Wanderlust Read: Walden; or, Life in the Woods by Henry David Thoreau
Default / 26/07/2018

With the advent of the modern travel industry and the globe-setting lifestyle that many people lead today, Henry David Thoreau’s Walden doesn’t even register as a travel book to a lot of people. Borrowing an ax and building a cabin in your friend’s backyard would seem like anything but a wanderlust read. But the impetus behind this act seems to be removing oneself from society in a way that unlocks a specific kind of freedom and wanderlust of the mind. For after building this cabin that could be retreated to when needed for shelter and rest, Thoreau seemed to spend awfully little time in it. Instead, he would walk, hike, climb, and boat his way around the neighborhood on some days, the better part of eastern Massachusetts during some weeks.   In another interesting tidbit of tension, Thoreau had no great love for the new kid on the block when it came to modes of transportation. Though it would take a little more time to fully ensconce itself into American culture, the railroad had already make its way to New England by the mid-19th century when Thoreau was writing. It would seem to many like the railroad held an endless…