Authors, Publishers, if you have a new English language Camino book that you think is appropriate for this list, please send a review copy to us - address on the Contact Us page
There are two well known ones that need to be
mentioned, even though they both are a mixture of trail experiences
common to all pilgrims, and some other experiences that include
visits with spirits of pilgrims past. They both make interesting
related reading, but for those new to the Camino, be aware that
these are in no way practical guides.
For the day by day walking, you must take the Confraternity of St.
James guide in the following list. I recommend that you also take
the Davies and Cole guide (or the John Brierley Camino Francés
guide) and the 35 pages from the Lonely Planet Walking Guide. If you
want to understand the historical significance of the areas you walk
through. I suggest that you buy Gitlitz and Davidson before you go,
and take some parts of it with you.
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Walker's/Cyclist's Guides |
|
Camino Francés to Finisterre |
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The Lonely
Planet Walking Guide to Spain has a good section on the
Camino - rip out all but the Camino pages. Note: for our
2001 walk we used the 2nd edition, published in July 99.
Nancy Frey and Jose Placer did the Camino part. A 3rd
edition is now out with the same authors - as far as I can see,
mostly cosmetic changes, maps are a little easier to read,
mileages changed slightly, now takes 30 days instead of 28.
There is a summary list of all the refugios at the beginning.
The refugio info will get more and more out of date as we move
beyond 2003. The Camino section authors have a well regarded
walking tours company
www.onfootinspain.com
that offers Camino tours of various lengths. |
| Amazon.UK |
| Amazon.CA |
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Confraternity
of
Saint
James |
publishes
Pilgrim Guides To Spain 1. The Camino Francés - a small purple book (was yellow) that is your
indispensable guide to the next refugio. A must have. There
is a new one issued for each year. Get the current one if you
can, as refugios are added and closed from year to year. This by the way,
will have to be ordered from England. We got ours
from the website www.csj.org.uk
. If you don't get it in a week, call to make sure they got your
web order. Also, for bicyclists in their Practical
Pilgrim Notes section you can find The Cycling Pilgrim on the
Camino Francés. |
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Davies and
Cole - Walking the Camino de Santiago is an excellent
guide that first came out in 2003. It weighs 7 oz., describes the route,
some of the history, plus some of the flora and fauna. It reads
easily, has some sketch maps and elevation profiles of the
route. The current 2009
edition is about half the weight of the original, and the maps
are even better. If you want to give the authors a little more
money, go to their website
www.pilipalapress.com
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Amazon.UK |
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Amazon.CA |
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John
Brierley - A Pilgrim's Guide to the Camino Francés:
From St. Jean Pied de Port to Santiago de Compostela. This
2010 6th edition is full color with excellent maps and trail
profiles along with route descriptions. Each map represents a
typical day. Good beginner info, self help info for the
spiritual journey. This is my personal favorite, but Davies and
Cole works as well. We cut out appropriate
sections from Davies and Cole and this guide on a recent
trip, as well as carried the confraternity guide. In practice we
mostly used the Brierley guide because of the color maps, and
its accommodations were even more accurate than the comparable
confraternity guide. For recent updates to the guide, check
http://www.caminoguides.com/latest.html |
| Amazon.UK |
| Amazon.CA |
| . |
Alison Raju wrote
The Way of St James Le Puy to Santiago A Walkers Guide.
This 2001 guide starts at Le Puy en Velay in France and gives detailed
route info all the way to Santiago, including some photos and
maps. Weighs about a pound. The author updated this and broke it into two books. |
| Amazon.UK |
| Amazon.CA |
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Alison Raju - The Way of St. James: Pyrenees - Santiago - Finisterre. We don't have this 2004 guide, but assume it is similar to the Le Puy to the Pyrenees guide. Good, but for this section I still recommend either Davies and Cole or John Brierley. |
| Amazon.UK |
| Amazon.CA |
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John
Brierley - A Pilgrim's Guide to the Camino Fisterra.
The same format of fine maps, photos and route descriptions as
in his Camino Francés guide if you want to go on to Finisterre.
For recent updates check
http://www.caminoguides.com/latest.html |
| Amazon.UK |
| Amazon.CA |
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Milan Bravo Lozano - A Practical Guide for Pilgrims:
The Road to Santiago - This heavy 1999 guide is published in
Spain in Spanish and English and includes a popular set of maps.
