This is an impressive first novel and beautifully written. The story draws you in much as Harold is drawn into his walk. There is wisdom and poignancy in Harold's reflections as he walks and also in the encounters he has along the way. All the main characters are well drawn and Rachel Joyce avoids obvious directions. The overall resolution is as moving as it is surprising.

The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry was a resounding success. Everyone had read or is about to read it and we agreed it was just a lovely, poignant, heart-warming tale and one that was very hard to put down. We really cared about our hero and his wife Maureen and no-one guessed the twist which explains how they come to be as they are. It is Rachel Joyce's first novel and will be a hard act to follow.

Harold Fry's epic journey will resonate well with groups--especially older women's groups. Like Major Pettigrew's Last Stand, the Widower's Tale and Bill Warrington's Last Chance, this book is the story of retired man looking for some meaning in what's left of his life. Wives and widows will laugh and nod their heads at this one.

Sweet book about Harold's sudden decision to visit an old friend, providing time for reflection on his life. His adventures/misadventures carry us along with him. Satisfying read.
GREAT discussion material!!

Oh, to have the courage of Harold Fry -- to embark on a journey of such understanding, self-awareness and to open your eyes to a world you forgot was there, was truly a walk to remember. The author creates such a visual atmosphere that after a few chapters the muscles in your own legs ache from the feel of taking each step along with Harold. It is a must read for all those whose lives have been redirected over the years due to circumstances, desires (or even lack of desires). It is almost a spiritual awakening to those things that used to give your life meaning and reconnecting with the feelings and people who fulfilled you as a person. As Harold says, "Life is very different when you are walking through it." We could all take lessons from Harold and learn to stop and smell the roses. This story will make you laugh and it will make you cry. Most important, it will make you feel, it will make you think, it will make you want to pick up your walking shoes and begin a pilgrimage of your own. (However, I suggest you start out with something in the 10-20 mile radius to begin with.)

At first I was unsure where the story was leading and how I felt about Harold. Halfway through the book I could not put the book down. I was so drawn into the characters self discoveries and their new relationships that helped change them.

Harold Fry\'s pilgrimage is one man\'s search to find understanding, meaning, acceptance, and forgiveness in his life. The strangers he meets along the way both help and impede him on his quest. The story of this gentle, flawed man is touching and at times heartbreaking. It is well worth the trip to journey with Harold Fry. There is much for book groups to discuss. I will recommend this book to my 18 member book group.

This seemingly simple book turned into one of the most complex discussions we\\\\\\\'ve ever had. We talked non-stop for over an hour about characters and motives. The more we talked, the more there was to talk about.

The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry starts out a little slowly, its kind of a slow and winding road as you travel with him. As on any journey there is the slow start and set backs before you really settle in. The book is the same way. Once you start getting onto the truth behind Harold\'s walk and his experiences, he is everyman. The book plays with your emotions and you feel many things as you travel with him. The ultimate ending is moving and truthful and powerful.

A very insightful, and revealing book about a man and his wife in later life. A book that people in their later years of marriage can relate to. A lot of discussion about making our own pilgrimages and what that means to us.

A surprise letter arrives for Harold Fry from Queenie Hennessy, a terminally ill friend from the past who wants to say goodbye. Going completely against his nature Harold makes a spontaneous decision to deliver a reply himself and starts walking to the hospice which is 600 miles away.
Maureen and Harold Fry live in isolation for most of the time. She is a tense and unyielding ‘neat freak’ whose cynicism and snide comments have helped to end the couple’s love for life and for each other. They fail miserably to communicate in anything else but snipes or unspoken criticisms and they are frustrated with each others’ imperfections. They have long since stopped sharing a bedroom.
It seems that neither of them is planning to make the most of their marriage and Maureen’s contempt holds no bounds for Harold’s sudden and totally unexpected impulse to literally wander off on his own. For many reasons she remains unconvinced that being committed, determined and motivated will earn her husband the help he needs to complete the mammoth challenge he has set himself.
Writing fiction about those who have become old before their time is a familiar concept and our reading group discussed how retirement from work is not always a smooth or painless transition. Following through to the end of Harold’s contorted navigation and a contrived ending, some of us might have dared to hope for the best for this ordinary, stuck-in-a-rut couple. To find a new direction in their lives would certainly mean major changes to Harold and Maureen’s decades-long habits and routines.
Not everyone liked the book and unfavourable comparisons were made with Jonas Jonasson’s fantasy: ‘The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared’. However, some agreed that the book was well written, especially for a first published novel and said it was easy to read.

