Bøker av Kim Letson

Treading Ancient TrailsSeeking solace after the death of her husband, Kim Letson discovers a passion for long- distance walking. Through historical and cultural prisms, accompanied by memories, curiosity, and friends, Letson connects ancient and modern journeys. TheCoast to Coast, Cornish Coastal Path, and Ridgeway in England offer opportunities for adventure. As a pilgrim, she explores a Portuguese Camino from Porto to Santiago, the Pilgrims‿ Way from Winchester to Canterbury, and then the Via Francigena from Canterbury to Rome. Readers share both the wonders and challenges of the journeys, from mountain passes to wind-swept beaches, from Gothic cathedrals to mysterious stone henges. Kim Letson has created a curative elixir with Canterbury and Other Tales, a sumptuous blend of adventure-memoir, escape, loss and healing shared in concise, engaging vignettes. Letson‿s prose shuttles us into each trek, as though granting exclusive peeks into the author‿s personal travel diary. A series of stories you won‿t want to end. Bill Arnott ‿ poet and bestselling author.  This book vividly brings back the joys of walking and riding many of the same pathways and facing some of the same challenges which Letson presents with unvarnished candour. While the journeys do not all carry the title of pilgrimage, they all share the pilgrim sense of an inner search ‿ a need to fill the void of the tragic loss of her husband and mother with both a rationale for her own existence and her relationship with the world.  Weary with toil, I haste me to my bed, The dear repose for limbs with travel tired; But then begins a journey in my head, To work my mind, when body‿s work‿s expired: William Shakespeare, “Sonnet 27,â€? 1609 Paul Chinn ‿ author of the Lightfoot Guidebooks. Kim Letson has done it again. In this latest collection of journeys, she shares intimate moments, challenges of the terrain, encounters with both fellow travellers and those who host pilgrims such as her. Walking alongside shadows of the past, she describes intriguing details and the broad sweep of historical context for her travels and surroundings. Her insights are often humorous and sometimes wry, but it is her accomplishments and tenacity which leave us in awe and just a little envious. Christine Dickinson ‿ historian and author. Like their namesake, these tales are much more than a guided tromp across some of Europe‿s best treks and pilgrimages. They are also reflections on love, friendship, loss and what it means to be human. Letson shares lyrical glimpses of the landscapes and history she encounters: the uphill grinds, the wet boots, the soaring cathedrals and sweeping views. In her deft hands we are changed. Jeanette Taylor ‿ historian and author.  Â

In the Footsteps of a Roman Legion  - Walking the Via Egnatia (2021)On a blistering September morning in 2016, intrepid friends in their sixties âEUR" Kim and Pat âEUR" set off on foot from DurrÃ's, Albania towards Istanbul, Turkey. Tracing the route of a Roman road, the Via Egnatia, they dedicate their endeavour to raising funds for refugee relief. Owing to a guidebook that overstates amenities, the trek becomes more challenging than expected. As they negotiate hurdles, test their endurance, and encounter human smugglers and feral dogs, an indomitable sense of humour, a personified GPS, and an imagined Roman legionnaire see them through daily adventures. The Via Egnatia holds over two thousand years of stories - of soldiers, merchants, farmers, refugees and travellers.  And this is a gripping one âEUR" two travellers (sometimes three?) meet both generous hospitality and surprising hostility with resilience, cold beer and hot coffee. Atlas in one hand and this book in the other - I was transported! Evelyn Gillespie, owner Laughing Oyster Bookshop, Comox Valley. Fun, funny, and endlessly thought-provoking, Kim Letson pulls no punches as she explores some of the bumpier corners of humanity, all while finding the time to celebrate lifeâEUR(TM)s small, simple pleasures. If you like the idea of lacing up your shoes to embark on a grand adventure from the comforts of your favourite reading chair, you couldnâEUR(TM)t pick a more capable guide than Letson. Brimming with passion for the road less travelled, Kim Letson has written a page-turner. Joshua Levy, CBC/QWF Writer in Residence 2018, winner of the CBC/QWF Fiction Prize, Prairie Fire Nonfiction Prize, CNFC/Carte Blanche Nonfiction Prize, Grain Fiction Prize, and SLS Nonfiction Prize, poet.  Kim Letson first presented her Via Egnatia journey in various draft forms to our writing group. Now, in this compelling book, we accompany her and Pat as they tramp through three Balkan states on their way to Turkey. Readers will learn about AlbaniaâEUR(TM)s concrete bunkers as the adventurers endure blisters, encounter poisonous vipers, vicious dogs, human traffickers and armed helicopters before finally relaxing in a steaming Istanbul hammam. Thank you, Kim, for including us on your intrepid walk. Janet Miller, past-president Comox Valley WriterâEUR(TM)s Society, author.