Some people leave the book and take the maps. I saw a copy
recently - large, stiff pages, I didn't measure, but would guess
6 in wide, 11 in tall - must have weighed a couple of pounds. |
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Amazon.UK |
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Amazon.CA |
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Jaffa Raza - The Village to Village Guide to The Camino Santiago. I haven't had a chance to read this yet - the 2006 2nd edition, in paperback. It is a detailed guidebook, highly recommended by the Catholic Times, and currently the most expensive guidebook at about $37. |
| Amazon.UK |
| Amazon.CA |
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Cordula Rabe - Camino
De Santiago: From the Pyrenees to Santiago De Compestela (Rother
Walking Guide). Justin and Aleza, who's
Circumvent the Globe blog I am following, are using this and
like it. It is small 6.5 by 4.5 by .5 in., in color, somewhat
weather resistant, and packed with maps, route descriptions,
history, and fairly tiny type. Weighs about 8 ounces. |
| Amazon.UK |
| Amazon.CA |
| Amazon.DE |
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Davies and Cole -
Camino de Santiago Map. This little 4 x 8.5 in booklet
weighs 3 ounces, and is an excellent choice if you want the
comfort of maps with more amount of detail than the simple
sketch maps in the guidebooks. It breaks the route from St. Jean
to Santiago & Finisterre into 40 maps, and includes maps for the
6 cathedral cities along the route. |
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Amazon.UK |
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Amazon.CA |
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caminodownunder,com |
Waterproof Camino Francés map, 30 pages, refugio and
other info on back of each page. 5x10 inches. A useful addition to
maps available. |
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John Brierley -
Camino de Santiago Maps/ Mapas/ Cartes I haven't seen this,
but I have used his guides, which include very useful maps, and
this appears to be those maps and town guides extracted into a
separate publication. |
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Amazon.UK |
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Amazon.CA |
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John Higginson - The
Way Of St James: A Cyclist's Guide : from Le Puy en Velay to
Santiago de Compostela. This little pocket sized Cicerone
Guide looks useful, with daily stages listed. For each day, a
simple line map, an elevation profile, photos and town
descriptions. For accommodations, I suggest also carrying the
Miam Miam Dodo for the French part, and Confraternity of St.
James guide for the Spanish part. My version is 1999, but the
one in Amazon is 2005. |
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Amazon.UK |
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Amazon.CA |
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Confraternity
of
Saint
James |
Confraternity of St. James:
in their Practical Pilgrim Notes section you can find The
Cycling Pilgrim on the Camino Francés. |
|
Xacobeo site |
The Galician government has
built an excellent website, with info on the various routes,
including a
pdf for bicycling the French Way. |
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Hape Kerkeling - I'm
Off Then: Losing and Finding Myself on the Camino de Santiago.
This German best seller pilgrim narrative was just recently
translated into English. Hape Kerleling is a well known German
humorist. |
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Amazon.UK |
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Amazon.CA |
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Raimund Joos and
Michael Kasper -
Spanien: Jakobsweg Camino Francés: Der Weg ist das Ziel (Broschiert).
A guidebook in German to the Camino Francés. You can browse it
with Amazon's Search Inside the Book.. |
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Downloadable Guides:
www.caminoguide.net has
free guides for via de la plata and camino aragones, and both a
basic free guide and a for
fee downloadable guide to the Camino Francés. |
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Le Puy Route and France Guides |
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Alison Raju - The Way of St. James (Chemin de Saint-Jacques de Compostelle): Le Puy to the Pyrenees - We just used this excellent 2004 guide - the most detailed English language guide available for this section. Weighs 8 oz. Also take the GR 65 topo-guides and Miam Miam Dodo guides
- in French but still useful if you don't read French. |
| Amazon.UK |
| Amazon.CA |
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Amazon France |
Miam Miam Dodo
guides - they are in French but essential even if you
don't read French. You can get the Miam Miam Dodo from Amazon
France. Be sure to get the current one, they frequently have
older ones as well. I ordered mine from Amazon France using
Google Translate to translate each page, since I don't speak or
read French. Also, be sure you get one for the correct route.
There is one for the Arles route as well as the Le Puy route and
the Camino Francés.Their website (in French):
www.chemindecompostelle.com |
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Alison Raju wrote
The Way of St James Le Puy to Santiago A Walkers Guide.
This 2001 guide starts at Le Puy en Velay in France and gives detailed
route info all the way to Santiago, including some photos and
maps. Weighs about a pound. The author updated this and broke it into two books. |
| Amazon.UK |
| Amazon.CA |
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Birgit Götzmann
- Frankreich: Jakobsweg
Via gebennensis - Via podiensis: Via Gebennensis - via Podiensis (Broschiert)
- a guide in German to the Le Puy route. You can browse it with
Amazon's Search Inside the Book. |
|
Confraternity
of
Saint
James |
Confraternity of Saint James Pilgrim Guides to the Roads
through France - Arles to Puente la Reina - Arles to Toulouse
2007, Marigold Fox - isbn 9781870585989 |
|
Confraternity
of
Saint
James |
Confraternity of Saint James
Pilgrim Guides to the Roads
through France - Arles to Puente la Reina - Toulouse to
Puente la Reina 2007, Marigold Fox - isbn 9781870585992
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|
Amazon France |
Mireille
Retail, Marie-Virginie Cambriels Miam-miam-dodo du chemin d'Arles +
le camino aragonés : Chemin de Compostelle (GR 653) d'Arles au
col du Somport, du Somport à Puente la Reina, - isbn 9782916446127
We ordered this from Amazon France.
