I damaged my new knee. It was going so well — PT, walking two to three miles a few times a week. Going everywhere I wanted with no pain ~~ then wham and Damn. Stepping off a city bus, not noticing the step was quite high from the curb — stepped down hard and twisted that poor knee.
After more X-rays and doctor’s appointments, the good news is that the knee is badly bruised (ouch) but no further surgery is required. Just rest the poor knee, ice, and elevate for two-three weeks. Then, it’s back to starting my PT exercises all over again (I know!). I’m back to using a cane, hobbling around in pretty intense pain, and being very – very grumpy. Don’t feel too sorry for me, poor Husband is staying way of out my range.
So what am I doing? I finished a book about a group of people who walk across England – talk about irony.
You are Here by David Nicholls
Us, by Mr. Nicholls was a favorite novel — completely unexpected – subtle, bittersweet, and unflinchingly honest. So When You are Here came up my library wish list…I grabbed it.
Geography teacher, Michael, had been planning a solo walking trip across northern England — an epic ten-day trek, all alone.
But when his fellow teacher, Cleo, turns it into a group event, he reluctantly agrees to lead the walking trip – yes, you read that right – across England. Michael is just separated from his wife and recovering from being mugged –and Cleo thought he could use some company.
She invites several other people including Marnie, a divorced copy editor who works from home and really doesn’t want to do any of this — she’d rather stay home with her manuscripts and predictable schedule. Marnie has no long distance walking experience, but in a fit of enthusiasm purchases all new equipment, boots, and walking clothes.
We follow this group as they walk each day and spend nights at various inns and pubs. Soon the weather turns foul, and one by one the others drop out and go home. We are left with just Michael and Marnie who are both not easy to be around and used to finding solace in their own isolated lives. Walking together through rain and wind — and neither of them can think of anything worse. Until, of course, they discover exactly what they’ve been looking for.
Now, now don’t leave me — this isn’t a sappy romance. It’s witty, clever, fun with lots of sarcasm and humor threaded in and the characters are truly authentic. The landscape and setting are beautifully described and, fair warning, Michael, being a geography teacher, does like to explain the landscape maybe a little too fully.
As the pair make their way through the hills and valleys, we discover Marnie is practically agoraphobic, so for her to be on this walk, is amazing.
—a book was something she could pull around and over herself, like a quilt.
While Michael, who didn’t want to be divorced, is having a hard time adjusting to his solitude and an empty house
Not an introvert, just an extrovert who had lost the knack.
Marnie and Michael felt like real people and people I wanted to spend time with. I could feel myself right there with them, tending blisters, getting drenched, cussing and lashing out, but also getting into deep conversations that never arise in their normal lives. We see how each stands in the way of a shared happy ending. Mr. Nicholls uses the walking as a device to deconstruct and then reconstruct the characters. They open up to each other and discover that maybe they don’t need to be alone.
You are Here is a distinctly British novel, it plunges the reader into the English countryside, the ancient walking paths, the damp pubs and, most of all, the fortitude of these British walkers who are accomplishing more than just a very long walk across England. I found this to be a beautiful novel, sensitive, witty, and with a kind and gentle viewpoint towards us endlessly messy and clueless humans.
N.B. A great bonus in any book –maps of their journey.
