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Worldwalk
Tells of the author's four-year trek around the world on foot, and of the ordinary but kind people he met along the way
10 pages, Paperback
Published January 1, 1990
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
March 25, 2022
The author walked, from April 1983 to April 1987, across many countries – starting from Ohio in the United States, Ireland, U.K. (Northern Ireland, Scotland, England), France, Spain, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Italy, Yugoslavia (the walk took place in the 1980s), Greece, Turkey, Pakistan, India, Thailand, Malaysia, and finally Australia.
I gave the book three stars because of the guts and bravery to undergo such a vast project.
However, among a host of issues:
I found the book poorly written with a “gosh, gee” and rather mushy kind of enthusiasm that grated on me.
The author is jingoistic over his country (United States) – raving over and over of his being proudly American.
The narrative is much more about himself and his trek than of the lands and people encountered. Upon return to the United States, he meets a school teacher who used his newspaper postings of his world journey to instruct her students in her geography class. He provides us with no knowledge of the teacher and her motivations on doing this, or how her students reacted.
He describes a few near-death encounters which were poorly described. In Thailand, for example, he jumped right into the driving area of a vehicle to escape marauding bandits – and basically terrified the family on board who saved his life. He doesn’t even tell us if he thanked them or got to know them – in essence what was the aftermath of all this?
He spent three months in Italy, but only has twelve pages on it. There are 120 pages on his United States trip.
This is not what I want in a travelogue. The author had little knowledge of the countries he was traversing. There is simply not enough on the people he met and the wonderful places he walked by.
I gave the book three stars because of the guts and bravery to undergo such a vast project.
However, among a host of issues:
I found the book poorly written with a “gosh, gee” and rather mushy kind of enthusiasm that grated on me.
The author is jingoistic over his country (United States) – raving over and over of his being proudly American.
The narrative is much more about himself and his trek than of the lands and people encountered. Upon return to the United States, he meets a school teacher who used his newspaper postings of his world journey to instruct her students in her geography class. He provides us with no knowledge of the teacher and her motivations on doing this, or how her students reacted.
He describes a few near-death encounters which were poorly described. In Thailand, for example, he jumped right into the driving area of a vehicle to escape marauding bandits – and basically terrified the family on board who saved his life. He doesn’t even tell us if he thanked them or got to know them – in essence what was the aftermath of all this?
He spent three months in Italy, but only has twelve pages on it. There are 120 pages on his United States trip.
This is not what I want in a travelogue. The author had little knowledge of the countries he was traversing. There is simply not enough on the people he met and the wonderful places he walked by.
January 27, 2009
I met the author at a book signing in Ohio about 4 days after returning from my 3 year Peace Corps stint in S. America. It was the kind of event that has stuck with me all these years. I even remember choked up and teary eyed during his lecture about his world travels. On the day of the lecture, I was suffering from severe culture shock. After the lecture ended Steven and I struck up a conversation where he learned of my very recent return to the US. I think he was the only person in the room who could understand my unhappiness at being home. Steven's lecture helped me feel less odd as I had experienced many similar events as he had described in this book. At the end of our conversation, this wonderful man gave me a copy of his book. I felt a huge connection to Steven Newman at that moment in time. I took his book home and I read it from cover to cover in about 2 days. His book spoke to my heart and I will never forget meeting him and his impact on me at a very difficult transition in my life.
November 24, 2015
I don't want to summarize the book, suffice it to say that it is something of a narrative about his four years walking across countries and continents. The idea sounds exciting and somewhat insane and it appears to have been both. The author was almost killed on several occasions. The book reads like a series of anecdotes and personal observations. Though his writing style was not the best, it was interesting reading and provides some interesting insights into different geographic areas, individuals, peoples, societies and countries.
What I liked most about the book were his contacts with the general population wherever he roamed. For the most part they seemed more kind and giving of themselves than I would have expected. Yet even where that was the case on an individual level, some governments and their officials were brutish and cruel, which says something about the kind of people who manage to install themselves in power.