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Amazon France |
Louis Laborde-Balen -
Jean-Pierre Siréjol - Le chemin d'Arles vers
Saint-Jacques-de-Compostelle, - isbn 9782841823475. We
ordered this from Amazon France. It is listed in us and uk, but
not available. |
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Francois Lepere & André
Dehnel Sur le chemin de Saint-Jacques-de-Compostelle, la via
Tolosona, la voie du soleil... - isbn 9782915156003
We bought this from a CH en route. It doesn't
have a printing date, and Amazon France lists the same isbn
saying it is 2003 edition, and has no image. The site in the
link is the only one with the correct image, but don't know if
you can order from them. We used very little.
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Amazon France - Map |
Les Chemins De Saint Jacques De Compostelle En
Europe - a map showing all the routes to Santiago de Compostella
through Europe. In French, for before or after trip, not something
you take with you. |
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Florence Chatzigianis
wrote 26 Gorgeous Hikes on the Western Côte d'Azur. This
is an area very near the start of the Arles route, so if you are
planning to spend additional time in the area, you may find this
book useful. |
| Amazon.UK |
| Amazon.CA |
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Portugal Route |
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John Brierley - A
Pilgrim's Guide to the Camino Portugués. In the same style
as his other guides, this is an excellent guide for the Portugal
route from Porto Santiago de Compostella. Also check for recent
updates at
http://www.caminoguides.com/latest.html |
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Amazon.UK |
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Amazon.CA |
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Davies and Cole - Walking in Portugal
I haven't seen this book either, but I assume it is in the
same style as their excellent book on Walking the Camino de
Santiago mentioned earlier. It was published in 2000, so be
sure to check the authors' update page for current updates:
http://www.pilipalapress.com/portugal/updates.html |
|
Amazon.CA |
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Amazon.CA |
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The Confraternity of St. James guide for this
route is available online for a donation:
http://www.csj.org.uk/guides-online.htm |
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Via de la Plata (Silver Route) |
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Davies and Cole - Walking the Via de la
Plata: The Camino de Santiago from Sevilla to Santiago de
Compostela. I haven't seen this book, but based on Amazon
reviews, it is in the same style as their excellent book on
Walking the Camino de Santiago mentioned earlier. It was
published in 2004, so also check the authors' update page for
current updates:
http://www.pilipalapress.com/plata/updates.html |
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Amazon.CA |
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Amazon.CA |
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Alison Raju - Via de la Plata: The Way
of St James: Seville/Granada to Santiago. Published in 2010. This route is
about 1000km, typically starting in Seville. This guide includes
the Camino Mozárabe from Granada to Mérida. We used it on our
walk from Granada to Córdoba. It is in the same style as her
other guides, terse, pocket size, very helpful, with a dose of
history. She also did a 2009 Confraternity of St. James guide
for the Camino Mozárabe that contains almost the identical
information included here. |
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Amazon.UK |
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Amazon.CA |
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Marcus Wilder - Naïve & Abroad: Spain,
Limping 600 Miles Through History. I've only read a few
excepts from Marcus's newspaper accounts, but enjoyed them. This
is the only pilgrim account I have heard of for the Via de la
Plata. |
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Amazon.UK |
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Amazon.CA |
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Camino Norte, Primitivo, Inglés, Finisterre and Camino
Portugués Guides |
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Laura Perazzoli and Dave Whitson - The Northern Caminos. Norte, Primitivo and Inglés An excellent guide from the Cicerone Guide series. In color. My only reservation is that it is heavy 3/4 pound for this 4 1/2 by 6 3/4 inch guide. Possibly will be available in Kindle later. In pre release for amazon.com until April 2013. |
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Amazon.UK |
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Amazon.CA |
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The Confraternity of St. James guides are
available online. You can download any of these guides as a word
file, which you can edit, or a pdf file which cannot be edited.
