Holy Rover: Journeys in Search of Mystery, Miracles, and God

by Lori Erickson

Holy Rover is about the transformative power of travel. If you've ever been curious about the ancient spiritual practice of pilgrimage, come along with Lori Erickson as she explores a dozen holy sites around the world. Travel writer, Episcopal deacon, and author of the Holy Rover blog at Patheos, Erickson is an engaging guide for pilgrims eager to take a spiritual journey. Both irreverent and devout, Holy Rover describes travels that changed her life and can change yours, too.

Genres: Travel, Nonfiction, Spirituality, Religion, Memoir, Faith

256 pages, Hardcover

Published September 1, 2017

About the author

Lori Erickson is one of America’s top travel writers specializing in spiritual journeys.

Reviews

[Vicky Hart · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the book Holy Rover, author Lori Erickson intertwines the story of her personal spiritual journey with a series of twelve pilgrimages around the world. She explores the sacred sites of Christians, Jews, Buddhists, pagans and native tribes. Her coverage of these sites is not an exclusive list, but the story of one woman’s experiences in search for divine meaning on earth.

Her prose draws the reader in, softens hearts, and makes each of us contemplate our own journey and its purpose. Seekers will find a companion. Believers will affirm their faith. Non-believers might question their disbelief. Erickson’s friendly, conversational style makes this book an easy read for such a serious subject. Definitely worth the time!

Victoria Hart
www.journeysjauntsandjunkets.com, Instagram @journeysjauntsandjunkets, Twitter @journeysjaunts, Facebook JourneysJauntsandJunkets.com

[Joseph Dutcher · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent book. It artfully weaves together the author’s spiritual journey with beautiful descriptions of holy sites around the world. This book was fascinating and uplifting.

[Tara · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm not a traveler by nature but I am a spiritual seeker and this beautiful book resonated as much with me as it did with my adventurous husband.

Holy Rover has been my companion with my morning coffee for the last several weeks and I am so grateful for the frame of mind that it places me in for the rest of the day.

Lori Erickson has an incredible gift for sharing her experiences with humor and insight and with an utter lack of the pretentiousness that can so often accompany personal reflections.

[Jenna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pilgrimages

I was intrigued to learn more about different holy sites around the world and their history. Unfortunately, for me, this was more of a personal memoir of Lori's life journey. Though very well articulated not what I was interested in.

[Jody T. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Eloquent, insightful, and inspiring!

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is Erickson's personal memoir of her spiritual journey from small-town Lutheran to Wiccan to Unitarian to Episcopalian. She has traveled widely as a travel free lance writer specializing in spiritual, religious places. As a journalist she writes well, in a light, breezy style that still conveys a picture of beliefs, people and places she's visited, from neo-pagan sites in Iceland, to the healing center at Lourdes, to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, to Bear Butte in South Dakota. While these places all taught her something, and she has had to struggle with her place in the denominational cosmos, her nibbles at very complex belief systems left me entertained but not seriously challenged as a reader or spiritual seeker myself.

[Mary Jedlicka Humston · Rating 5 out of 5]

If author Lori Erickson had only written a travel book about her journeys and pilgrimages, this book would be captivating. It would certainly encourage the reader to go and explore one or more of the many sites she's visited. But, this book is so much more. Because Erickson interjects personal commentary about her life as she relates the spiritual sites she's explored, this interesting book became even better. Her raw honesty about her spiritual journey is fascinating.
I highly recommend this book!

PS. I read this book in the fall of 2017...and read it quickly. Please ignore any "reading progress" in this review as that was unintentionally listed.

[Liz · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved Holy Rover! Lori Erickson’s writing and story read much like a midwestern Ann Lamott. I enjoyed the book, both for the travel stories and the spiritual journeying.

[Darlene Bergman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mainline churches, seekers, and others searching for the Divine will find much to ponder here. This is an affirmation of the reality that God refuses to exist only in the boxes we humans choose to put God in. Lori Erickson reminds us that God meets us on the highways and byways of our everyday journey and is present whenever and wherever the human spirit quiets itself and listens, that we find the holy not just through liturgy and ritual (though as her last chapter attests, there will be surprises of the Spirit there too), but that God is everywhere waiting to enlarge our perspective, whether through friendships, ministry, meditation, or bucket list destinations. Lori offers here a memoir for those in the eternal search for peace and meaning on this planet. She offers wisdom not just for co-existing with creation, but also for opening us to become ever more aware and compassionate human beings.

[Connie Mutel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I ate my way through this book nibble by nibble, enjoying and pondering every morsel. It is a wonderful book, a beautiful and masterful braiding of memoir, mental and physical travels, religious information, and spiritual contemplation, frosted with humor. I learned much from it, underlined throughout (and made a list of places to visit and other books to read), laughed out loud while reading, and shared sections with my husband. This is a book I will ponder and refer to for a long time. I hope that Erickson is now working on a sequel - as I am already looking forward to it.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked this book, and the way the author expanded the idea of pilgrimage. It can include things like a visit to Lourdes or a walk around Walden Pond. She has made me want to read more on this topic.

[Anne · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a wonderful book! One of my Goodread friends had liked it and I got it from the library. I'd love to get a copy for all my spiritually minded friends. I also found some new places to travel to! This was delightful.

[Anne Simpson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good travelogue and memoir of a lifelong searcher for spiritual fulfillment. Her search resonated for me these days. Author seems like someone I would live to spend time with.

[Linda Ra · Rating 1 out of 5]

Disappointing. It was more about the author and her family deciding where to go to church than the actual pilgrimage sites.

[Peter · Rating 5 out of 5]

No at all what I expected, thankfully.

[Jim Huinink · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading about Lori Erickson's journey (so far) that indeed resonates with my own in parts, although hers is more epic.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Building my library of books related to spirituality - this is great. Not too heavy on dogma but makes you think. I'm a fan of Lori Erickson

[Vivian · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my favorite of Lori Erickson's books. Well-written and very enjoyable.

[Zaaccckkkkkk · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book means a lot to me. What a delight and what great timing.

[Jeanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book, will see what else she has written

[Patty · Rating 3 out of 5]

I know it is hard to cover all aspects of religion in a book like this, but I wish the author had experienced more grace in her time with the Lutherans.

[Laura Julier · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lori Erickson is a travel writer, as well as a spiritual traveller who loves pilgrimage. This book combines those by weaving her spiritual autobiography as the through-line. Her tone is gently witty, does not turn away from self-scrutiny, and is clear-eyed about her own blind spots along the way. Although it deals with spiritual matters, there's nothing "heavy" about the book--it reads lightly, easily, joyfully. And all of it is both a matter of craft as well as soul.

[Margie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Written by a woman who grew up in Decorah Iowa and ultimately settled in Iowa City, having traveled the world as a writer specializing in holy sites. She shared her own spiritual journey as well. I would recommend it if interested is this type of book.

[Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought the intermingling of the author's personal spiritual journey with her travel pilgrimages added an extra element that took the book beyond a simple travel memoir. I really enjoyed the book and want to visit some of the places the author visited.

[Emmett · Rating 5 out of 5]

An old article in the Columbus Dispatch led me to "Holy Rover: Journeys In Search of Mystery, Miracle," and God by Lori Erickson. I'm sorry I missed her visit to Columbus. The book was particularly interesting to me as I did at one time, in my spiritual journey, consider myself "Luthedox." I now attend a Lutheran worship service on Sundays and an Episcopal Mass on Wednesday evenings.
I'm looking forward to meeting Lori through her blogs.

[Christi]

Interesting spiritual journey as chronicled by a woman with spiritual roots similar to my own.