The Journey Continues ... Traversing Canada, rounding Cape Horn, riding the Patagonian Pampas and Mongolian wilds. From Greek Islands to North Cape, through Thailand or along the Silk Road, Letson's journeys reflect her curiosity and adventurous spirit. Readers meet characters imagined and real: ancestral ghosts, the author's intrepid parents, lighthouse keepers, an Auschwitz survivor, gauchos, Roma and nomads. Set within historic and literary contexts, Soul of a Nomad shares sixty-five years of journeys and revelations. Evocative descriptions nestle amongst hair-raising anecdotes, every page encouraging the reader to explore further. The English word nomad derives from the ancient Greek , referring to those who roam or wander in search of pasture for their livestock. Modern-day nomad, Kim Letson also searches - always seeking new vistas and fresh perspectives - on a lifelong journey that never fails to delight the reader. James Deutsch, George Washington University lecturer, folklorist, author. All lives are special, but some are more special than others. This delightful autobiography encompasses a life, a career and best of all, an exciting guide to those who are more interested in "otherness" than in exporting and expecting Canadian values when abroad. With boisterous good spirits and self-depreciating humour, Letson brings us with her to many of the world's "roads less travelled" and describes for us the good, the bad and the ugly. Rick Steeves, watch out! Chris Harker, safari guide, fellow adventurer, author. Soul of a Nomad takes us from the Yangykala Canyon of Turkmenistan to the Alaskan Coast and from Florence in Tuscany to Ushuaia in Patagonia. At every juncture, Letson reflects on the significance of place, time and those she encounters. She describes her diverse travels through the eyes of a child, a young soldier on a peace keeping mission and an intrepid retiree. Ever the cautious interloper as she considers her role as "Other" and "outsider," Letson is a keen observer of new ways, and new cultures. A highly recommended read for all observers of humanity and those with an interest in travel. Christine Dickinson, historian, author. Soul of a Nomad recounts a lifetime of exploration in remote corners of the world. Rich with sensory memories of the author's childhood in snowy Ontario and family sojourns in England, as well as glimpses of her close bond with her parents, this is the story of how one person grows into the habit and practice of adventure. Going out to meet the world requires courage, flexibility, and humility. Every encounter described by Letson reveals the dual nature of her learning: while other cultures always have much to teach her, the journey is also a mirror of her own self-discovery. This memoir is an interesting blend of many different genres, as Letson also weaves history into her accounts of different countries and regions. For the reader, the pleasure of following the author on her adventures is akin to watching a child grow up to be fearless and confident, full of delight in the mystery and varied beauty of the world. Margo McLoughlin, storyteller, teacher, author.

Journeying at Home and Away Pomegranates at 4800 Metres is a vibrant tapestry woven with themes of love, courage and generosity. Kim Letson‿s husband, Mike, surrounds her with his many gifts of love, including his courage in the face of death. At a freezing teahouse in the high Himalaya, Letson‿s porter presents her with a bowl of glowing red pomegranate seeds, as astonished silence spreads throughout the crowded room. At a beach house in Zanzibar, three little boys climb palm trees to bring her fresh coconuts, and their mother bakes a cake to be shared with them. In return for a handful of dates in the desert sands of Morocco, a gentle camel complies with her desires that he kneel. While kayaking in a storm off Vancouver Island, Letson‿s friend, Pat, demands she find the courage to “come in on a wave.â€? This becomes a metaphor as Letson learns acceptance from her Nepali guide, Tendi Sherpa, and navigates her way through loss, grief and transforms into an intrepid nomad. At times gut-wrenching, at times spellbinding, this heartfelt memoir is a powerful reminder of the heights to which curiosity, kindness and bravery can carry us. Bravo Kim! Bruce Kirkby, adventurer, author. Kim Letson‿s descriptions of the lands she journeys to and the people she encounters are vivid and evocative. She carries her readers with her, from the depths of her despair, through torrential West Coast rain, across the vast Serengeti, over Himalayan suspension bridges and into the Moroccan Sahara. Small of stature, she‿s tough enough to defy risk, endure pain and, most importantly, to grow in self-awareness and confidence.David Esson Young, ship‿s master, author.