A donation is expected. See:
http://www.csj.org.uk/guides-online.htm |
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History and Academic Accounts |
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Derry Brabbs's The
Roads To Santiago, The medieval pilgrim routes through France
and Spain to Santiago de Compostela. This is a gorgeous
coffee table book, in color, with many striking images
from the pilgrimage paths. It is much more than a book of
beautiful photos. This work is a Tour de Force. Imagine Gitlitz
& Davidson (below), but with color photos and including the four
major routes through France. The text alone is worthy of publication, just
as a description of the history of the route. |
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Amazon.UK |
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Amazon.CA |
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Gitlitz and
Davidson's The Pilgrimage Road to Santiago has more than
most people want to know about everything along the path. It
also weighs almost one and a half pounds. We edited it with
scissors and cut the weight by half, and discarded pages after
we went thru a section. When we got home, we bought a new copy. |
| Amazon.UK |
| Amazon.CA |
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William Bonville - A
Traveler's Highway to Heaven: Exploring the History & Culture of
Northern Spain on El Camino de Santiago - I haven't read
this yet, but has been mentioned on Yahoo groups as a competitor
to Gitlitz and Davidson. Others have pointed out its many
inaccuracies re current pilgrimage customs, but it may be better
on historical detail. |
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Amazon.CA |
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Amazon.CA |
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Edwin Mullins - The
Pilgrimage to Santiago. Architecture and history with
authority. This reissue of the 1974 classic follows architecture
on the pilgrim path from Paris to Santiago. Part of the time by car,
part on foot, he follows the Christian architecture from church
to church, carving to carving, as the techniques move south.
Slow reading, but he captures your interest. Worth reading both
before and after your pilgrimage. |
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Amazon.UK |
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Amazon.CA |
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William Melczer - The Pilgrim's Guide The
first English translation of the original 12th century guidebook
to the Camino. This 345 page book is heavily documented with
notes, introduction, thumbnail descriptions of saints and
place names. The actual Codex Book 5 translation is 50 pages.
Excellent after Camino read for history, or a before read if you
have a good memory for facts. |
| Amazon.UK |
| Amazon.CA |
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Louise Collis - Memoirs of a Medieval Woman. Margery Kempe was a woman of the middle ages who aspired to sainthood. As part of this, she went on pilgrimage to Jerusalem, to Rome and to Santiago de Compostella. She could neither read nor write, but got others to write her story for her. There is very little about the trip to Santiago; it was practically a trivial trip compared to the others, but it is a fascinating glimpse into the experience of being on pilgrimage in those times. |
| Amazon.UK |
| Amazon.CA |
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Walter Starkie - The Road to Santiago:
Pilgrims of St. James. Published in 1957, is a combination
guide, history and personal account of his Camino de Santiago
pilgrimages. Dr. Starkie made 4 pilgrimages to Santiago between
1924 and 1954, and from what I gathered from the book, lived in
Spain for a number of years. This is a classic reference used as the Camino
began to revive in the 1970s and 80s. Out of print and now very
expensive. It was also reprinted in 2003. |
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Amazon.UK |
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Amazon.CA |
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Nancy Frey - Pilgrim Stories.The
author walked the Camino, worked in the refugios, and
interviewed many pilgrims about their experience. It gives a
good feel for the nature of the experience.
Nancy Frey and Jose Placer have a well regarded
walking tours company
www.onfootinspain.com that offers Camino tours of various
lengths. |
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Amazon.UK |
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Amazon.CA |
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James Michener - Iberia: Spanish Travels and
Reflections A personal favorite that I have read several
times. Easier reading than Cees Nooteboom, but a similar love of
Spain. The last chapter is about the pilgrimage to Santiago, and
worth reading even though he drove. Written during the Franco
era and sheds light on that time. |
| Amazon.UK |
| Amazon.CA |
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Kathy Gower - Her doctoral dissertation
on how pilgrims incorporate their pilgrim experience into their
daily lives is good reading. You can find it in the Yahoo Group Santiagobis files section. |
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Joan Myers, Simmons & Pierce - Santiago
- Saint of Two Worlds - 1991 A beautiful black and white
photo essay, almost letter size. Joan Myers did all the photos
and some of the included essays. I am still reading this, and
enjoying the essays. It was published by the University of New
Mexico Press, and is unique in that it covers the influence of
St. James in Mexico, and in New Mexico. |
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Amazon.UK |
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Amazon.CA |
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The Cult
of Santiago |
James Stone - The Cult of Santiago -
Traditions, Myths and Pilgrimages. Published in 1927. This is an
early source that has been scanned and is available online. I
haven't read all of it, but the author has an engaging style of
writing, and I enjoyed the introduction, and the Sources of
Authority chapters, where you will find deft and gentle
criticism of earlier authors. |
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Romanesque Sculpture of the Pilgrimage Roads |
Kingsley Porter - Romanesque sculpture
of the pilgrimage roads (1923). This is another classic text
referred to by later authors. This is a 3 volume work, and at
least the first volume has been scanned and available online. It
has also been reprinted, 1966, 1985 and you can find a few
copies on Amazon. |
V1 |
Georgiana Goddard King - The Way of St.
