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  • Bliss(ters)

  • How I walked from Mexico to Canada One Summer
  • Written by: Gail M. Francis
  • Narrated by: Wendy Tremont King
  • Length: 8 hrs and 32 mins
  • 3.8 out of 5 stars (47 ratings)

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Bliss(ters)

Written by: Gail M. Francis
Narrated by: Wendy Tremont King
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Publisher's Summary

Just before her 40th birthday, Gail Francis quit her perfectly good job and set out to hike one of the great trails of the world. Carrying everything she needed on her back, Francis spent five months walking from Mexico to Canada along the Pacific Crest Trail. Along the way, she lost her pack scrambling over scree in the desert, struggled to navigate high mountain passes, and wore the soles off her boots trekking across lava fields - all within some of the most pristine wilderness in the nation. Though she set out alone, her story includes an eclectic cast of characters. From the man walking the entire 2,700 miles in a series of 26 wedding dresses, to the woman making the journey in the company of her pet mouse, Francis learned to count on her fellow hikers for entertainment as well as a few important life lessons.

©2017 Gail M. Francis (P)2019 Tantor

What listeners love about Bliss(ters)

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middle of the night listen

Difficult to listen to as the reader unnaturally breaks up the sentences. I expected an interesting story and this fell short.

5 people found this helpful

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Very enjoyable book

Really liked this book. An interesting and easy listen. Finished it in just a few days. Was sad it came to an end!

3 people found this helpful

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Lonely Planet's Pacific Crest Trail

This is an ideal book for someone about to "do" the PCT...some needed info. For someone just interested in the adventure, it's a bit of a yawn really. Nothing untoward happens that you wouldn't expect and the author doesn't share any zen-like discoveries about herself.

2 people found this helpful

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Cure for the Hiking Bug

This is a cautionary tale of the long distance hiker. Pulling no punches, it is sure to convince any would-be converts to reconsider, after the constant torture of blisters, insect bites, heavy packs dangerous weather and dehydration. The fact that no one died in the saga is miraculous.

1 person found this helpful

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Don't Bother

Long drawn out story of 'finding oneself' that seems to never get to a point...
Only blisters were my ears after trying very hard to listen!

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Could not listen

I had to give one star for the story because the narrator was so bad, I couldn't listen to it.

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  • CHRISTOPHER
  • 2019-03-14

Bummer

If you love liberty and capitalism, this is not the book for you. If you love listening to a hiking book with a rose colored view of unions, socialism and government run healthcare, this is your kind of audio book.

35 people found this helpful

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  • James Tighe
  • 2019-07-30

Good Story...Could Have Skipped The Politics

Overall, a good story, well presented in sensible order and flow. Good descriptions of the areas the author experienced. The narrator did a good job.

I fully respect the author's political views, and whether or not they align with my own is irrelevant. However, a fair part of the book seemed to serve as a political-view platform for the author's beliefs. My feeling is that, if the author wishes to present and promote her political position and beliefs, she should absolutely do exactly that, in the form of a politically based book. But, this book has been offered as a book about hiking the Pacific Crest Trail...a trail which I have hiked part of, with the explicit expectation, thankfully fulfilled, of escaping the world of political discourse and influence. It is a good book, but would have been much more closely aligned to it's purported content without the political interjections.

31 people found this helpful

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  • K. Whitelaw
  • 2019-04-25

annoying and pretentious.

I love books on thru hikes but couldn't make it through this one. too much judgement and pretense to keep listening.

15 people found this helpful

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  • Jean
  • 2019-04-04

Impressive

In January I read my first hiking book called “Steps Out of Time: One Woman’s Journey on the Camino” by Katharine B. Soper.

In this book Francis is hiking the PCT (Pacific Crest Trail) from Mexico to Canada. The author is a natural storyteller. Francis does an excellent job describing the countryside. It is so picturesque; I feel I am right there. I am familiar with the areas she describes and that makes her comments more interesting. She also tells of the people she met along the Trail and includes some humor. Both books discuss problems with the feet, primarily blisters. The author states she is a weak hiker. I would disagree with that as she completed the 2700 miles. When I was young, I might have enjoyed this hike, but now I am happy to be a vicarious hiker.

The book is eight hours and thirty-two minutes. Wendy Tremont King does a good job narrating the book.

11 people found this helpful

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  • Skeet S.
  • 2020-03-13

Mediocre story with a good bit of whining

Nothing special, just like many other PCT books. Started at Campo, hiked from resupply point to resupply point meeting other hikers ends at Manning Park. Storytelling lacks impact and depth. There a much better books out there on the PCT. Check out Skywalker or Hiking the PCT.

10 people found this helpful

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  • MaryCay
  • 2019-02-11

Good Story and Good Performance

Enjoyed listening to this book. It kept my interest, it moved well. One or two spots maybe dragged a little, all in all, there was not anything I didn't like about it.

6 people found this helpful

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  • Jeff S.
  • 2021-01-05

Well Done — Thank you for sharing your experience!

I enjoyed the book very much. I can’t get enough of these PCT memoirs. This one is well crafted and the performance captures the author’s tone well. Ms. Francis is a strong, self-sufficient hiker. She appreciates the privilege of hiking the PCT and handles the accompanying hardships with resilience and a sense of humor.

Other reviewers make a lot out of a few sentences here and there where she offers her point of view. Long distance hiking can be a time for introspection, and a memoir like this can be an opportunity to pass some of that along. It is not clear to me what sparked such strong reactions. When we visit wild lands it is our responsibility to leave no trace and when we can to leave the land and the people we meet better than we found them. It seems reasonable that those ethics would also extend to how we tread through society at large. This is far from a political book, but why would an author edit all traces of herself from writing about a journey that manifests both outward and inward? Well done.

5 people found this helpful

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  • Jenni
  • 2019-05-03

Wish I had a warning

I would have liked this book much more had the author not snuck in her socialist agenda and hatred if Gin rights.

5 people found this helpful

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  • Emily Zuniga
  • 2020-06-18

Inspired to get out and explore.

Great adventure, I liked that you were involved from the beginning of her story. Also, I loved listening to the narration of this book, it was as if she was sitting in the car with me telling the story.

1 person found this helpful

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  • Daryl Bergmann
  • 2020-04-25

Great book.

I love the stories like this, always wanting to just keep listening but work always gets in the way.

1 person found this helpful