Santiago de Compostela: Journal of Our Camino

• Paperback - 13 July, 2005 - iUniverse, Inc.
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• By: Roger Rhoades and Nancy Rhoades
• ISBN: 0595360580

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Reviews by readers

A Journey of Love

I was totaly enthralled with the descriptions of Roger's and Nancy's camino that came from Roger's journal. Each day's hardships and accomplishments passed much too quickly for me, however. I really felt rather depressed when I realized they were nearing Santiago, which meant the book would be coming to a close. Roger's descriptions were so right on that I felt the weight of their packs, digging into their shoulders. I felt their struggle to face another day of rain, tempered, however, by the quaint villages and the faces and voices of the villagers. Sometimes it seemed that their great faith and the knowledge that a church lay up ahead with a Mass they could attend, was the spark that kept them going when their spirits were down.

The people they met, the sights they saw, the Masses they attended, the roads they traveled, all of this came pouring out of the pages and touched my heart.

Their book is a marvelous retelling of a journey of love.

This understated story had me reading between the lines

I'm glad I had the opportunity to read this book. It gave me the opportunity to once more recall and contrast our own experience.

The story of their April 2004 pilgrimage is told from Roger's point of view, based on his journal and supplemented with historical notes when appropriate. Nancy is a marathon runner, while Roger has to deal with a leg affected by childhood polio. Due to a limited schedule, their plan was to bus some of the central part of the Camino.

This understated story of a couple's Camino de Santiago pilgrimage had me reading between the lines. Reading through their Planning and Preparation chapter, I wince at the weight of their backpack, and expect to see problems in chapters to come.

After the introductory chapters the book is organized in journal sequence - a short chapter on the albergue where they stay, followed by a chapter on the trip to the next albergue. They are not long chapters - there are 126 pages of text.

Roger's journal approach is to lay out the facts and that method is successful in presenting the mood of the journey. This was not an easy trip. Rain was frequent. Blisters make their appearance and there are stresses with accommodations. The phrase "test of a marriage" popped up at least once, also "who's idea was this?", and there are a couple instances of them hiking some distance apart to maintain personal space - something all hiking couples can relate to.

I would like to have heard more from Nancy, and I would have liked a few pages with their thoughts after completing the trip.

If you are thinking about an April Camino walk, this book will give you some insight.

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