《Woods漫步》讲述了作者的一次真正的冒险经历，在这部小说中布莱森描述了他在阿巴拉契亚山脉徒步旅行的经历，Stephen Katz是他多年来酗酒成瘾的老朋友。它以一种幽默的风格而闻名于世，包括一系列的讨论谈话，包括道路在过去发生过的故事，风景，植物，动物和人。他们的行程覆盖了从格鲁吉亚到缅因州的阿巴拉契亚山脉，从美国南部到北部，从南到北一直走到2000英里，起初听起来有多疯狂，整个徒步历程是有多么困难，但他们最终是怎么做到的。这是一个奇迹。大多数人都会发现这种尝试是需要很好的体力的，如体育锻炼至少未来几个月中要准备我和我的朋友的体力强大到足以承受这旅程，要如何提前安排我的工作，旅途中可能遇到危险的动物和疾病等，最后我们会放弃。然而，布莱森以充满激情、幽默和生活感悟迎接了这一冒险。A Walk in the Woods tells a true adventure of the writer, in which Bryson describes his adventure of hiking in the Appalachian Trail with Stephen Katz, an old friend of his who used to addict in alcohol for years. It is famous with the tremendous details in a humorous style, covering series discussions including the path’s past stories, breath taking landscapes, plants, animals and people. Their trip covers no less than 2,000-mile hiking Appalachian Trail, which stretches from Georgia to Maine, from south to north on the eastern coast of the U.S, how crazy it sounded at first and how difficult the whole project was and how they finally made it. It was a miracle. Most people will find this attempt equals to a huge number of serious weighs and considerations and preparations such as physical exercise at least months ahead to prepare my body and my friend’s strong enough to afford this journey, how to arrange my work, possible dangerous animals and diseases, and etc. and finally, we will give up. However, Bryson has greeted this adventure with full of passion, humor and life perception.
First, the most well known and acknowledged charm of this book, the fantastic combination of the words and sentences, the interesting jokes and relaxing language even when they got into troubles such as the horrible bear they encountered, and that he kept telling a story in such a comfortable rhythm with the heavy pack on the back and the despair they tried to avoid but sometimes failed. Humor has been identified as one of the most important strengths considered ubiquitously important for human flourishing in positive psychology. Bryson keeps calm in such a frightening environment and then describe it as something happened on a planet that has not been named by human being. It was one night when then slept in the mountain and Bryson heard some noise which was probably from a black bear. He warned Katz the coming monster and asked him whether he had got some ‘weapon’ to defend himself.
‘Stephen,’ I whispered at his tent, ‘did you pack a knife?’
‘No.’
‘Have you got something sharp at all?’
He thought for a moment. ‘Nail clippers.’
I made a despairing face. ‘Anything a little more vicious than that? Because, you see, there is definitely something out here.’
Second, there is serious and positive spirit Bryson behind his humor, which makes this book more readable and difficult to forget, what distinguishes the book from other record of the adventure in the woods it the author’s caring beyond his personal experience and feelings. On one hand, Bryson trudged along the trail. Furthermore, he expressed his love and showed sympathy towards every life, the real owner of the woods when he making the jokes. He offered a lot of historic contexts of the trail and the every national park on the way, he worried about the extinct species and complained about the government’s negligence of their duty, but also he understood their shortage of funds. He really worried, but never castigated, never lost his distinguished style of touching a serious topic with tender and elegance. It is true and rather natural he spent a lot of ink on the breath taking landscape of forests and lakes, on his fear when he was besieged by the freezing air and relief after escape from the hell, his resoluteness to conquer all the obstacles in the lonely forest and extreme happiness when back to the modern world which ‘produce’ comfort. But that is not all. On the other hand, the friendship between Bryson and Katz is also serious and touching behind their humor actions and conversations, just as Bryson put in the frond page ‘
