The Book!! Slow Journey South is out

March 26th, 2008


Hello all –

Well, it is finally here!  “Slow Journey South”, my first book, goes on sale in Australia on the 1st of April – widely available in all book stores.

Now, as for those of you not lucky enough to live in Australia (ha, ha, ha) it has taken me some time to come up with an alternative.  Just to explain the details to you – until my publishers, Random House, have secured overseas publishers in various countries (unlikely to happen until my book has proven sales in Australia) they will not sell the rights to Amazon, as that would substantially lessen the chances of gaining said publisher.

So the solution we have finally come up with is that the link on this site will go to a store called Gleebooks, in Sydney, who can arrange for sales to overseas. 

THIS IS THE LINK: http://www.gleebooks.com.au/default.asp?p=displaybook_asp?bookCode=9781741667967  

Here is the first review I received, from the Australia Bookseller and Publisher magazine, I was dead chuffed because this mag goes out to all the various book outlets and buyers, and the review was written by a lady who buys for Angus & Robertson, one of Australia’s biggest book outlets; getting four stars made my day!

 

Australian Paula Constant has written a lifeaffirming, positive, inspiring and informative narrative of her emotional and physical journey to give up a teaching job in London and walk for three years with her husband—walking out of Trafalgar Square in central London to France, Spain and along the Camino Santiago pilgrim’s walk to Portugal. The book finishes as they reach Africa, but it is far from over as her main dream is to walk right to Cape Town. The ending is left open for a second book that will hopefully cover the remainder of their walk through the Sahara with camels, right down to Cape Town in South Africa. Paula’s voice is a fresh and
compelling one. She writes really well in this genre and is thoroughly inspirational—giving much in the way of personal learnings and insights about life. Slow Journey South will appeal to those that have an interest in travel stories, those that are interested
in walking and hiking and those that enjoy reading about Africa and the Camino Santiago. This is one of the finest examples of travel literature in a long time!

Melanie Barton is fiction category manager at Angus & Robertson

This review from Australian Bookseller & Publisher magazine is reproduced by kind permission of Thorpe-Bowker, a division of R R Bowker LLC. © Copyright 2008, Thorpe-Bowker

The official in-store date for the book is 1st of April, although it may be possible to find it a week before then (yeah right, Paula, like there are going to be mad queues….) and trust me – I will be there accosting unwitting shoppers and coercing them into buying a book!!  It is hard not to feel excited, it has been so long coming and feels great to finally have “evidence” of my walk out there – my own story.

 

It has also helped reinvigorate me in planning the next leg.  I received an email from Niger today – after a move by the rebel MNJ Tuareg forces (whom the Nigerienne government, in their wisdom, refuse to negotiate with as they are considered little more than bandits and drug runners rather than legitimate complainants) to release 25 prisoners – a move largely seen as a peaceful overture in part engineered by Libya -  the MNJ has unfortunately gone on to launch another attack on a military base, killing two.  I cringe every time I hear news such as this, as every incident lessens my chances of returning to Niger this September. But this time around I will not be caught out again, and am organizing my plan B to enter in Libya in the event that Niger cannot get it together.

You can look at the goings on in Niger at www.niger1.com – I have been away from the desert long enough that it actually looks attractive to me once more!

I am busy writing the second book; seeing the first one actually in print has really helped to motivate me in a lot of ways.  I find it very difficult at times – writing about my marriage break up for example is far from simple or easy.  I also find it difficult often to really explain what it is like out there – I realize, reading back over my website and diaries, that I have become very accustomed to sanitizing my accounts, partly to avoid worrying anyone back home and partly because I was often so exhausted when I reached a town that I felt reluctant to go re live the last stretch I had been on.  What interests me now is that in reading my diaries – which I have been doing lately for the first time since I got back – I remember so much that I had lost, or blocked out – whatever is the reality.  And that can be difficult to write about, because I guess there was a lot of pretty hard stuff, and to some degree you can’t afford to dwell in that when you are out there doing it.  It tends to come home to you long afterwards, waking you up in the night and making you flinch at involuntary times, or alternatively, bore the hell out of unsuspecting mates when you have had too much to drink.  One friend said to me a few months ago, when I got into one of these accounts – “oh God Paula, not another bloody camel story” – and I thought:  oh, dear, I think I better shut up.

So I try to restrict myself to those audiences who I know get it and are patient – my Mum, Graeme, Lachlan.  It is a bit much to expect the general populous to have much interest in camel induced sleep deprivation!

