Living on Wilderness Time

Rating:
Summary: A delightful, inspiring, fun, meaningful story
Review: Living on Wilderness Time is a book that is wonderfully written, inspiring, funny, instructive, thought-provoking, and a page turner. The portraits Walker draws of interesting places and people in our country are engaging and alluring, and her message of following one's heart and paying attention to the space around us is thought-provoking without being preachy. It is a great read that will leave you and your environment a better place.

Rating:
Summary: Made me get off my bum
Review: Melissa Walker was 51 in 1993 when she realized she needed to "go to the wilderness." She suffered from "hurry sickness." Having raised two children and been a college professor for 20 years, her life was crammed full, jam-packed, harried and hectic.

Walker decided to learn about the preservation of wild places, and to do so, she did what so many of us dream of - she packed up, hit the road and DID IT. She writes, "In 1993 I took off from home on the first of three solitary trips extending over a 15-month period and totaling more than 200 days. Living on Wilderness Time grew out of events during that time."

Although Ms. Walker is brutally honest about the aching desperation one must feel for our earth, there is inspiration here for all of us. I, for one, not only feel it's my obligation to begin educating myself about channels for DOING something to help Mother Earth, but I am excited about it. I may not be able to live in the wilderness for 200 days, but I can certainly learn from Melissa Walker's wilderness experiences. And who knows? I may even try to live a little on wilderness time.

Rating:
Summary: Off the Clock
Review: This excellent book is about a real-life adventure that begins shortly after Melissa Walker has a dream about losing a race with time. The disturbing dream convinces Walker to short-circuit a mid-life crisis by taking a sabbatical from the clock. She sets out alone to explore America's wild places at a leisurely pace, which she calls "wilderness time." She hikes rugged and sometimes dangerous trails, soaks up spectacular scenery, and sleeps outdoors with mountain lions, grizzly bears, and armed poachers nearby. She meets all kinds of people, some inspiring, some quirky, and some scary, and she survives a variety of hazardous situations. She faces her fears, examines her life, ponders the complexities of the "man and woman thing," and forges an intimate relationship with the environment. Her writing style is straightforward, original, and engaging. The tone of the book is optimistic without offering bumper sticker or pop-psychology solutions to complicated problems.

Rating:
Summary: Off the Clock
Review: This excellent book is about a real-life adventure that begins shortly after Melissa Walker has a dream about losing a race with time. The disturbing dream convinces Walker to short-circuit a mid-life crisis by taking a sabbatical from the clock. She sets out alone to explore America's wild places at a leisurely pace, which she calls "wilderness time." She hikes rugged and sometimes dangerous trails, soaks up spectacular scenery, and sleeps outdoors with mountain lions, grizzly bears, and armed poachers nearby. She meets all kinds of people, some inspiring, some quirky, and some scary, and she survives a variety of hazardous situations. She faces her fears, examines her life, ponders the complexities of the "man and woman thing," and forges an intimate relationship with the environment. Her writing style is straightforward, original, and engaging. The tone of the book is optimistic without offering bumper sticker or pop-psychology solutions to complicated problems.

Rating:
Summary: Awesome Read!!
Review: This is an awesome book. I just finished reading Bill Bryson's book about hiking the AT, and I am preparing for my annual trek to Montana to spend 2 weeks in the backcountry. Being from Atlanta myself it is refreshing to know that there are people out there who feel the same way as I do. Not wanting to shun society, but feeling a need to get out by yourself in the wilderness to see what you are really made of. I am addicted to the wide open spaces out west and I cannot wait to explore some of the areas in South Dakota she described in her book on my drive out west. I recommend this book for anyone looking to get a first hand description of what it is like being on your own in new territory. What a remarkably brave and independant woman!!