Bennett Voyles

Hi - Here are what some people have said about Onward, Backward!:

If you've got to take your wife and three daughters on a 1,000-mile,seven-week death march--sorry, "family adventure"--across Europe, it helps if you're Ben Voyles: steeped in European history, transparent about the complexities of family dynamics, and burst-out-loud funny as a writer. I'm still not sure I would have traded places with him that summer--my feet ached just reading about the journey--but I'm so grateful that he wrote about the trip. I'll remember it as long as he does.

David Pogue
New York Times columnist
Emmy award-winning CBS News Sunday Morning correspondent
Frequent NOVA host


"Onward, Backward! A Ramble to Santiago" by Bennett Voyles is an extraordinary story about an extraordinary family - Voyles and his wife and three daughters trek 1,000 miles across France and Spain. The plot is dramatic on its own, as the family overcomes physical and emotional obstacles with enough drama to satisfy any reader - but the book is also a fascinating historical saga. Along their route we meet delightful characters, some in the current day, others from centuries ago.

Voyles' wit and keen eye are reminiscent of the delightful PBS series, "The Durrells in Corfu" based on the wonderful writings of Gerald Durrell - both are madcap, poignant and wise.

Voyles and his family may not have taken the pilgrimage for religious reasons, but this reader found it to be divinely uplifting.

Patty Dann
Author of Mermaids and most recently, The Wright Sister


Wonderfully engaging, filled with information, wit, beautiful writing, and tenderness. Don't miss it!

Sheila Kohler
Author of Open Secrets and nine other novels, two-time winner of the O. Henry Short Story Prize


This is an engaging, entertaining, and historically well-informed account of one international family's adventures along the Camino de Santiago, the famous pilgrim's trail that leads from central France to Santiago de Compostela in northwest Spain. Blisters, bicycles, and breakdowns, both mechanical and personal; graceful prose, good humor and a gentle appreciation for the foibles, irritations, and joys of family life on the road: they are all here. It is the story of a journey, told with sympathy and understanding, but with a clear-eyed realism about the difficulties along the way. I found it a highly rewarding reading experience.

Robert Stacey
Professor of Medieval History
Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences
University of Washington



Onward, Backward! is a highly enjoyable read -- a lively mix of family adventure and historical travelogue. Voyles writes with warmth and humor and is a sure-footed guide to the colorful history of the Camino de Santiago. It's a part of Europe I'll never visit again without thinking of medieval pilgrims, mad monks and the obsessive hikers who are still retracing those early journeys. Highly recommended.

Don Durfee
Managing Editor for News Strategy & Operations
Reuters News