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Finding Myself Along the Way: One Man's Journey on the Camino de Santiago
After finding the courage to upend a life of convention and security, author, Michael Burnett leaves literally everything behind. At age fifty, he embarks on a voyage of self-discovery and adventure in his search to uncover what his life can be.
Finding Myself Along the Way chronicles his journey on the Camino de Santiago. While he treks 500-miles across northern Spain, he shares with the reader the path that led him to walk this ancient pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela, known as, The Way. You’ll meet the many people he encounters and learn how his connections with fellow pilgrims allow him to open up, both with others and himself. Along the way, the reader will come to understand how a journey on the Camino gives a new perspective, as well as teaching many lessons about life, hope, and resilience.
After reading about this life-affirming journey, you’ll understand why countless people return to the Camino time and time again. This story will push you to move outside your comfort zone, to rediscover what ignites your passion and inspire to begin your own journey.
Finding Myself Along the Way chronicles his journey on the Camino de Santiago. While he treks 500-miles across northern Spain, he shares with the reader the path that led him to walk this ancient pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela, known as, The Way. You’ll meet the many people he encounters and learn how his connections with fellow pilgrims allow him to open up, both with others and himself. Along the way, the reader will come to understand how a journey on the Camino gives a new perspective, as well as teaching many lessons about life, hope, and resilience.
After reading about this life-affirming journey, you’ll understand why countless people return to the Camino time and time again. This story will push you to move outside your comfort zone, to rediscover what ignites your passion and inspire to begin your own journey.
281 pages, Paperback
Published September 21, 2021
35 people are currently reading
19 people want to read
About the author
Michael Burnett
2 books2 followersMichael Burnett is an avid hiker, minimalist, adventurer, and writer. He’s logged over 2500 miles walking across Europe. He’s a firm believer that traveling by foot is the ultimate form of travel and never misses an opportunity to explore.
Born and raised outside of Chicago. He spent most of his life in the Midwest, before a move later in life to Portland, Oregon, where his love for the outdoors and hiking in the mountains grew. His evolution to a writer was slow. It wasn’t until he escaped a nine-to-five life and started living a life filled with adventure that he put pen to paper.
Michael is a father of two grown children, and back living in the Chicago area where he enjoys spending time with his three grandkids. When he’s not traveling, Michael can be found enjoying time outdoors, or planning his next adventure with his significant other. They are now making plans for a life on the road, and their next long walk.
He hopes his stories will inspire readers to seek their own adventures, because as his motto says: It’s never too late to write another chapter in your life’s story.
Born and raised outside of Chicago. He spent most of his life in the Midwest, before a move later in life to Portland, Oregon, where his love for the outdoors and hiking in the mountains grew. His evolution to a writer was slow. It wasn’t until he escaped a nine-to-five life and started living a life filled with adventure that he put pen to paper.
Michael is a father of two grown children, and back living in the Chicago area where he enjoys spending time with his three grandkids. When he’s not traveling, Michael can be found enjoying time outdoors, or planning his next adventure with his significant other. They are now making plans for a life on the road, and their next long walk.
He hopes his stories will inspire readers to seek their own adventures, because as his motto says: It’s never too late to write another chapter in your life’s story.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
March 16, 2022
I don't know that I've ever rated a book one star, but this one earns that designation. I saw this book on an Audible list and decided to give it a try since I love Spain, I have always been fascinated by the Camino de Santiago, and thought it would be interesting to hear the author's account of hiking it.
While I did enjoy some of the author's depictions of villages and sites along the route, overall I found the writing cringey and lacking in depth. Basically every chapter of the book, which is a day-by-day narrative of the author's 30-day trek on the Camino, is the same description of the author's dull conversations with fellow pilgrims, his search for nightly accommodations, and his copious consumption of several bottles of wine at each stop.
There were several aspects of this book that at various points made me literally want to start yelling in disgust and frustration--and probably would have made me throw a hard copy of the book across the room. These included: 1) the horrible Audible narration--the narrator kept mispronouncing words in English such as "pasta" (pronounced with a long aaah like when the doctor is examining your throat) and paprika (emphasis on the first syllable instead of the second) and absolutely butchered many of the Spanish place names and words throughout the book; 2) the author's constant references to wine (I get that this is Spain and it's what a lot of people do, but I didn't need a count of the number of bottles he consumed every day between lunch and going to bed); and 3) the author's self-professed ignorance of the Spanish language and culture--at least try to learn some basics before you embark on a trek like this so you don't look like a dumb American.