The weakest part of the book is the lack of depth. The author spent four years walking the highways and byways and living with the common folk and doesn't really explore the minds and motivations of individuals or societies.
What I liked most about the book were his contacts with the general population wherever he roamed. For the most part they seemed more kind and giving of themselves than I would have expected. Yet even where that was the case on an individual level, some governments and their officials were brutish and cruel, which says something about the kind of people who manage to install themselves in power.
The weakest part of the book is the lack of depth. The author spent four years walking the highways and byways and living with the common folk and doesn't really explore the minds and motivations of individuals or societies.
July 11, 2025
It was a long book but good. I can’t help but wonder how such a trip would go today.
November 1, 2020
I enjoyed this travel book very much.
I had read it back in 2013, but reading it again in 2020 I enjoyed it even more.
I had read it back in 2013, but reading it again in 2020 I enjoyed it even more.
February 25, 2024
Worldwalk is a story about human kindness - that for all the negativity in the world, there is so much more positivity, joy, and love from people that goes unnoticed. It is interesting to follow Steven Newman's walk around the world to see how perceptions differ from reailities, the diverse natural world, food and cultures, and especially the variety of people he meets along the way to help him out.
October 28, 2020
Mixed bag for me.
I love travel and hiking books and for the most part I enjoyed this one; traveling across the world with the author and reading about his encounters and adventures.
However, I put the book down at the end not knowing whether or not I really liked him. His attitude at times seemed contradictory and judgmental. In particular, the fact he was relying on the charity of others, but turned his nose down at panhandlers and people begging for food. The encounter in Ireland (if I recall correctly) where he became angry at a woman asking for food, and while complaining about it to a shop-owner, accepted free food from him. IDK, a little bit too much "wide-eyed Ohio white kid" attitude for me.
The way it was written also was a bit frustrating. Every chapter seemed like it's own article, and perhaps that was how it was written. However, the author starts EVERY chapter days or weeks from the end of the previous one, leaving me feeling lost and disoriented until he backtracks and brings the reader up to speed.
Worth a read, but it was a bit frustrating for me overall.
I love travel and hiking books and for the most part I enjoyed this one; traveling across the world with the author and reading about his encounters and adventures.
However, I put the book down at the end not knowing whether or not I really liked him. His attitude at times seemed contradictory and judgmental. In particular, the fact he was relying on the charity of others, but turned his nose down at panhandlers and people begging for food. The encounter in Ireland (if I recall correctly) where he became angry at a woman asking for food, and while complaining about it to a shop-owner, accepted free food from him. IDK, a little bit too much "wide-eyed Ohio white kid" attitude for me.
The way it was written also was a bit frustrating. Every chapter seemed like it's own article, and perhaps that was how it was written. However, the author starts EVERY chapter days or weeks from the end of the previous one, leaving me feeling lost and disoriented until he backtracks and brings the reader up to speed.
Worth a read, but it was a bit frustrating for me overall.
October 30, 2007
Steven Neumann fulfilled a childhood dream of walking around the world, a feat that took him four years and landed him in the Guinness Book of World Records. His odyssey describes his encounters with the people in the places he visits, and is complete with arrests and almost-getting-killed experiences. Some might criticize his book for not giving much insight into the places he travelled, but his message was that people are people whereever you go, a good lesson for xenophobes everywhere.
June 2, 2008
Every once in a while you read a book because the description sounds mildly interesting. Then you find yourself genuinely carried away on an adventure, as if you were right there with the author. This is one such book.
The author quite literally walked around the world during the course of four years. Reading this book you come to see that people are people around the world over. If you can find a copy of this book I highly recommend reading it.
The author quite literally walked around the world during the course of four years. Reading this book you come to see that people are people around the world over. If you can find a copy of this book I highly recommend reading it.
June 5, 2008
My all time favorite book,I have read it over and over!! It's a story of a young man's experiences in the world as he walked around the world depending on strangers for shelter and food to test the world if it is still a place where love and passion prevail,to find out peoples hopes and dreams. He did it without sponsors so he could be independent. He had never been outside of the US. It was written in the late 70's -early 80's but is still so relevant.
