TBR Pile Review: Walking the Invisible, by Michael Stewart

Blurb

Michael Stewart has been captivated by the Brontes since he was a child, and has travelled all over the north of England in search of their lives and landscapes. Now, he’d like to invite you into the world as they would have seen it.

Following in the footsteps of the Brontes across meadow and moor, through village and town, award-winning writer Michael Stewart takes a series of inspirational walks through the lives and landscapes of the Bronte family, investigating the geographical and social features that shaped their work.

This is a literary study of both the social and natural history that has inspired writers and walkers, and the writings of a family that have touched readers for generations. Finally we get to understand the ‘wild, windy moors’ that Kate Bush sang about in ‘Wuthering Heights’, see the imposing halls that may have inspired Thornfield Hall in Jane Eyre, and learn about Bramwell’s affair with a real life Mrs Robinson while treading the same landscapes. As well as describing in vivid detail the natural beauty of the moors and their surroundings, Walking the Invisible also encompasses the history of the north and the changing lives of those that have lived there.

My Review

I was sent this book after receiving an email from HQ. I was actually surprised when it turned up because I forgot I responded to the email.

I have been reading it for a few weeks but then the other day I curled up in the chair and read the second half of it. I have done a fair bit of walking in North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire when I was younger, about twenty years ago now. I’m reasonable familiar with the area, but haven’t been to Howarth, I don’t think anyway. I have been to Halifax and Harrogate. Scarborough I know reasonably well too. This is familiar territory for me.

I’ve never been interested in the Bronte’s work though, I’ve only read The Professor by Charlotte Bronte and seen one version of Jane Eyre. I have read a book about their Aunt Branwell, and I think I have another in the Pen & Sword review stack. I’m interested in the family as people, because one family produced four accomplished writers (although Branwell is forgotten about) and they lived in interesting times.

This book is written by a writer who lives the Brontes. His love of the books and knowledge of both their work, lives and the social changes happening during their lives is obvious.

I’ve been writing this review on and off for days trying to find a clever way to say it is good if you like walking and the Brontë family. I can’t think of anything so there we go. I liked the maps of the walks and the little facts about related stuff included in the walk section. There’s something very Wainwright-esque about the drawings. This book is a mix of literary appreciation, rural and social history, biography, autobiography and walking guide. It feels very much like a rambling conversation between people out on the Moors enjoying the environment and it’s associations with a special interest.