“Two Steps Forward” by Graeme Simsion & Anne Buist

I just spent a week hiking through Portugal with three other women who flew in from New York, England and California. According to my Fit Bit tracker, we walked 115, 524 steps in five days through Porto and the Douro Valleys. That is about 58.66 miles, give or take a step, depending on our strides. One day we met a young blonde woman on a bike along the bridge in Porto, and she asked us to take her picture. She was traveling along the Camino de Santiago, all alone, and expected to get to her destination in six days. Her solo journey reminded me of this book “Two Steps Forward” by Graeme Simsion and Anne Buist. My friend Sally first recommended this book to me a few months ago, and I read it in anticipation of my hike through Portugal. It is the fictional account of two people, a man and a woman, who meet several times along the Camino De Santiago which goes through the countries of France and Spain. (The woman we met in Porto was starting along the Camino trail that dips down to Portugal). The Camino, also known as the Way of Saint James, is a network of centuries old pilgrim trails that lead to the shrine of Saint James The Great in Galicia, Spain. If you attempt to complete the entire trail on foot, it can take 30-35 days, depending on your walking speed. “Two Steps Forward” follows the compelling and romantic story of Marin, an engineer from England recovering from a bad divorce and Zoe, an artist from California who recently lost her husband in a car accident. People hike the Camino for many reasons, but spiritual healing seems to be the bond that links Martin and Zoe. One of the authors, Mr. Graeme Simsion, also wrote the best-selling book the “Rosie Project.” Together Simsion and Buist have crafted a beautiful story about connection, walking and rebirth along the Camino de Santiago. After reading this book, I think a hike along the Camino might be in my future as well. To purchase this book on Amazon click here.