June 26, 2015
One of the best books I've ever read!
February 26, 2025
Occasionally fascinating, informative, and inspiring, but without a through-line it's hard to feel like getting back to it isn't a chore. Glad I finished it if only for the things I learned, which I will include here to save you the trouble (spoilers):
He ignored the locals' advice to not walk certain areas in Thailand and Morocco after dark, and got attacked by locals. He defended himself with his hunting knife.
He got harassed by a drunk local in the bush in Australia who almost killed him. He escaped by jumping into a random passing truck without permission.
He had to escape from the Turkish jail because the cops were corrupt and could've held him indefinitely for no reason.
He watched American-made supplies go into Iraq to fund the war that we eventually fought from the other side in the 90's.
Most people were really nice and friendly outside the U.S.
He miraculously was able to keep walking after getting exhausted in the first few days, and was able to continue forever.
So, what I learned: Most people will love you, unless they're desperate, in which case they'll absolutely take anything they can from you. It is from those people we must physically defend ourselves.
Also, the outback of Australia has a TON of unreported murders every year and no one really minds (or they get murdered too).
He ignored the locals' advice to not walk certain areas in Thailand and Morocco after dark, and got attacked by locals. He defended himself with his hunting knife.
He got harassed by a drunk local in the bush in Australia who almost killed him. He escaped by jumping into a random passing truck without permission.
He had to escape from the Turkish jail because the cops were corrupt and could've held him indefinitely for no reason.
He watched American-made supplies go into Iraq to fund the war that we eventually fought from the other side in the 90's.
Most people were really nice and friendly outside the U.S.
He miraculously was able to keep walking after getting exhausted in the first few days, and was able to continue forever.
So, what I learned: Most people will love you, unless they're desperate, in which case they'll absolutely take anything they can from you. It is from those people we must physically defend ourselves.
Also, the outback of Australia has a TON of unreported murders every year and no one really minds (or they get murdered too).
April 29, 2022
One of the most amazing books I've ever read. Steven's journey was incredible and his insights were so interesting. A truly inspirational book and real-life experience. I used small portions in class to teach my students about writing and even geography for years.
December 1, 2020
I miss traveling. This great book helped me remember.
August 28, 2011
I was 11 years old on April 1, 1987, when Steven Newman completed his walk around the world and returned to his home in southwestern Ohio, which was located only 12 miles from my home. No doubt the proximity of his origin drew me into his story more strongly than if he had lived on the west coast. But it was also his adventure, filled with awe and lacking in hubris, that kept me wide-eyed with wonder. True, his worldwalk was a physical "feat" (indeed, he made it into the Guinness Book of World Records), but the stories Mr. Newman told were about people, vulnerability, connectedness, and, above all, majuscule Love.
Shortly after his hero's welcome back to Ohio, I drew a picture of Mr. Newman as part of a "current events" assignment for my sixth grade class, fascinated as ever by this man who explored a world about which I was endlessly curious. Impressed by the drawing, my teacher urged me to mail it to Mr. Newman. But, I never did. A few years later, my mother took me to a local bookstore where Mr. Newman was signing copies of "Worldwalk". By then I was 14 and plagued with an awkward stage of teenhood that I was convinced only affected me. I was too shy to ask Mr. Newman about what it was like to hear foreign languages, to see hindu temples, or to know the smiles of so many people. But I remember inwardly savoring his handshake, awed that this same hand had shaken the hands of so many around the globe. And that moment made my longing for first-hand knowledge of the world feel both stronger and possible.
It's difficult to say how much influence any one person has on a life. But I think it's no coincidence that it was during this period of learning about Mr. Newman that I hung a world map in my bedroom and stuck innumerable pins into all the places I wanted to visit. I also signed up for a penpal and relished every letter from her unique perspective on the other side of the globe. Now, nearly 25 years after Mr. Newman completed his worldwalk, I find myself gratefully enriched with the memories I've made throughout my own extensive explorations of our world, undertaken with much of the same spirit of reverence and openness set forth by Mr. Newman.