But the topper was the author's detailed account of an intense sexual relationship he experienced with a woman he met on the path during the last two weeks of his trip. Not only was it beyond creepy that this 52-year-old man hit on and hooked up with a 20-something woman from Germany, but it made him seem like a complete narcissist, especially after he explained how he had left his wife of 28 years because she wouldn't agree to live out of a camper van and travel around the U.S. with no job and no money. I can't imagine how his ex-wife must feel reading this, especially when he calls his Camino flame his "enchantress," which I must say induced nausea when I read it. The whole thing just seemed completely tone deaf and grossly insensitive to his ex-wife, his kids, and his Camino crush.
These kinds of memoirs really drive me crazy. Instead of providing the reader with thoughtful, complex, sensitive insights about examining one's self and finding one's purpose, this book's message is that the way to "find yourself" is to shed all responsibility, dump your family, and be completely selfish so that you can drink all the alcohol you can tolerate, stay in dumpy hostels with backpacking college kids half your age, and pursue casual sex with women in that same demographic.
There have to be at least a dozen other books about hiking the Camino de Santiago. Do yourself a favor and get one of those.
While I did enjoy some of the author's depictions of villages and sites along the route, overall I found the writing cringey and lacking in depth. Basically every chapter of the book, which is a day-by-day narrative of the author's 30-day trek on the Camino, is the same description of the author's dull conversations with fellow pilgrims, his search for nightly accommodations, and his copious consumption of several bottles of wine at each stop.
There were several aspects of this book that at various points made me literally want to start yelling in disgust and frustration--and probably would have made me throw a hard copy of the book across the room. These included: 1) the horrible Audible narration--the narrator kept mispronouncing words in English such as "pasta" (pronounced with a long aaah like when the doctor is examining your throat) and paprika (emphasis on the first syllable instead of the second) and absolutely butchered many of the Spanish place names and words throughout the book; 2) the author's constant references to wine (I get that this is Spain and it's what a lot of people do, but I didn't need a count of the number of bottles he consumed every day between lunch and going to bed); and 3) the author's self-professed ignorance of the Spanish language and culture--at least try to learn some basics before you embark on a trek like this so you don't look like a dumb American.
But the topper was the author's detailed account of an intense sexual relationship he experienced with a woman he met on the path during the last two weeks of his trip. Not only was it beyond creepy that this 52-year-old man hit on and hooked up with a 20-something woman from Germany, but it made him seem like a complete narcissist, especially after he explained how he had left his wife of 28 years because she wouldn't agree to live out of a camper van and travel around the U.S. with no job and no money. I can't imagine how his ex-wife must feel reading this, especially when he calls his Camino flame his "enchantress," which I must say induced nausea when I read it. The whole thing just seemed completely tone deaf and grossly insensitive to his ex-wife, his kids, and his Camino crush.
These kinds of memoirs really drive me crazy. Instead of providing the reader with thoughtful, complex, sensitive insights about examining one's self and finding one's purpose, this book's message is that the way to "find yourself" is to shed all responsibility, dump your family, and be completely selfish so that you can drink all the alcohol you can tolerate, stay in dumpy hostels with backpacking college kids half your age, and pursue casual sex with women in that same demographic.
There have to be at least a dozen other books about hiking the Camino de Santiago. Do yourself a favor and get one of those.
July 4, 2022
What kept me reading was the detailed descriptions of the towns, auberges and landscape of the Camino Frances. Beyond that, it might have appeal to a male pilgrim looking to drink his way across Spain with young companions, mostly female. A midlife crisis account, fraught with tired references to living an unexamined life for far too long.
October 24, 2021
You know when a book kicks off with poetry from Uncle Walt (Whitman) that this is going to be the start of something amazing!
And indeed it is, just like the final line from Whitman's "The Song of the Open Road" that author Michael Burnett quoted in this book: "...Strong and content I travel the open road."
While tempting to see this as yet another travelogue in a sea of travelogues, what sets this book apart for this reviewer, was the fact that Burnett was also on a pilgrimage to (as his book's title aptly declares) "Finding Myself Along the Way."