James. Published in 1920, This three volume set has recently
been scanned by the University of Toronto. and you can view it
in various ways in:
http://www.archive.org/details/wayofsaintjames01kinguoft .
Change the 01 to 02 & 03 for subsequent volumes. I recommend the
Flip Book choice for viewing it. Do take the time to view some
of this book, particularly after you have completed some of the
Camino. Some text samples:
"Possibly it will be said that this little book is neither one
thing nor the other as it offers archaeology without jargon,
travel without flippancy... The original intention of this book
was to examine the claims for the sources of Spanish
architecture in the Gothic and Romanesque period." Sounds dry,
but she strayed from her intentions and her descriptions of her
travels captivated me. On page 260 she is in Pamplona, talking
about the nightly promenade: "For an hour and a half every
evening the nobility of Navarre walked in beauty there, in
rustling and murmuring of silk, and voices, and dark leafage;
warm puffs of perfume through a night wind blowing out of dark
and mountains..." - not your usual travel narrative.
This three volume set has been reprinted by Pilgrims Progress
and is available on Amazon. |
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Amazon.UK |
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Amazon.CA |
V2 |
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Amazon.UK |
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Amazon.CA |
V3 |
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Amazon.UK |
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Amazon.CA |
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The Golden Legend - St. James the Greater |
William Caxton - The Golden Legend
published in 1483 is a translation of an earlier French work
published in 1275. This is a history of the Saints, and the
chapter on St. James is the source of information for many later
accounts. For example, the account of where he preached, how his
body got to Spain, the miracles preformed etc. The St. James
chapter has been scanned and is available online. It makes
interesting reading if you like nitty gritty. |
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Relevant Background on Spain, but
not just Camino |
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Maria Rosa Menocal - The Ornament of
the World: How Muslims, Jews and Christians Created a Culture of
Tolerance in Medieval Spain. An optimistic view of early
Spain. For a different voice, also read Moorish Spain.
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Amazon.UK |
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Amazon.CA |
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Richard Fletcher - Moorish Spain.
The culture and history of Moorish Spain, if you want more depth
than a guidebook. I haven't read this, but reviewers describe as
provocative, a storyteller, sharp insights. |
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Amazon.UK |
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Amazon.CA |
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Giles Tremlett - Ghosts of Spain.
The Camino travels through areas stained with blood from the
civil war. The pain of that period is still being resolved some
sixty years later. This book brings that period into focus.
Recommended reading if you want a a deeper insight. |
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Handbook for travelers in Spain |
Richard Ford - Handbook for travelers
in Spain - published 1845. Another online source. This work
is referenced by many later authors when they talk about the
history of early Spain. He writes with intimate knowledge of
Spain, and also with a note of satire. A quote from his account
on bullfighting:
"All the streets or open spaces near the outside of the arena
are a spectacle. The merry mob, always on the scene, like the
chorus in a Greek play, is everything. The excitement of these
salamanders under a burning sun, and their thirst for the blood
of bulls is fearful. It is the bird-lime with which the devil
catches many a male and female soul. There is no sacrifice even
of chastity, no denial which they will not undergo to save money
for the bull-fight........The profession of bull-fighter is very
low-caste in Spain, although the champions are much courted by
some young nobles, like our blackguard boxers, and are the pride
and darlings of all the lower classes. Those killed on the spot
are denied the burial rites, as dying without confession.
Springing from the dregs of the people, they are eminently
superstitious |
|
Personal Accounts or a combination of
personal and historical |
|
Order from Us |
Susan Alcorn's Camino
Chronicle: Walking to Santiago - Our book. I'm biased but
think it's good. Susan has woven her journal entries with essays
that enrich the book with glimpses of contemporary culture,
historical insights and legends from ancient times, and emails
as we were shaken by the happenings of 9/11. |
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Amazon.UK |
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Amazon.CA |
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Sue Kenney - Sue Kenney's My Camino. This book on her Camino experience
can be found on Amazon as well as her
website.
Sue's description is: "It's a true story
about the spiritual journey of a woman confronting her deepest
fear". I finished reading it and would add that it's a fine adventure tale and a worthy
addition to the modern pilgrim accounts of the Camino.