Score 6/10

Although several members felt this started slow, everyone loved it. This book was easy to relate to on some level. We are, have known or experienced Harold and/or some of the people he encounters on his journey.

Who would think that taking a 500-mile walk would bring all one's emotions to a head and invite self-reflection as well as regret?

Harold Fry never knew that a letter from an old friend would elicit so many emotions, and he never would have thought he would do what he was doing or how he was doing the 500-mile walk to his friend Queenie who was dying of cancer.

As you are reading about Harold's walking and his promise, you are probably asking yourself this question as I did: Why in the world is he continuing on this journey when it is becoming impossible to walk and to fulfill his promise. I would have accepted any ride that was offered. :) Harold did meet a number of interesting people, though, and his wife who was left at home was making friendships and regretting that she and Harold had never had a deep relationship.

The adjective, MARVELOUS, on the ARC's book cover undeniably describes this book. Additional adjectives such as SPECTACULAR and SPLENDID would also be revealing terms. The author made this mundane topic of a 500-mile walk to see a friend not mundane at all. Ms. Joyce had beautiful descriptions of landscapes, feelings, conversations, and thoughts about friendship and family. She drew you right into the book from page one.

You will find that this read is very profound and thought-provoking. Nothing but praise for this remarkable book....the characters and the storyline are exceptional.

The book is also a tribute to the decency of the human race for their concern and their support of a cause a fellow human being believed in. This book is also an inspiring emotional ride...have tissues handy and be prepared to be thinking about your own life....the regrets as well as the pleasures. 5/5

I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

This book started out as a radio play. It did not read as well as it could have. Our group thinks it might be a better movie than it was a book.

The story of a man who has lived a very unexamined life and suddenly finds the need to discover some meaning to his existence. Interesting religious allegories plus the story of a marriage gone awry.

At the age of sixty-five, retired and stuck in a marriage gone stale, in a life that is humdrum, filled with the sameness of everyday and past secrets, Harold Fry suddenly gets a letter from an old friend which sets him free from his doldrums and spurs him to attempt something new. After a twenty year silence, his old workmate, Queenie, has written to him to say goodbye. She is in hospice, and she is dying. Overcome with emotion and confusion, he sets out to mail her a quick reply, but instead, an idea forms in his head that will change his life, and he hopes it will change hers, as well. He decides to immediately walk the several hundred miles to the hospital to see her. He leaves a message for her that she must remain alive and wait for him. He will save her, not abandon her as he once did.
Harold has set off with no plan. What he does is haphazard. He has no walking shoes, his clothes are unsuitable for the effort; he has no map and no route to follow. What he does have, is hope, and he has a dream and a new faith in himself that he can do this, that he can accomplish something for the first time in his lackluster life. He believes in himself, and when he falters, he meets people who encourage him to move onward.
As Harold walks, he realizes what he has missed in his life. His memories assault him as the road continues ever forward. He recognizes his failures and analyzes them. He begins to analyze his empty marriage, once full and vibrant, and he feels there is no way back. Maureen, his wife, does the same in his absence. She feels the emptiness and the loss, but like him, has lost the way to communicate her feelings to him. They miss each other desperately, but they cannot express these feelings. Will they find their way back to each other?
Often in pain and discomfort, Harold continues on, buoyed by the belief that his goal to walk to Queenie, his old friend, will ultimately save her from terminal cancer. The journey is nostalgic; it is filled with memories, both happy and sad. The memories force him to come to terms with his life and compel him to face his future. This book cannot fail to touch your heart. It is such a poignant story of a man searching for fulfillment, a man who believes he has never accomplished anything, and this will be his master achievement. He comes to realize that we all journey alone, and in the end, we all need inner peace.
Harold meets so many people from different walks of life. He realizes that each carries a burden of some kind, and he often tries to lift it from their shoulders and offer comfort, if he can. We all have hidden memories, hidden lives, secrets and fears. Will this unlikely pilgrimage accomplish its goal? Along the way, it seems to have a profound effect on others as it touches their lives and they spur him onward. Some, however, use the journey for their own purposes and this sometimes, derails his efforts.
Often written in the tongue and cheek, witty way of the English authors, the heaviness of the message becomes less weighty. The prose is poetic and the author does a good job of capturing the voice of Harold as he wanders on his quest, unprepared but undaunted by the enormity of the feat before him. The author clearly expresses Harold’s feelings and those of his wife, Maureen, making it almost possible to visualize them, less as characters in a book and more like real people whom you might meet someday. Because the character development is detailed, clear and concise, it leaves the reader as familiar with them as if he/she is part of the story too. We learn that their lives have revolved into a pattern of habit and emptiness, loneliness and longing and we will watch them grow and recognize their own part in the dissolution of their lives and relationships. They are trapped in a purposeless life but the journey changes all that. Although the novel is written with compassion, and the occasional wit and lightness of a comment will lift up the reader from the overwhelming possibility of failure and heartbreak, the reader will feel the pain, the loneliness, the compassion, the concern, the loss, the joy and grief of the old memories as they assault Harold and Maureen’s consciousness so that they can learn to deal with them.
This is a meaningful story about the inability to accept what fate hands us and the need to strike out and blame others for our own shortcomings. It is also about the ultimate goodness that many people do feel in their hearts for others, often only expressed because of accidental meetings and/or our own introspection. Hope and faith play a major role in our lives, and Harold provides the reader with support for both of these beliefs. It feels like an adult fairy tale, at first. Soon, however, reality sets in, as it often does, and real life must be faced, one way or another, not only by Harold, but by Maureen. They come to terms with their own weaknesses and the weakness of others, they grow more accepting of others and themselves, and they are forced to deal with their own loneliness and the weight of the decisions they have made before and those they will soon confront. This beautifully written tale of awakening is a treatise on the human condition, and it may offer answers to many questions about the meaning of life and death, and the values we all carry with us as we travel the road together.
My feelings about this book were hard to put into words. It is revelatory and inspiring. I did not want it to end because I knew there would ultimately be some sorrow. Harold Fry’s pilgrimage is a metaphor for everyone’s existence; we are all on a journey, and we don’t know if we will accomplish any of our goals at the end of the road, we just hope we will, and we hold onto our faith as we keep putting one foot in front of the other in the game of life.

