Customer Reviews

Cycling Into Your Soul

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2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

If Cycling Into Your Soul was simply a travelogue, it would be highly entertaining and of interest to anyone with a sense of adventure. If it was a self-help book, it could easily open one's eyes to the sense of wonder and strength within each of us. However, it is both of these and much more as well.

The book details the journies, both external and internal, of a woman who celebrated her 50th birthday on a bike, travelling around the world, alone. The author, Marg Archibald, weaves a rich tapestry of sights and sounds seen through the eyes of a strong, independant person facing the unknown with only her inner conviction that people are inherently good. The travels are unique and definitely out of the way. The people met are the good, the bad, the beautiful and the ugly, in reality, human beings.

It is Marg's journey into the depths of her soul that set this book far apart from any others. Throughout the journey she learned to trust her "spirit guide", what many of us would call intuition. This inner guide grew in stature as well as strength until it allowed her to face any adversity. This discovery is important to all of us in that it shows that we really know what to do in life, if we only let our basic strengths take over.

Cycling Into Your Soul left me jealous of Marg Archibald's accomplishments and, at the same time, exhilarated by the potential which can be found within. I would recommend this book highly to anyone facing a fork in life's road, or simply as great entertainment and insight.

I read Marg Archibald's book, 'Cycling Into Your Soul' immediately following a solo trip across Canada of 7900 kms. Her book touches deeply on the feelings that emerge when you face a challenge alone and have many hours to contemplate about the meaning of your own life in relation to the environment and people you encounter on the journey. I am seventy years old and was touched, as a man, by the ease with which Marg could convey her feelings (as I think only women can do easily) as they encounter new experiences that allow them to grow in spiritual maturity.There are far too many cycling books that talk only of "gear ratios" and "good food" and what "you" should take along or leave behind. It was a pleasure to read a book that gives a lot of attention to personal feelings and what cycling can do for the mental side of our lives quite aside from the obvious physical benefits. The vignettes that make each chapter cover a number of different countries and as an ex-New Zealander I felt at home with her description from her experience of that country. What stands out strongly in her book is the sincerity and willingness to share her deepest feelings which touched a chord in my own feelings because my experience showed that 98% of a long cycle trip is spent 'thinking' and the serendipitous events encountered
get more attention and have to be placed into a special context, compared to the daily events of a normal life. Congratulations Marg and I hope you continue writing about your experiences and feelings gained from cycling.

There are already a number of positive reviews of this book, but this is not one of them.

I found this book to be sorely in need of a good editor. As it is, this book is a stream of consciousness that meanders along, dragging the reader through too many unfinished currents.

It doesn't work well as travel writing because she lacks critical detail in many places.

It doesn't work well as a spiritual discussion because she is too shy as a writer and maybe too didactic as a moralist.

It doesn't work well as biycle literature because she doesn't talk much about bikes.

This novel is arranged as a series of vignettes. What it really needed was a strong editor who could see its disparate units and force the writer to come back with a cohesive narrative.

There are portions of the book that are interesting, but a reader might do well to hold back on the credit card information on this one because there are so many other excellent bicycle-travel-spiritual journey books out there.

I was disappointed at the outset with the quality of the writing. But I pushed forward hoping that the story itself would be redeeming. I did find her occasional discussions of her philosophical approach to travel to be of interest. But overall, this book did not flow, and did not hold my interest. After about 35 pages, I decided that I did not want to spend my time pushing through this book. I agree with another reviewer who commented that this book needed an editor. That was apparent after reading only a couple of pages. If I could do it over, I wouldn't buy this book. It does have a nice title and cover though. Marg Archibald probably has a great story to tell, but this book was not an effective vehicle in my opinion.

Whether one enjoys this book depends on what one is looking for. I found it to be a great travelogue and a lot of fun to read, with the author detailing her journey across various regions of Europe and Asia. I've read other bicycle-touring books that seem to be focused as much on technical information and problems as the journey. If that's the type of book one likes, this isn't it. There is very little technical in the book; it focuses on the journey. There's a little 'new age' style where the author speaks with her ancestors but it really doesn't shade the book as a whole. I found it charming.

The most enjoyable aspect of this book, as opposed to so many other bicycling books, is that this author obviously was no jock trying to race against time, or anything else. She was in her middle age, as I am. She certainly didn't impress me as a world athlete, just a fairly ordinary person on a fairly extra-ordinary journey!

Easy, fun, and pleasant reading, recommended for all ages.

