A delightful balance of ideas, inspiration and science. The short punchy chapters fit well between walks and make them even more enjoyable’ – Tristan Gooley, author of The Walker’s Guide to Outdoor Clues & Signs Our sense of smell is the most primitive of the senses. To fully activate that sense and awaken the other senses, walk in an area rich in aromatic plant life. Walk slowly, occasionally closing the eyes and placing hands over the ears and be guided by the nose. Follow a River My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher Penguin Group Putnam for an advanced copy of this book on the walking lifestyle. Sigh. The science is shoddily presented and the tone is completely ableist. Too bad. I like occasional facts and I love walking but, uh, no. Full Book Name: 52 Ways to Walk: The Surprising Science of Walking for Wellness and Joy, One Week at a Time

Annabel Streets is searching for a conifer. It is a bright, early March day and we are looping around the gardens of Fulham Palace in southwest London. She spots what she is looking for: a large spreading yew tree. We stand looking up at the clusters of leathery, spiked leaves and breathe deeply. “Every day I stand under an evergreen tree now,” she says. “I have become obsessed with terpenes.” But in adulthood, she fell into a pattern familiar to many of us – days spent hunching towards a computer, evenings prone on the sofa. Working out in the gym, but using the car to get there. The combination of desk job and driving made her body “rounder, softer, achier, stiffer, stooped” and her mind anxious and unsettled. She made a resolution to do as much as she could on foot, getting a dog and proper wet-weather gear for extra motivation. A delightful balance of ideas, inspiration and science. The short punchy chapters fit well between walks and make them even more enjoyable

Walking in the rain, for example, is healthy because the air pollution clears up and nature’s molecules move around, she says.

I wasn't sure what I was going to get with this book, although it shouldn't have been a surprise given the rather informative title, but it was so unexpectedly delightful!Things I liked about this book: So many ideas to think about walking in a new way and to keep the simple act of walking from being boring. Ideas to engage all the senses, different times of day, terrain, moods, duration, health benefits, etc.