this is one of those books that is just sweet and thought provoking. you can recommend it to your grandmother or your neighbor without fear that they might be offended.

After reading this book I chose it for our book club and then read it a second time to prepare for our discussion. I got even more from it the second time as I savored the writing. It is a story of faith, perseverance and transformation, beautifully written. I highly recommend it.

A good read, sometimes you don't know that you have started on a journey until you are partway there.

What seemed like a presumably mediocre life of a retiree, turned inspiring and life changing in his journey of discovering himself and acknowledging his feelings of his childhood life, marriage and being a father. Loved the ending!

This was actually 4.5 stars for us. We really liked the book as a group and found it quite the page turner. We liked Harold and his pilgrimage. We all felt we knew a "Harold" in our lives. We found the story very realistic and enjoyable.

When recently retired Harold Fry learns that a former work colleague is dying of cancer, he makes a snap decision to walk the length of England to be by her side. So, without his phone or proper shoes, with nothing more than the clothes on his back, he sets out on foot. As unlikely as this pilgrimage is, the insights Harold gains from hours alone with his thoughts are life-changing. There is something about Harold that will appeal to a wide range of readers. I grew to love him and my heart broke for him as I learned how he had lost his way. Jim Broadbent does a marvelous job of narrating the audio version. He had good pacing and his inflections brought out the wry humor in certain passages.

Jim Broadbent does a marvelous job of narrating the audio version. He had good pacing and his inflections brought out the wry humor in certain passages.

Our club enjoyed reading about Harold and his impromptu pilgrimage. In fact, it was universally appreciated by our members. We found it touching and it resonated with many of us (who are mostly of or near retirement age.) It was a heart-wrenching tale of atonement and regret--and Harold\\\'s journey was certainly life changing for him. We would recommend it highly to other clubs!

We felt that the book captured many themes including, romance, redemption, and forgiveness. The characters were likable. There some unexpected events that always add to a book.

This book was easy to read and fun to discuss at book club.

Beautifully well written the author was able change the course of a tragic life into one of inspiration. Using separation in all it's guises to show how cut off people can become from one another and themselves.

Our group loved the book and found it rich in material for discussion. Marital relationships, mid life crisis and looking back on a life time of missed opportunities. We found it interesting to discuss the characters motives and behavior. Great for discussion.

Good book...very sweet and thought provoking!

The whole premise of Harold's walk made for great discussion, as well as the variety of unforgettable characters he meets along the way.

Following Harold Fry along his walking journey to Queenie, was a good read which made for a good discussion in our book club.

Easy to read, mostly believable characters

Harold\\\'s journey is the story of our lives: we start with only a vague idea of a purpose, commit ourselves to something, some people come along to help us, others distract us from our goal, and in the end remaining true to ourselves is what life is about.