Particularly for those of you who are thinking about pilgrimage
in the off season months, this will give you a flavor for that
different experience. |
| Amazon.UK |
| Amazon.CA |
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Sue Kenney - Confessions
Of A Pilgrim. Sue Kenney's first camino was in the winter of
2001. Several years later, in the midst of writing her My
Camino book, she felt drawn to walk the Camino again, on a
different route. This book is a result of that walk. You will
hear something about the creation of the first book, but mostly
the intensely personal account of her journey, and the search
for the recipient of the Eagle Feather. |
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Amazon.UK |
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Amazon.CA |
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Elyn Aviva - Following the Milky Way - A
Pilgrimage on the Camino de Santiago - 2nd edition. This is a
combination of day by day trail journal and historical guide
based on Elyn's 1982 pilgrimage - a more primitive and demanding
experience than faced by current pilgrims. An introduction to
the 2nd edition covers the elapsed 20 years and discusses some
of the pre Christian Camino legends. Good reading and place by
place historical information. For me, more of a read before or
after rather than carry with you book. |
| Amazon.UK |
| Amazon.CA |
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Conrad Rudolph - Pilgrimage To The End Of The World. This has a disconcertingly accurate capture of the feelings and experiences of the long distance Camino walker. He started from Le Puy and walked 1000 miles to Santiago. This is a small book, 1st chapter on the early pilgrimage, 2nd his stories, impressions, feelings, 3rd b&w photos with lots of text. 4th is the how to part. Chapters 2 & 3 really brought back memories. |
| Amazon.UK |
| Amazon.CA |
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Lee Hoinacki - El Camino - in 1993 at the age of 65, this
author set out on the Camino with little preparation. This
is his story. A day by day account, a lot of detail and a lot of
thoughts. His body may have been giving him pain, but didn't
stop him from commenting freely on a variety of subjects. He
initially trained to be a priest and this training shows through
- a more faith based pilgrimage than other accounts. |
| Amazon.UK |
| Amazon.CA |
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Kerry Egan - Fumbling: A Pilgrimage
Tale of Love, Grief, and Spiritual Renewal on the Camino de
Santiago. The author has a way with words, a book you read
for pleasure, or after your pilgrimage to relive the
experiences. Thirty one episodes. Not a daily journal, a roughly
sequential series of episodes and essays of the Camino
experience. |
| Amazon.UK |
| Amazon.CA |
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Cees Nooteboom - Roads To Santiago: A Modern-Day
Pilgrimage Through Spain. Only a few words about the Camino,
but richly woven observations on the history of Spain, told by a
modern traveler. If you love history, or love Spain, save quite
a few evenings for leisurely reading of this classic. Translated
from the Dutch. |
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Amazon.UK |
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Jack Hitt - Off the Road - This 1994 book of a
writer's Camino walk came out in paperback in 2005, so I finally
read it. The author is clearly a storyteller, and you get
detailed glimpses of fellow travelers. Also includes enough
history so that I found myself skimming through it to get to the personal
parts. |
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Jim and Eleanor Clem - Buen Camino.
A enjoyable day to day account of their hike in 2003 - over 160
photos help the reader visualize the highlights of each day.
This is one of the few Camino accounts where most of the nights
are spent in small hotels. They have a small but good forward on
preparation. I enjoyed their daily accounts but the highlight
for me was the well composed photos. This is a new edition. I
have just seen the original edition where the photo printing
quality was not good. |
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Jim and Eleanor Clem -
El Camino de Santiago A Pictorial Pilgrimage. This is a
one of a kind book - more like a slide show, entirely of color
photos of the trail with simple captions, 8 1/2 by 11 on matte
paper, and the images have a watercolor quality - the
colors are not true to life, but over bright and pleasing to the
eye. Look at the cover and you will have a good idea of what the
images in the book are like. |
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Joyce Rupp - Walk in a Relaxed
Manner: Life Lessons from the Camino. The reflections of
this Catholic sister, as she walks the Camino with friend who
was the semi retired priest of her parish. The journey of these
two people of faith met with all the challenges the Camino can
offer. Joyce started out as what I call an overachiever, and Tom
as a steadying influence. I enjoyed this thoughtful book. A
couple concepts stuck in my brain from chapters of this book.
