The final installment was out this month, Walking on Water. (5/6/14) and this week was #3 on the NY Times best sellers. Many readers had to wait 5 years as each installment was published. I, on the other hand, didn't find our about this series until this year.
As not to introduce any spoilers, I'll just say that the protagonist, Alan, is on a walk from Seattle to Key West, in hopes of finding healing. He finds lots else along the way. When he was in our "neck of the woods," St. Louis and south through Memphis and Mississippi and on to Florida, it was interesting to read the "author's take" on our area. As this final book begins, Alan is about to enter Florida. From there it seemed to be a lot of where he slept and what he ate info. But, all in all, the series was a "clean" read---much more than a travelogue, as the following quotes will show. Evans is very "quo-TEA-ble
"It is better to be loved by one person who knows your soul than millions who don't even know your phone number." The Walk
“The assumption of time is one of humanity's greatest follies. We tell ourselves that there's always tomorrow, when we can no more predict tomorrow than we can the weather. Procrastination is the thief of dreams.” The Walk
“Some people in this world have stopped looking for beauty, then wonder why their lives are so ugly. Don't be like them. The ability to appreciate beauty is of God. Especially in one another. Look for beauty in everyone you meet, and you'll find it. Everyone carries divinity within them. And everyone we meet has something to impart.” Miles to Go
....grace is more than our destination, it is the journey itself, manifested in each breath and with each step we take. Road to Grace
“As we walk our individual life journeys, we pick up resentments and hurts, which attach themselves to our souls like burrs clinging to a hiker's socks. These stowaways may seem insignificant at first, but, over time, if we do not occasionally stop and shake them free, the accumulation becomes a burden to our souls.” Road to Grace
“What a culture we live in, we are swimming in an ocean of information, and drowning in ignorance.” A Step of Faith
"It's a shame that hearts don't come with manual overrides." Walking on Water
The series final, Walking on Water, opens with a quote from T.S. Eliot.........
We shall not cease from exploration,
And the end of all our exploring,
Will be to arrive at where we started
And know the place for the first time.
......and ends with a letter from the author, Richard Paul Evans
"All journeys must come to an end. After five years of resaeaching and writing the walk, the emotions that crossed my heart when I reached Key West were a powerful mix of accomplishment, finality and nostalgia. I was grateful that I had made the choices that led me to the end of this road ---literally as well as figuratively."
