Bill Bryson - A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail

With his offbeat sensibility, his eye for the absurd, and his laugh-out-loud sense of humor, Bryson recounts his confrontations with nature at its most uncompromising over his five-month journey along the Appalachian Trail in this "New York Times" bestseller.

The Appalachian Trail trail stretches from Georgia to Maine and covers some of the most breathtaking terrain in America- majestic mountains, silent forests, sparking lakes. If you're going to take a hike, it's probably the place to go. And Bill Bryson is surely the most entertaing guide you'll find. He introduces us to the history and ecology of the trail and to some of the other hardy (or just foolhardy) folks he meets along the way- and a couple of bears. Already a classic, A Walk in the Woods will make you long for the great outdoors (or at least a comfortable chair to sit and read in).

Bryson is a very funny writer who could wring humor from a clammy sleeping bag. 

The Philadelphia Inquirer
Short of doing it yourself, the best way of escaping into nature is to read a book like A Walk in the Woods,

- The New York Times
A terribly misguided, and terribly funny tale of adventure.... The yarn is choke-on-your-coffee funny.

- The Washington Post
Bill Bryson could write an essay about dryer lint or fever reducers and still make us laugh out loud. -

Chicago Sun-Times
Delightful. - The Plain Dealer
It's great adventure, on a human sacle, with survuivable discomforts, and, happily, everybody goes home afterwards.

- Times Picayune