Enjoy existential friendships. Return a positive for a
negative. Negative things do happen, but Joyce would make a
determined effort to see the positive - a concept I accept, but
sometimes have difficulty applying. |
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Arthur Boers - The Way Is Made by
Walking: A Pilgrimage Along the Camino De Santiago. I saw favorable comments on some blogs,
and just recently read it. The
author is a pastor and is among the fifty percent of pilgrims
doing the walk for religious purposes. His faith comes through
clearly, and I think that active Christians would particularly
enjoy this search for spiritual renewal. |
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Tim Moore - Travels with My Donkey :
One Man and His Ass on a Pilgrimage to Santiago. This
irreverent British travel writer has a style a la Bill Bryson. A
good story if you do not a little bit of poking fun. Some
similarities to Jack Hitt's tale. |
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Babette Gallard - Riding the Milky Way,
A Journey of Discovery to Santiago. I guarantee you will not
have a sense of déjà vu when reading this account. Very much a
story of horses and riders, and secondarily a story of a Camino
journey. The author has a sense of humor, and you will enjoy the
way they overcome trials and tribulations. If you are thinking
of taking a four footed beast to Santiago, this is a must,
otherwise it is good entertainment. |
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Edward Stanton - Road of Stars to
Santiago. Fluent in Spanish, and a scholar of Spain, this
professor of Spanish faces a time of when life's pressures
demanded that he walk to Compostela. Written in first person
present tense, he carries you along with his day to day
adventures and encounters, and gives you a flavor of an earlier
Camino, before the popularity of today. This book, published in
1994, doesn't give the year he walked, but it has the sound of
those who walked in the late 80s or early 90s. This book has a
cover endorsement by James Michener, who's book Iberia is
a favorite of mine. |
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Ben Nimmo - Pilgrim Snail: Busking to
Santiago. In nine months the author walked 2000 miles from
Canterbury to Santiago in memory of a murdered woman. I
thoroughly enjoyed this. Most of the book is about the period he
is walking before St. Jean. He carries a trombone
throughout the journey, playing for a couple of worthy causes.
This apparently is called busking in the UK. He gets mostly 5 star reviews on Amazon.uk though I would paraphrase one as saying niceness to
the point of excess. |
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Mary Wallis - Among the Pilgrims:
Journeys to Santiago de Compostela. I haven't read this yet
- overspent my book budget, but from what I can glean from
Amazon's search the book, it should be interesting. The author
has a PhD in English Literature, so I am expecting quality
prose. |
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Robert Ward - All The Good Pilgrims.
This is one of the best Camino books I have read in years.
Stories from the author's fifth Camino journey. The author
speaks French and Spanish fluently, so talks to everyone, and
you follow a cast of characters across Spain, rather than just
the author. Paperback not
yet in Amazon US, but search for author and title, and you will
find a couple of hardback copies. Amazon.ca will ship directly
to the US. I think the shipping to the US is about $8. |
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Jane Christmas - What the psychic Told
The pilgrim. An acerbic sense of humor and a somewhat
irreverent attitude mark this midlife adventure. Approaching
fifty, and an empty nest provoked a plan to walk te Camino. Word
got out, and friends of friends asked to go, leading to a group
of ten fifty-ish women meeting for the first time in St. Jean.
Entertaining reading. |
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Kevin Todd - To The Field of Stars. A
Pilgrim's Journey to Santiago de Compostela. I'm just
starting to read this. Told by a Catholic priest, who takes
advantage of a multiyear assignment in Belgium, to fulfill a
long held dream. Will update when I finish |
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Tony Kevin - Walking The Camino a
modern pilgrimage to Santiago. This is a different route
than most take - From Granada on the Via Mozarabe and the Via de
la Plata to Santiago. As a former Australian diplomat, the
author has an educated commentary on the political history of
the country he walks through, as well as the pilgrim stories
found on any of the routes. |
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Cheri Powell - Seven Tips to Make the
Most of the Camino de Santiago. This book is a well thought
out guide on how to prepare for walking the Camino and how to
make the most of the experience. The 2nd edition came out in 2013 updated with photos and current links. |
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Peter Suter Der Plastik Pilger. In
German. In 1998 Peter Suter (Sand) walked from
Switzerland, where he lived, to Finisterre. From Spain he took a
container vessel to the USA and traveled by car and by Harley
Davidson across the country. His book shows on daily diagrams
the locations, distances, altitudes. Starting from Einsiedeln in
Switzerland to Geneva - Le Puy - Roncesvalles - Leon - Santiago
- Finisterre. Each day is described in a diary and in
chronological order you find mixed in personal thoughts, little
stories about encounters on the way and last but not least a lot
of beautiful photographs. Parallel to the book he created a list
of all villages, cities and towns on the way, with information
about hotels and refugios. The book can be downloaded for
personal use from
http://www.petersand.us/walk.html or ordered from
http://www.woaverlag.ch/6_bookpages/plapi.html |
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Hape Kerkeling - Ich
bin dann mal weg: Meine Reise auf dem Jakobsweg (Gebundene
Ausgabe) -
I'M OFF THEN: My Travels Along the Camino De Santiago. This
is the German bestseller on the Camino. I |
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Roger and Nancy Rhoades - Santiago de
Compostella - - Journal of Our Camino. This understated narrative is Roger's journal from their April 2004 Camino walk,
supplemented with insets on the history along the way. Roger lays out the day by day facts of their not easy trip, and you get some glimpses of the tensions that come up. I'd like to have heard more from Nancy. Couples considering the Camino could get some pointers from this book..
