Reviews

To the River: A Journey Beneath the Surface by Olivia Laing

roropon's review against another edition

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informative reflective slow-paced

dannythestreet's review against another edition

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inspiring reflective relaxing slow-paced

4.0

This book reads as the river flows

rojaed's review against another edition

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informative reflective relaxing slow-paced

3.0

smb04's review against another edition

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informative reflective relaxing slow-paced

3.0

jnelsontwo's review against another edition

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informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

3.75

kmonty's review against another edition

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reflective medium-paced

4.0

tobyh_'s review against another edition

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adventurous informative reflective slow-paced

4.25

kaseii's review against another edition

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It was getting a bit too smart/boring for me- boring..

mallaeuswastaken's review against another edition

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3.0

To call this meandering is probably a little on the nose, but that's exactly what it is. Far from a simple travelogue of a journey from source (although Laing points out that the place in which she begins her trip is unlikely to be the "true" source) to sea, this book is an exploration of the role that rivers play in our lives, our histories and our culture. Laing is a master at these genre bending accounts, mixing memoir, history and nature writing together into a gently flowing experience which shifts seamlessly between each domain.
If you're a fan of Virginia Woolf and other, somewhat more obscure, literary and historical figures, I think you'll enjoy this book more than I perhaps did, but it is most certainly worth the time regardless.

prajnya's review against another edition

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challenging emotional hopeful inspiring relaxing medium-paced

4.5