American Rambler

Walking the Trail of Johnny Appleseed

By: Isaac Fitzgerald

Narrated by: Isaac Fitzgerald

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • New York Times bestselling author Isaac Fitzgerald sets off into the heart of America, following the path of the legendary Johnny Appleseed on an epic journey that both takes him far from home and brings him closer to it.

“Rollicking, heartfelt. . . . Made me feel the kind of wonder and hope I’ve been longing for.” —John Green, author of Everything Is Tuberculosis

As a child, Isaac Fitzgerald was captivated by Johnny Appleseed, drawn to the legend by family ties, his father’s larger-than-life stories, and a shared restlessness to leave home and discover what lay beyond.

In American Rambler, he sets out on a year-long journey to follow Appleseed’s path, walking (okay, sometimes driving, and at one point, even floating downstream) from Massachusetts to Indiana. On this journey, Fitzgerald turns a childhood fascination into a profound reckoning of loss and grief, ritual and faith, grimy gas station bathrooms and scenic apple picking. He is followed by a mysterious creature, camps in hostile environments, trespasses more than once, and is warmed by the generosity of strangers at every turn.

A moving blend of memoir, history, and travelogue, American Rambler is at once an ode to the American heartland, a meditation on escaping the breakneck pace of modern life, and a clear-eyed look at the myths—often violent, sometimes hopeful, frequently romanticized—at the very core of American identity and history.

The story became a lesson in history.

I liked the easy way of telling a story… very fitting when following the trail of Johnny Appleseed. Good to be in the authors own voice.

Aptly named

I really tried to like this book.
I found the many, many descriptions of ill-preparedness to be too much for me in the end and couldn’t finish it.
Some interesting insights on Chapman, but not enough to keep me going.

Autobiography of someone not meriting it

I got this book based on a Amazon recommendation and as someone who grows apples and much else. The book does begin with a challenging hike on what was believed to be Johnny Appleseeds trail. After that the author switches to a car tour very little of which has to do with the subject. Worse it increasing devolves into descriptions of alcohol and drug abuse with friends and strangers. There is nothing about this man or his history that is admirable or warrants my time. I decided to stop listening. I did give it a second star only because parts were genuinely humorous.

Save your money!

Hard to follow. All over the place. Many false clams and inaccuracies. Had to shut it off after 2 hours.

Fitzgerald’s authenticity

A thoroughly enjoyable roadtripping story read by the author with enough history to balance the trials and travails of Fitzgerald and the interesting characters he meets along his journey.