Joyce, Rachel "The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry"

Joyce, Rachel "The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry" - 2012

An easy read. Definitely. That is not always a good thing. Not in my eyes. However, it has its perks.

I am not much into small stories and this book is full of them. I always would like to know more of them, that's why I prefer really long novels. For example, on page 67, the "... tattooed young woman bawling beneath an upstairs window ... yelling 'Arran! I know you're there!'", I keep wondering why Arran won't let her in and what is going to happen to them. Or, one more, on page 72 "the woman who loves Jane Austen". As a faithful Jane Austen fan myself, I would have liked that to be elaborated a little more but all that is said is that she "has watched all her films". Watched all her films?! Yes, enough said.

The idea of this story is a good one, a man wanders across the United Kingdom in order to save a friend from dying from cancer. The characters have a background, even though that doesn't come out very often. Too many people Harold meets that are just passers-by, too little on the main characters.

I think what drew me to this novel was the map of the UK in the back of the book. I love maps. I think every book should have a map showing where the protagonists are all the time.

Other than that, this is a good chick lit, for people who don't want to think much while reading, it's entertaining. But I couldn't find anything more, nothing of the "magical, uplifting, moving, moving or touching sentiments" a lot of the reviewers thought they should mention.

Book Description:

"When Harold Fry nips out one morning to post a letter, leaving his wife hoovering upstairs, he has no idea that he is about to walk from one end of the country to the other. He has no hiking boots or map, let alone a compass, waterproof or mobile phone. All he knows is that he must keep walking. To save someone else's life."