's a nice freedom to be the only one there, humming and coping."
[ This comment reminded me of my Colorado River trip [about the canoe trip guide] "Bob isn't a dynamo, but he is a set-up for fantasies the way guides always are. All that casual skill."
[On meeting new people] "What would it be like, I wonder, if our first thought regarding anything was to perceive the kinship, the non-distinction, rather than shouting out to the difference between things?"
[On having a new partner] "What do old new lovers have for each other? The death of their parents. Their own decline. Humour, if they're lucky. Thankfulness. Skill. Not so bad, perhaps."
She returns home and continues to visit the West Coast to renew herself. I enjoyed her story.
Published: 2002 Read: November 2012 Genre: auto-biography
No comments:
Post a Comment
Post your comments here, would love to hear what you think