Book review: The Road Headed West – A Cycling Adventure Through North America By Leon McCarron
There´s no doubt in my case that it was books which made me choose this odd life and I really need to be surrounded by books to feel really content with life. For this reason I have written two articles about books I recommend:
1. 10 best books about adventure and travel to read over Christmas
2. 5 most complete travel books ever
And lately I have been given a lot of opportunities to review other people´s books and enjoy it immensely, so, please, if you have a book you want reviewed, please send it to me.
The Road Headed West
– A Cycling Adventure Through North America
By
Leon McCarron
(Summersdale)
After spending a year in the UK, a major part trying to figure out the English and the Expedition scene, I have ended up with 2 favorites, Tom Allen and Leon McCarron. The way they write books and do their documentaries differs in many ways from the standard and very predictable English scene, which honestly is boring me in its way to be exactly the same. I wasn´t surprised when I found out that they weren´t public school kids, but two ordinary lads who had gone through the state school system, which means it is much, much harder making your way on to both the British and international scene. I also see I have a lot more in common with these two lads, mainly due to my Swedish upbringing and my very humble beginnings. They talk the same language as me.
For this reason, I really enjoyed Leon´s first book about his first journey, when he clearly states that he seems himself as a traveler on a bicycle, not a cyclist. I spent 7.5 years in the saddle and I never looked upon myself as a cyclist, but a traveler on bike, where meeting people were more important than embellishing and overdoing the physical challenge. Just like Leon.
Personally, I think this is the model book for the first time adventurer on a bicycle. it tells you why Leon decided to do it, the obstacles he came across since he was a traveler, not a cyclist, his thoughts about life as it develops and finishes off with a summary what to bring and so on at the end.
The only drawback is the lack of photos. I understand it has to do with the price, but Leon is such a good photographer, it would have made his book even a bigger gift to the world.
Leon claims the book doesn´t cost more than a pint of lager in any pub in London and so I´d suggest on a rainy day, instead of going to the pub, buy Leon´s book and it will open your eyes in a way a pint of lager never will do!