Last week I went to Sydney to do the first of the publicity events for my book.  This was the HDS booksellers conference – those are the guys who run the newslink outlets at airports, and various other brands worldwide.  I addressed a conference of their regional managers and buys, which I thoroughly enjoyed.  It is the first time I have done a talk about this book rather than the desert walk, and it was a joy to speak about the Europe walk again, to go right back to the beginning where all of this started. I ended with a passage from the book which I wanted to reproduce here, since I find it helpful to revisit myself, and a reminder of what is really important:

I think back to the person who sat on a sand dune and dreamed of walking through Africa, and I think of how truly powerful our dreams are, think that it is our dreams which tell us who we really are and what is important for us, that they are our identity, our reality, our comfort in the dark night and our defence against the false paths strewn in front of us by a society which does not honour their wisdom.

 I think of how very close I came on so many occasions to deserting my dreams because they seemed too hard, or because people told me they were crazy.   And then I think that this walk is the most important thing I have ever done, that I have learned more about myself and the world around me in this last year than I did in the thirty years before it, and I take a deep breath and throw back my head and look at the stars blazing with otherworldly power far above me in the clear crystal desert night and I feel the rip tide within surge and ebb once more and I think to myself:

 

There is nothing I cannot do.

I still love reading that passage.  It reminds me of how it is out there.

I hope those of you who buy it enjoy it.  And to the London mob – as soon as I have the advance copies in my hands, a copy will be winging its way to each of you, promise.  Love you guys so much, Jo, Steph, Steve, Sarah, Dan and Stefania….I miss you.

Cheers.

 

Entry Filed under: trekking

19 Comments Add your own

  • 1. HAYLEY BRENNAN  |  March 31st, 2008 at 7:47 pm

    just finished reading your book last night, you are so honest and it raw. brillant really. truely more than a travel trail, i love it. go you good thing. H

  • 2. Joanne  |  April 1st, 2008 at 5:43 pm

    Looking forward to getting my wine-ey little mits on it.

    You are an inspiration honey as ever.

    Big lurve from London xxxxx

  • 3. Julia Nolan  |  April 4th, 2008 at 1:53 am

    My first comment is by mistake on the post about your cycling friend. Just to add to my interest in your ‘voice’; curiously, Australian women conceal the lovely robust tone in their writing as if there is a taboo to speak out about ourselves internally with the mix of physical and intellectual and satirical expression we do amongst our best friends. You, Paula have broken the taboo and I am overjoyed to read it! Bring it on! The changing of the voice is one of the expressions of compliance to the blokes who run the place, as if we have not dared to show ‘them’ our sharp insights, our big hearts and our roaring dreams. You have inspired me; a 52 year old gasping exhausted on a rock from the wild seas of teaching, thankyou!

  • 4. K  |  April 13th, 2008 at 10:15 pm

    Reading your book at the moment and generally enjoying it.

    Any chance you would list it on Goodreads - I would love to review it!

  • 5. Jodie  |  April 13th, 2008 at 11:14 pm

    Congratulations! I came across your blog just as your walk started and have been following ever since. Your story is truly inspiring. I can’t wait to get a chance to read your book. Keep posting and best of luck!

  • 6. Carol Shuttleworth  |  April 19th, 2008 at 12:17 am

    A great read, a copy of your book was kindly donated by your sister to our High School- Tannum Sands State High Qld. As ex pommes, your delightful description of your journey through France and Europe gave us more than a twinge of longing to returnand visit. Well …maybe next year! Congratulations.

  • 7. Raewyn Shand  |  April 20th, 2008 at 10:44 pm

    I found your book at the Perth airport 4 days ago on my return to New Zealand.
    I have just finished it. Could hardly put it down.
    It was a fantastic read.
    I truly loved it and have now just been wandering around your website catching up on life since the end of the book - as I so wanted to know, what have you done since!!
    I am glad I found the book in Perth as from what I have just read I would not have come across it here.
    I certainly will be recommending it widely.

    I have just been to Melbourne and to Mt Dandenong (a beautiful place, one which I would love to return to) and across country to Adelaide and by train to Perth.
    Your trip is very inspiring and makes this 51 yr old mother of 10 want to get out and do more :-)

    Can’t wait for your next book - and this time I hope it is more widely available.

    Go for it girl!!

  • 8. Raewyn Shand  |  April 20th, 2008 at 10:46 pm

    Ooops!
    mucked up the Url link in the previous post.
    Sorry.
    Should’ve read as two different sites.

  • 9. Ashley  |  April 21st, 2008 at 1:26 am

    I found your book by chance a few weeks ago, and a couple of days later saw a review in the morning paper. Thanks for an interesting read. I look forward to the follow up. I found your honesty and perspective refreshing, and though I do not agree with parts, this is your story, and I loved the read. Good on you and keep walking. I walked the Camino Frances last year. For me as a 50 year old it was an amazing experience, and I hope to walk the Camino Portugeus next year. This is only a subset of what you have done. I can only imagine (and read) of the difficulties of the distance, cultural range and lack of infrastructure you encounter. Keep at it, enjoy, and Buen Camino, Ashley (Adelaide)

  • 10. Emily  |  April 21st, 2008 at 12:59 pm

    Hi Paula, I picked up your book at the Sydney airport and just wanted to let you know that you are a true inspiration. I have been telling people about you. Good luck with the next phase of your travels and please keep writing about it!