Cycling Into Your Soul is a book not just for cyclists, but for all people. For long-distance runners, back-country hikers, canoeists, parents, anyone who has ever let themselves be small and be touched by the wonder of life and become stronger for it.

The love that Marg Archibald speaks of in Cycling Into Your Soul seems to have infused it's pages. Each time I read it I am filled with a sense of joy. Her story is told in moments, feelings. Like her trip itself each experience can be enjoyed and left, or lingered over as your mood takes you. Each small story is entertaining to read, but each also offers something more. Many times Marg's words cause some not-quite-glimpsed insight to 'plunk' into place and I thrill at the thought 'Yes! I've known that too!'

Amid the rush and importance of everyday life Marg's story reminds me to hang on to my sense of wonder, to embrace, to accept, to try. It helps me believe that anything is possible. It leads me to look inward and consider how I might be a better person. Or, when I want it to be, it is a simple distraction to settle my mind before sleep.

I would (and often do) recommend Cycling Into Your Soul to anyone.

I have read several bike-travel books. Some seemed distanced and with a false sense of profesionalism to them. Marg's book is an honest and truly revealing look at her journey.

Everything I felt lacking in the writing of Anne Mustoe I found in Marg Archibald. She was honest, candid and very personal in the introspection, adventures, people and places along the way. I felt like I learned something as well as saw a snippet of her life and my own in the course of the book.

Let alone the fact that she wonderfully describes the trip itself, which a bunch of writers of this genre neglect. Everythign from the little struggles and physical triumphs to the wicked vistas and feeling what it's liek to be there.

As I'm sure you've read from the product explaination she was at a turning point in her life, and grabbed life by the horns and went off on a life changing journey out in the world and very much into herself.

She is wonderfully candid about her failings in relationships and her need to change things in her life, which I'm sure a lot of us can relate to.

It is really refeshing to see that she has made these changes since her trip in 97. She has gone on to publish three other books that I know of about cycle-travel in Ontario and Southern Alberta.

This is a wonderful book for the seasoned cyclist, I could relate to the rhythm and new identity that comes from a huge cycling trip; a person interested in introspection; or just a damn good story.

The book is easy to read and is organized in digestable journal entries. A campy and informal way of looking at the journey, no illusions of gandeur here.

Although it is hard to find at times, I would certainly recommend this book as a great trip on it's own or as a hand in planning one.
[She has offered to help ambitious people thinking about making a trek of their own]
So shell out and dig in.

There are travel books that take us to various countries and places and then travel books that take us to places inside ourselves. Marg Archibald has done both. I found it extraordinary how much Marg reveals of herself in her writings - her fears, her joys, her worries, her loves, her courage. I couldn't wait to see what next adventure she would encounter and deal with. The effect on me was liberating indeed. Being the same age as Marg and as strong a rider physically I know I could enjoy similar adventures if I can give up my desire to not go solo. This I did for three days this August and credit Cycling Into Your Soul for helping me on my way. My next plan is to cycle across Cuba in 2002. Read and enjoy!

"Cycling Into Your Soul" is a very special book that not only inspires the reader to dream about a journey of his or her own, but which also stirs the reader to action. The book traces the experiences of Marg Archibald as she sets out on her bike with the desire to circumnavigate the world in celebration of her fiftieth birthday. She knows that she will begin in St. Petersburg, Russia, but the details of where she will cycle are unplanned, and instead unfold according to inner need. The liberation from the constraints of time and imposed structure are relected in both the text and in the style of writing itself. The book is written as a series of vignettes and insights that vary in length from just a few lines to several pages. This allows the writer the freedom to share a wide variety of sometimes unrelated, but interesting and meaningful experiences and thoughts with the reader. It also serves to make the vastness of the journey across land and into self less daunting and more easily imaginable. The reader is left thinking, "I could do this too!" and is continually reassured that "obstacles" can be overcome if they are not viewed as such. As we follow Marg Archibald on her journey, she shows us that factors such as age, athleticism, work, money, language, culture, health, and dealing with the negativity of others need not inhibit us from pursuing our dreams. This is the perfect book to pack away in your panniers as you "cycle into your soul!"

Reading Cycling into Your Soul was an inspiration. It reminded me that anything is possible if you allow yourself to live life with vision and courage. Marg Archibald's book is not only an opportunity to think about other cultures but to examine the individual journey which each of us chooses to make. On a recent trip to Haida Gwaii, I met a young woman who had found Marg's cycling adventure inspiring. It appeals to young and old.

Win Barham