All 12 members of our book group enjoyed the book. Some found it difficult to get into it while others had problems with the reality of someone waling in boating shoes. Overall we found it to have great lessons for life.

I thought it was gong to be an uplifting, funny novel but, even though it had funny parts, it also had a lot of confusing and disturbing parts. I really wanted to like this book but it just didn\'t pan out to be the book I had hoped it to be.

The book was slow to get into, but the last 20% of the book made the rest of it worth it. It wasn\\\'t a life changing book by any means, but well worth the read.

The premise seems a little bizarre, but this is a very insightful book and a fun read. A man takes off on a walk to visit an old friend who is dying of cancer. Along the way he examines his life in terms of his relationships with his son, his wife, and his friend, eventually coming to terms with ghosts that had haunted him for years.

This story was wonderful, Harold Frye gets a note from a friend at she is dying and he sets out to write her a letter and goes to mail it but keeps walking. He walks 600 miles to keep his friend alive. As he is walking he reaches a meditative and spiritual state where he reflects on his whole life. Good and bad, and sad too. The book has many questions as you are reading the story as to who are these characters. Great story...excellent ending with many faucets of life changing decisions made by the characters. Good book!

This books speaks to all who have been on a journey in life, providing insights into the myriad of ways we deal with love, hope, compassion and pain.

A very human story of love, loss, and hope. By the end of the book I felt Harold was an old friend of mine and I was rooting for him all the way. No pun intended.

Harold Fry, a simple man without much to account for. Yet look at what he was able to accomplish literally 1 step at a time.

If you can get through the first 3/4ths of the book then the ending is worth your while. I listened to this book on audio during my drives to work. I have decided that I would not recommend this book to my bookclub only because it is not believable and mostly dull til the end.

An unlikely book and I loved it. This book took more twists and turns than I could count, but the author took us on a beautiful journey with an unlikely hero and heroine. Wonderful!

I enjoyed this novel about an English couple whose failing marriage slowly unfolds during the husband\\\'s \\\"pilgrimage\\\" to visit a long ago friend he had let down. It had lots of quirky characters, and touched on several key issues; FORGIVENESS, OVERCOMING FEAR and letting go of past hurts.

How often we don't walk that "extra mile!" But Harold did, and the lessons he and his wife learned about love are lessons for us all.

It illustrated to me that a person can always change their direction, that solitary time can often times bring clarity and that memories can be one sided and not always completely correct.

A pilgrimage of hope, determination, disappointment and new beginnings.

An excellent read....inspiring, a coming of age book, laden with interesting characters!

The awakening of a man who has never taken the initiative to improve his unhappy life.

Enjoyed the way he morphed out of his gloom and depression as he cont on his journey. He was clearly at crossroads in his life and so lost on himself. The whole difficult journey was a purge and cleansing of all his quilt.

75% of the women liked the book very much. The consensus was that Harold started out to mail a letter to a friend that wrote to him telling him that she was dying and he embarked on this pilgrimage thinking that if she knew that he was walking to see her that she would stay alive. On the way he discovers things about himself that gave him a different outlook. He needed to strip himself of everything to get to the true man he was.

The premise of the book didn't grab me, but it didn't take me long to become addicted. Very well written, with interesting characters. Everyone in my book club loved it.

A life-changing walk across England changes Harold's perceptions of his life, marriage and friendships.

this book wasn't very interesting to me. But we had a wonderful group discussion at book club.

We liked the concept but felt it moved slowly and was a little long.

A good reminder that you should never judge a book, or a person, by the cover. We all agree that walking in nature is therapeutic to our lives. It is amazing how Harold interacts with people and just accepts them as they are and really listens to their stories.

Harold Fry has become one of my favorite literary characters

It's not the destination, it's the journey. This book can be enjoyed on two levels -- on the face of it, it's a sad/funny story of a quirky man who is walking to save the life of a woman he hasn't seen in 20 years. On a deeper level, it's a journey of self discovery for Harold and his wife, as they come to terms with the past, their lives, their failings, their humanness.

Great book about redemption. Harold steps out into the world and meets many characters that reframe how he sees the world.

Literally a journey of introspection of the past and present without clear definition of tomorrow or "what's next". As a recently retired professional the importance of living in the present with an eye toward future personal relationships was especially poignant.

A fanciful journey; interesting characters dealing with universal human emotions.

The plow slowly develops in the early chapters, but once Harold starts his journey, I couldn't put the book down. There is a small element of mystery carried through each chapter that makes the ending a surprise .

Really enjoyed this read.