  • 11. HAYLEY BRENNAN  |  April 23rd, 2008 at 5:56 am

    well paula it’s great to read so many positive comments about your book, well done girl.

    i sent a copyt o my aunt in queensland who also love it and read the whole thing in just two sitting
    she loved your style of writing and has also been looking through your web site.

    take care love always hails

  • 12. Clarisa  |  May 4th, 2008 at 9:57 am

    Hi Paula,

    I just finished your book - wow! I hope you intended it to be gutsy and inspiring because that is truly what I got out of it. I have nothing but respect and admiration for you and what you are doing - I hope, too, one day, to also lead an extraordinary life and I am sure when the day comes for me to take the plunge I’ll think of you and say “why not?”

    Thank you for a wonderful book - can’t wait to read the next one!

    Clarisa

  • 13. sally  |  May 25th, 2008 at 10:54 am

    hi paula, my daughter gave me a copy of your book for mother’s day because she knows i love africa and books about people walking or riding around the world. of course i loved it. i also love camels so am looking forward to your second book. i was so glad that you didn’t bother with getting sponsorship. in other books that has always annoyed me that the travellers had to change their plans for sponsors when really, raising money was secondary to them. you’ve kept the walk as a walk. like a pilgrimage :)
    i’m so glad that there are people out there doing what you’re doing. one day maybe i will be too.

  • 14. tracey brown  |  June 12th, 2008 at 8:20 am

    Hi Paula im Tracey working mother of 2 thought id share that as i feel like i now you. I have found it so hard to find a book to get into. I spotted yours on a bookstore email review . Being a well travelled backpacker myself over 25 years ago but not yet managed to discover africa i had to find your book so i track it down . i just finished your first book was dissappointed it was over as i thought id be going further but i guess thats good for you cause now ill have to get the next one. i really admired and have reflected since reading your book on the power of your spirit to do what your heart and mind tell you also that sometimes that less is best. that is such a positive message so i guess your still teaching in another way enjoy your
    adventure and sharing it.thanks tracey

  • 15. Paula  |  June 13th, 2008 at 3:25 am

    I am just posting this in the comments section to say “thankyou” to you all for taking the time to comment and to say such nice things (haven’t had to delete any nasty ones yet, touch wood!!). I am busy writing the second one and when it gets me down it is great to read such supportive comments, they really inspire me to both get back on the walk (this september) and finish the book. Cheers guys, I really appreciate you writing to me.
    Paula

  • 16. Madonna  |  July 11th, 2008 at 1:14 am

    Thoroughly enjoyed the book, amazing experiences and stories. Seeing the photos on here make it even more real - your book 2 should have a photo section in the middle like a celebrity biography!

  • 17. Marianne  |  July 17th, 2008 at 11:33 am

    Hi Paula,
    Our bookclub of 5 years is reading your book this month. One of our members came across it in a book shop somewhere and thought it looked like a good read and recommended it for the rest of us.
    I am in the last 50 pages, and am enjoying your journey immensly.

    I had read FFyona Campbells trip through Africa a few years ago and was interested to read that you mentioned her a few times in your book. She had photo’s in hers which i would constantly flick back to, just to get the feel of where and what she was doing. Hence i have come online to find you and maybe see some photo’s of you and your trip. (I am a very visual person).
    So it was good to find this site and have a read of your adventures since the first book.

    I have made so many comments and underlines in your book as I have gone along and have just spent the last hour researching the walk through Northern Spain - the pilgrims walk.
    I am inspired. Thanks.
    All the best with the last leg.
    Marianne and the ‘Belrose Bookies’ :-)

    I am sure our next book club meeting will have us all motivated to start walking the globe.

  • 18. Peter Pigott  |  August 4th, 2008 at 5:13 pm

    Dear Paula, I was sitting in my car listening to the ABC interviewing you.I was so interested in what you were saying I noticed I was parked outside a bookshop. I went in and asked if they had your book. They had three copies I bought all of them.. After reading Slow Journey South I loved it so much I ordered a further 10 copies and sent them to friends and adventurers.I cant wait for your next book. Thank you for giving me such reading pleasure. Peter H. Pigott AM

  • 19. Sharon  |  October 14th, 2008 at 5:01 am

    I am reading your book at the moment, cant put it down. I am curious as to what star sign both you and your husband are. Something extremely strong I would imagine.

Leave a Comment

Required

Required, hidden

Some HTML allowed:
<a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>

Trackback this post  |  Subscribe to the comments via RSS Feed