In reviewing this book, two words come to mind: Travel and Transcendence.
While many trek the famous 500-mile Camino de Santiago in Northern Spain annually, few like author Burnett have gone a step further to map out his life journey into middle age using the Camino's breathtaking sceneries as a luscious overlay. Fewer still would have so meticulously chronicled the insightful conversations with fellow trekkers they meet along the way, as Burnett did in this excellent debut memoir.
This reviewer was especially blown away by the level of detail Burnett shared in the book from his daily trekking experience. The day-to-day accounts he documented must surely mean page after page of judiciously penned copious notes taken, with every single step he made along the way!
Talk about commitment!
You can almost feel like you were there with him, so carefully did he unpack his experiences on the pathways, the different beautiful albergues he stayed in, and the stunning monuments he visited. That's the "Travel" part.
Most of all, the colorful and varied fellow sojourners he met and got to know. And, along the way, how Burnett shared with them openly and honestly (and by extension, with us the readers), his own life journey that led him to Camino. That's the "Transcendence" part.
Like Burnett, I too have taken the road less traveled in my middle age, a time when few men would have dared to upend their safe and predictable lives, especially during such turbulent times of uncertainty, brought forth by a still-ongoing global pandemic. So I both commiserate and celebrate Burnett's courage and convictions about the new life path he's picked and recounted here.
So, if you're looking for inspiration to chart your next right thing in life, then I guarantee that this is the book for you!
And indeed it is, just like the final line from Whitman's "The Song of the Open Road" that author Michael Burnett quoted in this book: "...Strong and content I travel the open road."
While tempting to see this as yet another travelogue in a sea of travelogues, what sets this book apart for this reviewer, was the fact that Burnett was also on a pilgrimage to (as his book's title aptly declares) "Finding Myself Along the Way."
In reviewing this book, two words come to mind: Travel and Transcendence.
While many trek the famous 500-mile Camino de Santiago in Northern Spain annually, few like author Burnett have gone a step further to map out his life journey into middle age using the Camino's breathtaking sceneries as a luscious overlay. Fewer still would have so meticulously chronicled the insightful conversations with fellow trekkers they meet along the way, as Burnett did in this excellent debut memoir.
This reviewer was especially blown away by the level of detail Burnett shared in the book from his daily trekking experience. The day-to-day accounts he documented must surely mean page after page of judiciously penned copious notes taken, with every single step he made along the way!
Talk about commitment!
You can almost feel like you were there with him, so carefully did he unpack his experiences on the pathways, the different beautiful albergues he stayed in, and the stunning monuments he visited. That's the "Travel" part.
Most of all, the colorful and varied fellow sojourners he met and got to know. And, along the way, how Burnett shared with them openly and honestly (and by extension, with us the readers), his own life journey that led him to Camino. That's the "Transcendence" part.
Like Burnett, I too have taken the road less traveled in my middle age, a time when few men would have dared to upend their safe and predictable lives, especially during such turbulent times of uncertainty, brought forth by a still-ongoing global pandemic. So I both commiserate and celebrate Burnett's courage and convictions about the new life path he's picked and recounted here.
So, if you're looking for inspiration to chart your next right thing in life, then I guarantee that this is the book for you!
July 7, 2022
Honest and unexpected
I am a bit annoyed with the author for taking a sacred route and turning it into a hedonistic search for himself, but, on the other hand, perhaps that’s the first search you have to make. Even in the middle ages, I’m sure there were a lot of people who went that way, just for the fun and adventure or for what they might get out of it.
If I were to talk to the author, I would say, next time, go as a pilgrim, a real Pilgrim who takes a journey for God. Finding yourself is like a serpent chasing its tail, (Or chasing tail). I think you’ll be shocked at all the things you missed that maybe you weren’t ready to see the first time.
p.s. That’s way too much wine! Has it ever occurred you that part of your problem all these years has been that you’re really an alcoholic? You don’t have to be a bum or even ruin your life to have alcohol messing with your mind.
I am a bit annoyed with the author for taking a sacred route and turning it into a hedonistic search for himself, but, on the other hand, perhaps that’s the first search you have to make. Even in the middle ages, I’m sure there were a lot of people who went that way, just for the fun and adventure or for what they might get out of it.