This is available as an Ebook at
http://www.ebookmall.com/ebook/191449-ebook.htm - it
originally was paperback, so you may find a copy somewhere, but
not in Amazon. |
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Fiction |
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Elyn Aviva - Following the Milky Way - A
Pilgrimage on the Camino de Santiago - 2nd edition. This is a
combination of day by day trail journal and historical guide
based on Elyn's 1982 pilgrimage - a more primitive and demanding
experience than faced by current pilgrims. An introduction to
the 2nd edition covers the elapsed 20 years and discusses some
of the pre Christian Camino legends. Good reading and place by
place historical information. For me, more of a read before or
after rather than carry with you book. |
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Elyn Aviva - Dead End on the Camino. Light reading while you walk the Camino - tear off pages you read each day, if you need to save weight. This is a true mystery with dead bodies and beautiful women, but in addition you get detailed accurate information about the Camino history and legends, in a painless way. |
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Tracy Saunders - Pilgrimage and Hersey:
Don't Believe Everything They Tell You. I haven't read this.
The author walked the Camino in 1999, and was inspired to write
this a la
The Da Vinci Code style novel. Check Amazon for reviews by
readers. |
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Somewhat Camino Related and/or other
pilgrimage routes |
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Robert Ward - Virgin Trails.
Just finished this and enjoyed it. It is sort of an
esoteric subject, but I did find it interesting, and was
disappointed to finish it. An agnostic searches out holy
places depicting the Virgin Mary. Well received in religious
circles. |
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Brandon Wilson -
Along the Templar Trail:
Seven Million Steps for Peace - Brandon has walked the
Camino, but this book is about his walk for peace from France To
Jerusalem. Enjoyable Reading. |
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Brandon Wilson - Over the
Top & Back Again. Brandon and Cheryl hike the Via Alpina
across the Alps. A good read, especially for anyone who had done
any long distance walking. |
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Julie Burk & Neville Tencer -
An Italian Odyssey - Adventurers in the vein of Brandon
Wilson, Julie & Neville take on the Via Francigena, the medieval
pilgrimage route from France to Rome. We enjoyed the book as we
shared their difficulties. |
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Jon Vonhof - Fixing Your Feet - Jon
treats feet at ultra marathons and is the last word in blister
treatment and foot problems. |
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Peter Potterfield - Classic Hikes of
the World. A gorgeous book full of tempting hikes if the
Camino walk has infected you. Does not include the Camino. |
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Florence Chatzigianis - 26
Gorgeous Hikes on the Western Cote d'Azur. If you are doing
the Arles route in segments, you might spend some time in this
area near the start. Florence has done a beautiful guidebook,
with profiles, ease of use ratings, distance and time, and nice
photos. |
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Music or DVDs |
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Sue
Kenney"s Las Peregrinas |
Sue
Kenney returned to the Camino with a group of women friends, and
out of that trip came her documentary Las Peregrinas, the
Women Who Walk. Susan and I watched it, and thoroughly
enjoyed it. |
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Sue Kenney's Camino DVD |
Sue Kenney
made a winter pilgrimage, and has written eloquently about it,
as well as told her story on a well done CD Stone by Stone.
Listening to her cd is like sitting with another pilgrim and
enjoying their tales to background music. Click the link to her
Camino page with info on how to get the cd, as well as more of
her story. Be sure to click the article link on her page.
You can also listen to bits and order copies on
http://www.cdbaby.com/suekenney/ |
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Oliver Schroer's Camino
music CD |
Oliver
Schroer is a Canadian composer-violinist who walked the Camino
in May/June 2004, playing and recording in churches when
appropriate. I never realized how many different church bells
there are on the Camino, until I listened to this CD. The blend
of birds, bells and violin makes for a CD clearly unique to the
Camino. Something to add to your Camino memories. You can buy it
on his website
www.oliverschroer.com . |
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Mark Shea's The
Way DVD |
Mark
Shea is a one man film crew, producing documentary DVDs of
his travels. His most recent is The Way on his walk
across Spain on the Camino de Santiago. I haven't seen it, but
did look at the previews he has on his website, and he appears
to have done a good job. |
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Authors, Publishers, if you have a new English
language Camino book that you think is appropriate for this
list, please send a review copy to us - address on the Contact
Us page |
Spain is just the end point of the trail. There are trails from all parts of Europe, that merge as they go into Spain. The Spanish part of the trail is about 450 miles. The pilgrims today do it for various motives - religious, spiritual, other personal reasons. Do read Nancy Frey's book for a good sense of who the modern day pilgrims are and why they do it.
