The Old Ways
A Journey on Foot
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The Old Ways
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Narrated by:
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Roy McMillan
About this listen
The unabridged, digital audiobook edition of Robert MacFarlane’s The Old Ways, a major new book from one of Britain’s finest nature writers about landscape and the human heart. Read by Roy McMillan.
In The Old Ways, Robert Macfarlane sets off from his Cambridge home to follow the ancient tracks, holloways, drove-roads, and sea paths that form part of a vast network of routes crisscrossing the British landscape and its waters, and connecting them to the continents beyond. The result is an immersive, enthralling exploration of the ghosts and voices that haunt old paths, of the stories our tracks keep and tell, of pilgrimage and ritual, and of song lines and their singers. Above all this is a book about people and place: about walking as a reconnoiter inwards, and the subtle ways in which we are shaped by the landscapes through which we move.
Told in Macfarlane’s distinctive and celebrated voice, the book folds together natural history, cartography, geology, archaeology, and literature. His tracks take him from the chalk downs of England to the bird-islands of the Scottish northwest, and from the disputed territories of Palestine to the sacred landscapes of Spain and the Himalayas. Along the way he walks stride for stride with a 5000-year-old man near Liverpool, follows the ‘deadliest path in Britain’, sails an open boat out into the Atlantic at night and crosses paths with walkers of many kinds - wanderers, wayfarers, pilgrims, guides, shamans, poets, trespassers, and devouts.
He discovers that paths offer not just means of traversing space, but also of feeling, knowing, and thinking. The old ways lead us unexpectedly to the new, and the voyage out is always a voyage inwards.
©2012 Robert Macfarlane (P)2012 Penguin AudioListeners also enjoyed...
What listeners say about The Old Ways
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- James Peck
- 17-01-19
Great inspection of what it is to walk!
Great but difficult to hear a couple of chapters. Heartily recommended for how Robert visits the idea of thoughts of senses through walking!
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 26-01-20
A must read/listen
A wonderful thought provoking step into incredible journeys on foot. Whether you love to walk or just love the thought of striding through nature . Loved it.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Jon
- 22-07-15
Evocative and inspirational
Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?
Yes
Takes one out of the humdrum of daily life into a world that is on our doorstep
What did you like best about this story?
Very evocative in its description of the routes and the writers personal experience and emotion whilst on them.
What about Roy McMillan’s performance did you like?
Caught the mood perfectly in his narration, measured but not tedious
Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?
Really enjoyed the routes and moments described for Scotalnd, the waterways round Skye and the Cairngorms
Any additional comments?
A great read and/listen
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7 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- keren cornelius
- 20-02-21
Like listening to a scratched cd.
Unfortunately the recording kept skipping like a scratched CD. Lovely book but the recording was faulty for me, I have no idea why.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- JOC
- 06-11-24
Capturing the poetry and magic of path
The Old Ways is so beautiful it literally made me groan at times. It is sublime, as is Robert Macfarline's appreciation of old ways.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
- M
- 23-02-13
Thoughtful and insightful
Could have done without the literature review at the beginning (first hour or so) but once this is dispensed with the author explores the concept of "old ways" in a fascinating and literary manner. Part adventure, part travelogue, part natural science. Hard to define, very enjoyable.
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13 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Debbie
- 08-01-16
Loved it !
Where does The Old Ways rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?
I listened to this on one rainy weekend and it brightened my mood no end.
What other book might you compare The Old Ways to, and why?
If you have any interest in nature or walking or history you 'll love it too.
What does Roy McMillan bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?
Really well narrated , his narration kept me listening
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5 people found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Bunnyhunt
- 12-01-20
loved it sometimes, sometimes found it tedious
I have a love hate relationship with this book. The poetic style of the writing sometimes blows me away but sometimes it is tedious. I think I would like to read it rather than listen. I found the reading style a little too posh for my taste. Going to Kindle store to look for the book 😊
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Chris D
- 13-02-20
A wonderful book, beautifully performed.
While I know I would always have loved this book, I do wonder how I would have responded to the audio version if it was not read (indeed performed) so perfectly.
A delightful experience.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Virtualpt
- 20-02-23
Wonderful
Everything about this book is wonderful, poetic, meditative. An enjoyable journey, perfectly narrated. I wish all narrators were this good.
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