Another book. . . or two . . .

An Amazon package arrived in the mail today with yet another book:  Pilgrimage to the End of the World: the road to Santiago de Compostela, by Conrad Rudolph.  It took me completely by surprise, as I didn't remember ordering it at first.  Apparently during a weak moment the fact that the author was a professor of medieval art and chair of the art history department at the University of California, Riverside must have interested me.  Unhappily the photos contained in the third section of the book are in black and white, as this is the paperback edition, but the first section, focusing on  pilgrimage during the Middle Ages, is quite engaging.  I'm already more than halfway through the book.

And I just downloaded one last?? title:  To the Field of Stars: A Pilgrim's Journey to Santiago de Compostela, by Kevin A. Codd.  This one is by a Catholic priest, so it should give me another perspective on the pilgrimage route.  I also tried to download the Kindle edition of the French language  Immortelle randonée : Compostelle malgré moi by Jean-Christophe Rufin, but found it was not available for download from the US.  This is the second time I have tried to download a French Kindle version from Amazon.fr but have been unable to do so.  I will have to try again from Paris in October before I leave for Santiago. The site will allow me to buy the hardback book, but it will take too long to get here from France, and will certainly weigh too much to carry with me.

Jean-Christophe Rufin is both a practicing physician and a writer, and since 2008, a member of the Académie française.  His 800-mile journey to Santiago de Compostela was via the  northern route, through the Basque country, rather than the frequently traveled "French" one, or "Camino frances".

Two other books I'm reading that have nothing to do with MY Camino are Hannah Green's Little Saint, about Sainte Foy ["Fides" or "Faith"] from Conques in south-central France.  The twelve-year-old early fourth century saint refused to deny her faith, was betrayed by her father, and beheaded; her relics later venerated. I actually read this book more than a decade ago, but decided to re-read portions of it as a refresher.

And then a lovely coffee table book which I ordered for Montgomery County Public Libraries a few years ago, Conques, by French art historian Jean-Claude Fau, with photographs of the village by Pascal Moulin. The St. Foy abbey-church in Conques was a popular stop for medieval pilgrims on their way to Santiago de Compostela.  Jean-Claude Fau is credited by Hannah Green in her book as being a historian, author and expert on the region, whom she got to know while spending time in Conques researching her subject.

Now I've got so many books mentioned in this blog that I'm beginning to think I should have named it "A librarian's Camino de Santiago" or even "A librarian's guide to the Camino!"  I think I mentioned earlier that I have photo-copied the relevant pages (two-sided) of the so-called "bible", John Brierley's A Pilgrim's Guide to the Camino de Santiago: St. Jean--Roncesvalles--Santiago, with its helpful maps and charts, to save weight, and will be leaving the book behind.

And I've downloaded some nice additional hiker/biker trail maps from MontgomeryParks.org for Rock Creek Trail, a 14.5 mile trail which starts in Rock Creek Regional Park (around Lake Needwood) and continues all the way through Washington, D.C.  As soon as the weather cools off a bit again I'll be able to venture out sporting my backpack and new hiking boots.  I've already tested out the areas around Lake Frank and Lake Needwood (sans boots and backpack) which serve my purpose quite well. The best part is the convenience, as they practically start in my own back yard!  

http://www.montgomeryparks.org/PPSD/ParkTrails/trails_MAPS/trailmap_pdfs/RCreek_trail.pdf 

Lake Frank

On the trail with Noisette and Jacques

Lake Needwood

Last month I even felt ambitious enough to join members of the local chapter of American Pilgrims on the Camino for their hike and picnic in the Patapsco State Park near Baltimore, and actually wore the hiking boots on that occasion. The APOC group plans walking/hiking events throughout the year, so I may join them again in the future after my Camino experience.