The Old Ways

A Journey on Foot

By: Robert Macfarlane

Narrated by: Roy McMillan

THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER

SHORTLISTED FOR THE SAMUEL JOHNSON PRIZE

The original bestseller from the beloved author of UNDERLAND, LANDMARKS and THE LOST WORDS - Robert Macfarlane travels Britain's ancient paths and discovers the secrets of our beautiful, underappreciated landscape

'The Old Ways confirms Macfarlane's reputation as one of the most eloquent and observant of contemporary writers about nature' Scotland on Sunday

Following the tracks, holloways, drove-roads and sea paths that form part of a vast ancient network of routes criss-crossing the British Isles and beyond, Robert Macfarlane discovers a lost world - a landscape of the feet and the mind, of pilgrimage and ritual, of stories and ghosts; above all of the places and journeys which inspire and inhabit our imaginations.

'Sublime . . . It sets the imagination tingling, laying an irresistible trail for readers to follow' Sunday Times

'Read this and it will be impossible to take an unremarkable walk again' Metro

'He has a rare physical intelligence and affords total immersion in place, elements and the passage of time: wonderful' Antony Gormley

Critic reviews

A wonderful book: Macfarlane has a rare physical intelligence, and his writing affords total immersion in place, elements and the passage of time (Antony Gormley)

A naturalist who can unfurl a sentence with the breathless ease of a master angler, a writer whose ideas and reach far transcend the physical region he explores

[Mountains of the Mind is] a distinguished book that jolted my heart. Adventurous, passionate, intensely romantic . . . fizzes with insights (Roger Deakin)

A new naturalist to set beside the classics in our literature

The Old Ways confirms Robert Macfarlane's reputation as one of the most eloquent and observant of contemporary writers about nature

Macfarlane relishes wild, as well as old, places. He writes about both beautifully . . . I love to read Macfarlane

Read this and it will be impossible to take an unremarkable walk again

A unique book and views

Would you listen to The Old Ways again? Why?

Yes! The meditative rhythm and atmospheric reading are entrancing, while the descriptions are rich.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Old Ways?

Any of the beautiful descriptions of old traditions.

Have you listened to any of Roy McMillan’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No, but I look forward to.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Walking the paths and past