When my mother recently sent me the original "Worldwalk" book that she bought, and that Mr. Newman inscribed, all those years ago, she must have reflected as she prepared the mail package on how influential his story was on my development. When I received the book, I found a note she had tucked into one of its pages that simply said, "If Steve could only have known that the young girl before him would have become such a world traveler..."
Shortly after his hero's welcome back to Ohio, I drew a picture of Mr. Newman as part of a "current events" assignment for my sixth grade class, fascinated as ever by this man who explored a world about which I was endlessly curious. Impressed by the drawing, my teacher urged me to mail it to Mr. Newman. But, I never did. A few years later, my mother took me to a local bookstore where Mr. Newman was signing copies of "Worldwalk". By then I was 14 and plagued with an awkward stage of teenhood that I was convinced only affected me. I was too shy to ask Mr. Newman about what it was like to hear foreign languages, to see hindu temples, or to know the smiles of so many people. But I remember inwardly savoring his handshake, awed that this same hand had shaken the hands of so many around the globe. And that moment made my longing for first-hand knowledge of the world feel both stronger and possible.
It's difficult to say how much influence any one person has on a life. But I think it's no coincidence that it was during this period of learning about Mr. Newman that I hung a world map in my bedroom and stuck innumerable pins into all the places I wanted to visit. I also signed up for a penpal and relished every letter from her unique perspective on the other side of the globe. Now, nearly 25 years after Mr. Newman completed his worldwalk, I find myself gratefully enriched with the memories I've made throughout my own extensive explorations of our world, undertaken with much of the same spirit of reverence and openness set forth by Mr. Newman.
When my mother recently sent me the original "Worldwalk" book that she bought, and that Mr. Newman inscribed, all those years ago, she must have reflected as she prepared the mail package on how influential his story was on my development. When I received the book, I found a note she had tucked into one of its pages that simply said, "If Steve could only have known that the young girl before him would have become such a world traveler..."
July 3, 2013
Found a copy of this book in my work book-bin and thought it looked interesting. Opened the cover to find that it had actually been autographed by the author Steven Newman as well. I read it and was amazed at the story of a man who left on a journey shortly around the time I was born, and walked around the world. The stories he wrote about finding the good left in humanity he met along the way was touching. I havbe read it a few times and lent it out to friends but it will remain a "keeper" on my bookshelf at home.
January 8, 2011
The book is motivational and inspiring. It's motivational because, although Steve feels like he bit off more than he could chew at the begining of his journey, he never gives up and he never gives in. It's inspiring because it makes you want to go out and live life, follow your dreams, and see the beauty in people all around the world. It helps a person realize that people are the same wherever you go; we all need love and want happiness.
February 4, 2014
Very good book. The stories are entertaining, some funny, some terrifying, some heartwarming, and some heartbreaking. The author writes in such a way that leaves me feeling as though the country he had just described was my favorite yet, only to be changing my mind as he describes yet another country and it's peoples. Reading his epic adventure makes me think about my own dreams that I might be shuttering due to my inability to believe they are possible...
March 21, 2008
A really great book for motivating you to go out and do a similar type of walk or adventure. The theme pretty much ties in with Into the Wild, but its a more personalize journaling of Newman's adventure around the world over four years during the Cold War.
November 27, 2012
I really liked the book to begin with but as I got closer to the end, boredom set in. I don't really know why. Not much changed in the writing style but I felt that the book was a bit repetitive although I still think I would recommend it.
December 31, 2008
My gosh what a trip! I wish I could have done it! Wonderful stories. One of my favorite books of the year!
February 17, 2009
One of my favorite book ever read
December 13, 2012
Read it years ago. Never forgot it.
March 17, 2009
My all time favourite travel book!
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October 29, 2018An amazing, gripping, and sometimes frightening book about a man named Steve Newman. He quits his job and leaves his dying parents to walk around the world in search of kindness and hospitality, proving that the world isn’t all dark and hostile. In his journeys he sleeps in barns, citizens houses, and sometimes on the side of the road, but of course not without a local grandmother’s home cooking. A real page turner!👌
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews