A Walk in the Woods
by Bill Bryson
★ Top 25 book of 1997 · #13 on Best Books of 1997
Bill Bryson recounts his attempt to hike the Appalachian Trail alongside a friend, mixing comic storytelling with more serious reflection. Along the way he explores the trail's history, wildlife, plants, and the people who live near it.
Best for: Armchair adventurers who enjoy funny travel writing with nature and history woven in
A Walk in the Woods is #13 on BookWard's Best Books of 1997, out of 27 1997 books that cleared our data bar.
What A Walk in the Woods is about
Bill Bryson sets out to walk the Appalachian Trail, despite being far from an experienced hiker. His companion is an old friend, called Stephen Katz in the book, who is blunt, out of shape and even less ready for the woods than Bryson himself. They begin in Georgia and quickly learn how much of their gear and food they never needed to carry.
The humor comes from misadventure, but the book also stops to explain the Trail's history, the people who use it, its ecology and the fight to protect it, with a side trip to a Pennsylvania town sitting above a burning coal seam. The walk does not go exactly to plan, and the book is honest about that. Readers who enjoy a warm, funny travel companion, or who have ever overestimated their own ambitions, will find good company here.
A Walk in the Woods on the Best Books of 1997
A Walk in the Woods came out in 1997. Of the 27 books first published in 1997 that met BookWard's data bar, it ranks #13 on our Best Books of 1997 list.
Why it made the list: 277 readers have shelved it on Open Library; readers rate it 3.9 out of 5 (68 ratings). The list ranks each year’s books on how many readers have picked them up, how highly readers rate them, and how many are reading them right now.
Nearby on the 1997 list
- Killing Floor Lee Child, #11
- The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down Anne Fadiman, #12
- Sex and the City Candace Bushnell, #14
- Out of the Dust Karen Hesse, #15
See all Best Books of 1997 Best books by year
More years: Best Books of 1996 Best Books of 1998.
The numbers behind it
- Readers: 177 want to read it, 4 are reading it now and 96 have read it, according to Open Library.
- Ratings: 3.9 out of 5 from 68 Open Library ratings.
| Signal | This book (0 to 100) | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Reach | 56 | 55% |
| Reader love | 52 | 25% |
| Being read right now | 11 | 20% |
Questions about A Walk in the Woods
When was A Walk in the Woods published?
A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson was first published in 1997.
Was A Walk in the Woods one of the best books of 1997?
A Walk in the Woods is #13 on BookWard's Best Books of 1997, out of 27 1997 books that cleared our data bar. 277 readers have shelved it on Open Library; readers rate it 3.9 out of 5 (68 ratings).
Why is A Walk in the Woods on the Best Books of 1997 list?
277 readers have shelved it on Open Library; readers rate it 3.9 out of 5 (68 ratings).
More of the best books of 1997
- Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone J. K. Rowling, #1
- Rich Dad, Poor Dad Robert T. Kiyosaki, #2
- Guns, Germs, and Steel Jared Diamond, #3
- The Adventures of Captain Underpants Dav Pilkey, #4
- The Power of Now Eckhart Tolle, #5
- Into Thin Air Jon Krakauer, #6
See the full Best Books of 1997, the Top 100, or new books on Rising.
How we know
This page uses public data: Open Library reader counts and ratings, and Wikipedia page views for recent years. The description is paraphrased from real source text. Rankings reflect reading interest, not quality or sales, and can be affected by data gaps. Lists update monthly.
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