If I were to talk to the author, I would say, next time, go as a pilgrim, a real Pilgrim who takes a journey for God. Finding yourself is like a serpent chasing its tail, (Or chasing tail). I think you’ll be shocked at all the things you missed that maybe you weren’t ready to see the first time.
p.s. That’s way too much wine! Has it ever occurred you that part of your problem all these years has been that you’re really an alcoholic? You don’t have to be a bum or even ruin your life to have alcohol messing with your mind.
February 19, 2022
Somewhat disappointing
I've read many books about the Camino and have walked part of it so I have this fascination about walking the entire way. I'm amazed that he could remember so much detail about the path he walked and places he stayed and people he met. As the book progressed it seemed to me the highlight was how many bottles of wine he and his companions could drink each evening. I also think he was having a midlife crisis. In the end I believe he found himself not necessarily spiritually but became comfortable with who he wanted to be.
I've read many books about the Camino and have walked part of it so I have this fascination about walking the entire way. I'm amazed that he could remember so much detail about the path he walked and places he stayed and people he met. As the book progressed it seemed to me the highlight was how many bottles of wine he and his companions could drink each evening. I also think he was having a midlife crisis. In the end I believe he found himself not necessarily spiritually but became comfortable with who he wanted to be.
January 16, 2023
I have read many books about people's walk on the El Camino and other thru-hiking experiences. I struggled through this one. I did enjoy some of the town & trail descriptions and the pictures were nice. I almost stopped reading several times. I do not expect a detailed description of sex in the middle of a hiking/walking journey. TMI. Too much time spent with younger walkers drinking the night away. Typical man with a midlife crisis trying to reclaim his youth.
July 1, 2022
Pretty good for a memoir
I’ve read quite a few memoirs, and this one is particularly good, I must say. It doesn’t exactly read like one, because it reads more like a story. The life lessons learned are actually applicable and it’s not self-aggrandizing. A lot of these books are indulgent writing, and this one isn’t it. Definitely a good read!
I’ve read quite a few memoirs, and this one is particularly good, I must say. It doesn’t exactly read like one, because it reads more like a story. The life lessons learned are actually applicable and it’s not self-aggrandizing. A lot of these books are indulgent writing, and this one isn’t it. Definitely a good read!
December 3, 2024
A simple and beautiful journey with the writer
I read this book to get a sense of what walking the Camino would be like, and the book did just that! It really felt like we were with him on this journey. I recommend it to anyone who is exploring and researching walking the Camino.
I read this book to get a sense of what walking the Camino would be like, and the book did just that! It really felt like we were with him on this journey. I recommend it to anyone who is exploring and researching walking the Camino.
July 19, 2022
pathfinderjack
Great book, I have walk the Camino twice and enjoy thoroughly the authors precise details of places but most important the unique interaction among pilgrims. That interaction is truly a great example of how we should treat each other at all times, in harmony. Well done.
Great book, I have walk the Camino twice and enjoy thoroughly the authors precise details of places but most important the unique interaction among pilgrims. That interaction is truly a great example of how we should treat each other at all times, in harmony. Well done.
January 19, 2023
Great story
I’ve read many books on the Camino but this one really stood out. Michael’s on a quest to find himself, as many men do in their 50s. His experiences on the Camino are ones I too dream about. Thanks for a very entertaining read!
I’ve read many books on the Camino but this one really stood out. Michael’s on a quest to find himself, as many men do in their 50s. His experiences on the Camino are ones I too dream about. Thanks for a very entertaining read!
December 31, 2024
I didn’t want to finish, but I mustered through. Man divorced his wife after years of marriage because he wanted to be adventurous while she didn’t. He has a love affair with a woman while walking on the Camino de Santiago.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 14, 2021
Needed
As I nurse my sick husband…this adventure comes across my path…..maybe one day……
Can a 70 year old with a dodgy knee do this??
As I nurse my sick husband…this adventure comes across my path…..maybe one day……
Can a 70 year old with a dodgy knee do this??
April 29, 2022
packing my bags as I read
Okay, not really but I sure want to. Enjoyed the trip as an armchair traveler. Glad the author brought me along.
Okay, not really but I sure want to. Enjoyed the trip as an armchair traveler. Glad the author brought me along.
June 15, 2022
I loved this book. I have read many books on the Camino Santiago and this one was very enjoyable.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews