Reviews

MacLaine's eighth book confirms her gift for storytelling; her pitch and timing are perfect. She wryly blends her spirituality with self-deprecating humor. While working in Brazil, the actress received a handwritten, anonymous letter urging her to make a pilgrimage along the Santiago de Compostela Camino in Spain. She discussed the letter with friends, gave some thought to the notion, and promptly forgot all about the idea. Several years later, again while working in Brazil, MacLaine received another anonymous letter in the same handwriting again urging her to make the journey. Eventually, she determined that the time had come for her to make the trip. People from St. Francis of Assisi to Dante and Chaucer have taken this 500-mile walk across the highways, mountains, cities, villages, and fields in Spain. The government offers protection for spiritual seekers, and villagers routinely offer food and shelter. MacLaine, who is in her sixth decade, found the trip to be both an intense physical and spiritual challenge. She reveals her dreams, fears, and humiliations with honesty and insight. Recommended for libraries with large biography and spiritual collections.ÄPam Kingsbury, Florence, AL Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.