The Old Ways: A Journey on Foot (Landscapes)

The acclaimed author of The Wild Places examines the subtle ways we are shaped by the landscapes through which we move

In this exquisitely written book, which folds together natural history, cartography, geology, and literature, Robert Macfarlane sets off to follow the ancient routes that crisscross both the landscape of the British Isles and its waters and territories beyond. The result is an immersive, enthralling exploration of the voices that haunt old paths and the stories our tracks tell. Macfarlane’s journeys take him from the chalk downs of England to the bird islands of the Scottish northwest, from Palestine to the sacred landscapes of Spain and the Himalayas. He matches strides with the footprints made by a man five thousand years ago near Liverpool, sails an open boat far out into the Atlantic at night, and commingles with walkers of many kinds, discovering that paths offer a means not just of traversing space but also of feeling, knowing, and thinking.

• The Wild Places (Landscapes)
• Landmarks (Landscapes)
• Mountains of the Mind: Adventures in Reaching the Summit
• The Lost Words
• The Living Mountain: A Celebration of the Cairngorm Mountains of Scotland (Canons)
• The Gifts of Reading
• The Peregrine (New York Review Books Classics)
• Home Ground: A Guide to the American Landscape
• Wanderlust: A History of Walking
• On Trails: An Exploration