A Walk in the Woods

By: Bill Bryson

Narrated by: Bill Bryson

Length: 5 hrs and 58 mins

Publisher's summary

"Not long after I moved with my family to a small town in New Hampshire, I happened upon a path that vanished into a wood on the edge of town." So begins Bill Bryson's hilarious book, A Walk in the Woods. Following his return to America after 20 years in Britain, Bryson decided to reacquaint himself with his native country by walking the 2,100-mile Appalachian Trail, which stretches from Springer Mountain in Georgia to Mount Katahdin in Maine. The AT, as it's affectionately known to thousands of hikers, offers an astonishing landscape of silent forests and sparkling lakes - and to a writer with the comic genius of Bill Bryson, it also provides endless opportunities to test his own powers of ineptitude, and to witness the majestic silliness of his fellow human beings. But A Walk in the Woods is more than just a laugh-out-loud hike. Bryson's acute eye is a wise witness to this fragile and beautiful trail, and as he tells its fascinating history, he makes a moving plea for the conservation of America's last great wilderness. An adventure, a comedy, a lament, and a celebration, A Walk in the Woods is destined to become a modern classic of travel literature.

©1998 Bill Bryson (P)1998 Bantam Doubleday Dell Audio Publishing, Bantam Doubleday Dell Audio Publishing, A Division of Random House Inc.

Listen to that voice

AHHHHH Bryson, my favorite writer, although ironically I'm never read any of his stuff. I say, Why deprive yourself of his voice, a pleasant mix of british and American, with a nice bass tone. I listen to his cd's over and over again, and I encourage others to do the same. Although his two most recent novels are excellent, it is "A Walk in the Woods" that contains the most Bryson, shown most excellently over his dialogue with "Kats." After listening to this book, don't be surprised if you feel the need to hike a bit of the Appallacians.

Awesome!

Great, captivating, hilarious book. Only downside is that this is abridged. Wish they would come out with the unabridged audiobook.

Wanted more from "the trail"

What did you love best about A Walk in the Woods?

Being an avid backpacker I was hoping this book was going to be more about the trials and tribulations about hiking the entire thru hike from the point of view of someone experienced and following a lifelong goal. The book is more about a comedy of two middle aged men with zero experience taking on such a huge test.

Bryson will spoil you

This book was loads of fun to listen to. It taught me much about the Applachian Trail and hiking in the most enjoyable way possible. I have spent some time in the woods myself and so could relate to many of the experiences he described so hilariously. I love Bill Bryson's sense of humor and his narration can't be beat. If only all audiobooks were this good.... The only problem I have with his books is that he sets the bar too high and it spoils you for other books.

Good read

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Sure, worth reading, though the story seems to wane towards the end.

If you’ve listened to books by Bill Bryson before, how does this one compare?

A short history was a bit more interesting all the way through.

I was drawn in by the Appalachian Trail

What did you like best about this story?

I laughed and was shocked all at the same time. I had never thought much about the Appalachian Trail because the Rocky Mountains are my back and front yards. Hikers are interesting people. I learned a lot about Bill's neck of the woods and some about hiking. I laughed with him, and panicked for him. This book was good and, in a Boy Scout way of being prepared, quite a time of fun. I felt the rain, the pull to be in the wilderness, the hunger and thirst right along side writer and narrator. Intriguing story. I will listen again.

Missed his reaction to bears in groups

Enjoyed this abridged version read by author but missed his the 4 bears reaction.

Fun story

I really enjoyed this book. Very informative and comical. A great story about friendship and adventure.

Wonderful story, great audiobook

I love audobooks that are actually read by the author, and this one in particular was fun to listen to because the narrator actually lived through the story he is telling about. While I was at first dubious about the title, I found Bryson's delivery engaging enough and was soon imagining mysef out there in the woods with him.
This book is perfect for listening on long walks and sitting outside somewhere. I enjoyed it so much that I immediately looked to find others written by the same author, only to find that I had already owned one ("A Short History of Nearly Everything") that was in my "to listen to again" pile.
A tell-tale sign that a book is a good read is when you find it in the store and are tempted to actually purchase the hard copy for your actual bookshelf.
I look forward to reading another Bryson book as soon as this one is done.

a unique Bryson experience

This is my favorite work by Bill Bryson, not because it is the best written or because it is the most interesting story, but because it feels the most personal out of all his works. Where as in other books, he is a witty and cool oberver of the places he sets out to explore (albeit with very keen insights and appreciation for history, local folklore and compelling statistics), in A Walk in the Woods, he is neck deep in it all: the sufferings in harsh conditions, the hopelessness and bleakness he faces at times, the mesmerizing beauty of the Appalachians and heartfelt appreciation for the little things that one can only gain after being through the rough. It is deeply personal. Remember in the movie, "Castaway" how devastated Tom Hanks was when he lost Wilson? There's a similar moment in A Walk in the Woods, and you've never seen Bill Bryson so vulnerable and so personal. Also, Stephen Catz, Bryson's bumbling companion during this trip, is the most humorous partner Bryson had in any of his adventures in all of his travel narratives; yet even in this, there's a deep sense of companionship that I've never seen in Bryson's other works.

Yes, as a reviewer noted, one of the drawbacks of this whole adventure is that Bill Bryson lacks a strong sense of purpose on why he has embarked on this endeavor and this results in a frustrating stretch of half-hearted day hikes that, for me, was the most unsatisfying part of the whole adventure. Other than this, however, I highly recommend this unique listening experience for fans of Bill Bryson.