Have you ever wondered what it would be like to just walk away from everything?
__IMAGE1__"I
think a lot of people have that fantasy at some point," author Richard
Paul Evans says. "But then we look at the bonds we have: the marriage,
the kids, the home, the responsibilities, the job. And we know we want
those things in our lives."
But what if those bonds were all taken away?
That
was the idea that struck Evans while he was out for a walk on his
southern Utah ranch. He walks for exercise and for inspiration, he
says, and one day the inspiration kicked in. "I thought about the
fantasy of walking away, and the bonds that prevent it. The only way to
walk away would be if those bonds were gone, but then you would also
have to deal with their loss."
That's the premise of Evans' newest novel, "The Walk," which is actually the first of what will be a five-part series.
In
the book, Alan Christofferson is a successful Seattle advertising
executive who seems to have it all. He owns his own company, has a
thriving business, lives in a fabulous house, drives fancy cars and is
married to his childhood sweetheart, McKale, whom he adores.
__IMAGE2__But
within a period of five weeks, he loses it all — all his material
possessions and all of his emotional connections. Suddenly adrift in a
world grown cold and meaningless, Alan considers taking his own life,
but instead decides, quite literally, to simply walk away — to walk to
the most-far-away place he can find on the map: Key West, Fla.
This
first volume covers the first 250 miles of his journey, and equipped
with his diary and little more than what he can carry on his back, he
walks from Bellevue to Spokane, Wash. Along the way, he meets people
who are helpful and not-so. He experiences a depth of pain, both
physical and emotional, as he deals with uncertain terrain, but also
anger at God, disgust with the business partners who betrayed him, the
loss of the most meaningful things in his life, and more. And, as he
begins to think about all those things a little differently, he shares
insight and philosophy through his diary.
"He
starts out walking away. By the end, he will be walking toward
something," says Evans. "Even now he's beginning, just beginning, to
walk towards hope."
The series will
be a journey through the heart and soul of one man, but also across
America. Evans doesn't know yet the exact route Christofferson will
take, and he's looking forward to those discoveries as well.
"At
first, I thought I could just sit in my den and write this book by
using the Internet. I soon realized there was no way I could do that."
So he and his daughter, who now works as his editorial assistant, flew
to Seattle. "We charted out how far you could walk in a day and plotted
out the route, visited all the little towns — every one of which seems
to be famous for something."
That's
what they will do for each of the books, he says. "I'm going to be
driving across this country with my daughter — what a blessing that
will be. It will be as much an adventure for me as for my readers.
We'll spend the next four years walking and then have a big party in
Key West."
This is the first time he
has set out to write a series, he says. "The 'Christmas Box' trilogy
grew into a trilogy only because people wanted to know more about the
characters of the first book."
But
he's always liked the idea of a series because "they give you a sense
of belonging, whether you're watching 'The Office' on TV or reading
about Harry Potter. They open up another part of our personal stories.
But I didn't want to do a series that was restricted to a certain
locale. 'The Walk' is perfect for that."
Plus,
he says, "every generation seems to have a dream of roaming around the
country — from Thoreau to Steinbeck to Kerouac, there's a part of us
that responds to the nomadic. There's a part of us that finds in
walking a larger metaphor for finding meaning in our own lives." In
"The Walk," Alan Christofferson will find America, "but it's really
about finding himself."
Evans sees
"The Walk" as very apropos for our times. "There is so much loss out
there. Everywhere I go, I meet people whose lives have been pulled up
by the roots."
He experienced that
same thing when he was growing up. "We lost three homes, and my family
was uprooted totally on two different occasions. Those changed my life
dramatically and were soul-searching times that have had a very real
effect on my life. I've also had business problems. I've had a major
health blow-up."
Evans' father died
while he was writing the book. It was his father who turned him into a
philosopher as much as an author, he says. "I was raised in a family
that had discussions every Sunday night. My father loved to think. We
would talk about church subjects, but we would also talk about Marcus
Auerlius." After his father died, Evans added a near-death experience
to "The Walk." "I just felt like it had to be there, to help with my
own feelings."
Plus, the main character is named after the husband of a close friend who was killed in an accident a little over a year ago.
So,
he says, there's some of his own journey in this book, as there has
been in all the others. But that intimate knowledge of human motivation
and frailty lends authenticity to his work, he feels.
It
has certainly struck a chord with readers all over the country. Each of
his previous 14 novels has appeared on the New York Times Bestseller
lists; there are more than 13 million copies in print in more than 22
languages. "The Walk" has only been out for a few days and is already
in its third printing, he says.
That's
humbling but also gratifying. "I have the coolest readers," he says.
"They give me such freedom to write, to share messages that mean a lot
to me."
Talk to some of his readers,
and they clearly return the affection. You feel good when you finish
one of Evans' books, says Kele Griffone. "They make you want to be a
better person."
Nicole Buckmiller
started reading them "when I was 14; I got addicted. When they come
out, I run to get the next one. They are really inspiring. I'll be a
fan forever."
"The Walk" will have
special meaning for Joe Johansen. "My wife was his greatest fan. The
minute she saw a new one advertised, I was over here buying it. She
read his Christmas book just before she passed away. So, this one, I'm
going to read for her."
Evans hopes
a lot of people who have suffered loss will walk with Alan
Christofferson and that they will also find some comfort and hope.
Sadly,
he says, loss is a part of life. "But the only way to have no pain is
to have nothing to lose. And who wants that? We can choose better over
bitter. We can all walk toward hope."
E-mail: carma@desnews.com