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The Walk  By  cover art

The Walk

By: Richard Paul Evans
Narrated by: Richard Paul Evans
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Publisher's summary

What would you do if you lost everything - your job, your home, and the love of your life - all at the same time? When it happens to Seattle ad executive Alan Christoffersen, he's tempted by his darkest thoughts. A bottle of pills in his hand and nothing left to live for, he plans to end his misery. Instead, he decides to take a walk. But not any ordinary walk. Taking with him only the barest of essentials, Al leaves behind all that he's known and heads for the farthest point on his map: Key West, Florida. The people he encounters along the way, and the lessons they share with him, will save his life and inspire yours.

Richard Paul Evans' extraordinary New York Times best sellers have made him one of the worlds most beloved storytellers. A life-changing journey, both physical and spiritual, The Walk is the first of an unforgettable series of books about one man's search for hope.

©2010 Richard Paul Evans (P)2010 Simon & Schuster

What listeners say about The Walk

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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    27
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Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Great listen but why is it so SHORT?

I really enjoyed this short story and am left wondering, since there are at least five books in the series, why oh why are they so short? It is totally unnecessary and I am left with a slight negative feeling from a book that I otherwise loved listening to.

Alan Christoffersen's life falls apart in a matter of weeks. Everything that he knew and loved is gone, and he has to make some pretty serious decisions. His first decision is whether he even wants to go on living. Well, there wouldn't be any book at all if he did himself in, so that is no spoiler. Besides, you already know he is going on a long, long walk (5 books worth, so far).

Alan's walk becomes what I might call a spiritual endeavor (but not really religious) and I feel he is going to learn some of life's deeper and more important lessons as he continues on his cross country trek. This is a very gentle, sweet book that moves along at a walker's pace. I enjoyed it immensely and I do look forward to continuing the journey .

This is an author-narrated book. Authors are not necessarily the best narrators, I think we all would agree, but sometimes that can acceptable. Evan's tells his story in a quiet, believable fashion, so much so that I had to do some research to find out if this was a novel or true story at the beginning.

So, all in all, this was a very positive listening experience for me despite the above-mentioned shortness of the audiobook.

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22 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

A story of Hope

Over the last week I've been listening to "The Walk" during my morning walks and it's been a great match. I've looked forward to the next installment each day, and I'll be downloading the next book. This isn't a flashy tale, just a story of a man facing Job-like challenges, his life stripped away to nothing, working his way back to meaning.

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14 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars

Tedious

The Walk proceeds at a snail's pace chronicling fast food meals and minute details of various small towns on one man's journey of what I assume will be self-discovery ... if he doesn't commit suicide out of sheer tedium first. Hated it!

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14 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars

JUST OKAY...

This was not one of my favorite books by Richard Evans. This book was kind of like the gift if you listened to it. He left everything and started this walk and he never finished the walk before something happened to him. The book really does not have an ending. You have to just have to make your own ending. This book was not the worse I have heard but not really the best EITHER.

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13 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Quite Enjoyable!

Honestly, I had no idea this was the first book in a series. When I finished listening, I was disappointed that the "Walk" had barely started, but the story had taken a turn, and it really did wrap things up nicely. When searching for other books by Richard Paul Evans, I discovered this was Book 1 of 5!! I was very happy, because I was really enjoying the journey. I am currently finishing up Book 2, and have just purchased Book 3. I think that is probably the best recommendation there is! That, and talking about it with others--Done!!

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12 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Excellent a Must Read

What a great book. It left me with a very nice feeling knowing we are all on our walk and have yet to meet all the people we are to meet. I cannot wait to read the next book.

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9 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars

Fast Food Walk

I listened to this book while in the pool trying to work off a few calories. Boy was that a mistake! Although ostensibly about a man's search for meaning in his life, it comes off as a man's search for the World's Greatest Milkshake. Although not orginally as put off as others by this light piece of inner turmoil journal, I found it less enjoyable once I found out it was a novel, not a real journal, and read poorly by the author. If the story isn't your true life story, let someone who can give the story a bit of life read it. Trust me, there are plenty of good actors out there who work for next to nothing doing this kind of work. And they are really, really good.

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8 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

One Man's Journey

Would you consider the audio edition of The Walk to be better than the print version?

I do. I think it makes the main character seem more real.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Walk?

I don't know that there was a most memorable. The whole story is important - even the little things that didn't seem important at the time become an important part of the journey.

What does Richard Paul Evans bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

The gentleness in his voice and the desire to persevere.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

When one is lost, there are unexpected ways to be found.

Any additional comments?

I love this and am so excited that there are more books in the series. I am excited to see the growth of the character. He seems real to me and makes me want to find that growth in my personal life as well.

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6 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

exceptional, this book should be a movie!

Would you consider the audio edition of The Walk to be better than the print version?

They both offer something unique. The audio offers the story told in the author's own voice complete with inflections and nuances you wouldn't get in print. The print version offers drawings of maps and a layout like a diary to help put the visual picture together with the story. So I guess the best experience would be to listen to the audiobook while following along in the print book.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Alan, the main character. What an insightful character!

Which character – as performed by Richard Paul Evans – was your favorite?

Alan, see the answer above

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

It all was moving, but especially the epilogue at the end of the book. The author has the special ability to sum up several ideas in as few words as possible, and the right words are chosen. It is a remarkable talent.

Any additional comments?

I'm on the third book in the series, The Road To Grace, and each book just makes you keep coming back and reading more.

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6 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

BEWARE! This Book Series Is a Sort of Scam!!

I enjoyed this story very much, not realizing how short it was. So in the middle of the plot, when things very abruptly ended, I snatched up the Audible app to see what was going on. I confirmed the short length of the book, and just felt extremely disappointed. Shortly afterward, as I started to cast about for my next “read”, I noticed there were a number of subsequent books in a series, following The Walk, which is book 1.

A sequel, or a number of sequels, is a perfectly fine thing, ordinarily. But in this case, where The Walk clearly terminated in mid-story, and all books in the series are only about 5 hours long, or less, something is not quite right!!

All 5 books in this series don’t add up to much more than half the 40 hour length of the first book in Ken Follett’s wonderful Pillars of the Earth series. So why Mr Evans and his publisher believes I should pay the price of 5 books ($75 by Audible prices) in order to read what is clearly one good book broken up this way, makes me extremely angry. I’m sorry I won’t get to finish this entertaining read.

And I’m sorry that there are apparently enough of you out there who are willing to let yourselves be cheated in this way, that they will profit by their unfair approach.

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4 people found this helpful