The Appalachian Trail - A Journey of Discovery [Paperback]

Jan D. Curran (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 1991

A narrative of Jan Currans' journey on the Appalachain Trail.

Product Details

• Paperback: 326 pages
• Publisher: Rainbow Books; First edition. edition (January 1, 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0935834664
• ISBN-13: 978-0935834666
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #573,636 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars A bad AT book is hard to find., January 27, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Appalachian Trail - A Journey of Discovery (Paperback)

I'm sorry. I just can't agree with the previous reviews. This is the worst AT book (by far) I've read.

I've probably read about 6 of them.

Anyway, it takes a lot of gall to write a book about hiking the AT when you haven't hiked the whole thing.

That's right. He doesn't finish. An AT memoir without the triumphal summit, no victory dance or witty last register entry. He just sort of stops.

But really, that's not such a shame. Lots of people don't finish (see Bryson), and a well written book of a shorter journey would be welcome. This isn't it.

Very poorly written, hackneyed, trite accounts of his inner battle to continue, and flowery ramblings concerning his spirituality made me squirm in my chair.

It was so bad it made me angry and I actually threw the book in the trash.

Of course, that's just my opinion.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Stay away if you're looking for inspiration!, March 19, 2008

By 

R. Vanwagner "Trailmix" (Arlington, VA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Appalachian Trail - A Journey of Discovery (Paperback)

In "The Appalachian Trail, a Journey of Discovery" his judgmental attitude toward fellow hikers (he seemed to consider himself superior to all others) really bothered me. His self-described 'type-A' personality made it impossible to like him, his references to his 'impressive' military career were mentioned too frequently... I'm former military and I grew tired of his inflated sense of self worth in this regard.

He also skipped a section of the AT (North of Damascus) and took the VA Creeper Trail and justified it by questioning the actual route of the AT as being tougher than it needed to be. This just really bothered me, and I kept reading just to see if he actually claimed to hike the whole thing at the end. Unfortunately this entailed buying part 2 which I cannot do.


I normally believe that if you don't have anything positive to say, keep your mouth shut! But this book affected me in such a negative way I felt compelled to share my pain. If you're looking for some inspirational reading to motivate you to hit the trails, save your money and don't buy this book.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Reality Check -- This Is Not Hollywood, April 6, 2001

By 

Randy Given (Manchester, CT USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Appalachian Trail - A Journey of Discovery (Paperback)

This is not a movie with forced humor and stunt people. A retired military man provides an involving recount of his AT hike. I have tried to read many books on the AT (some were unbearable, so I did not finish them). This was one of the few full-reads, and a good one at that. In comparison to all other books, I might give this a four-stars rating, but seeing how bad some of the competition is, I have to give it a five-stars rating. See you on the trails!