The Wild Muir: Twenty-Two of John Muir's Greatest Adventures

If you haven’t heard of John Muir before, you will probably know some of the national parks which he is associated with helping to establish, places like Yosemite and Yellowstone national park could not have been preserved without the backbreaking ground work established by the amateur outdoorsman John Muir. This book gives several of his most extraordinary adventures, reading this book gives me great inspiration for the outdoors.

I wasn't sure what to expect. At the beginning, I wondered if it was some sort of Boy's Own Adventure book, but further reading made me realise just what an incredible man JM was and what a brilliant piece of writing this is. It ended too soon and I could have easily read more. An inspiring man of wonderful courage and 'up for it' attitude yet with a kind disposition recognising that not all have his ability to have a go. If you are in doubt, buy it, it is worth it.

John Muir describes a few moments - each lasting a day or two - in his discoveries of the magic, nature, beauty and experience of this world. And in his descriptions he conveys joy, wonder and respect. A beautiful and easy read reminding us of how we can all live and of the beauty and brightness within our reach every day. I like this book a great deal and am just starting to read Muir.

Good read.

Great collection of stories.

I come back to this often. John Muir's words are just magic.

Wonderful inspiring Man .... a great read.

Bought as an early xmas present.

I had to misfortune of leaving this book on an airplane not once, but twice after receiving it as a gift from my brother this past Christmas. During that time, naturally, I re-purchased it from Amazon a few times -- a somewhat comical cycle of repetitive book-purchasing.Even so, after receiving my third copy, I sat down and read the whole thing through in a sitting, and thoroughly enjoyed it. As the prologue dictates, this book is an entertaining series of vignettes in the life of John Muir that gives the reader a little more insight into the man and the broad mythology surrounding him. Whether it was stumbling about like a drunkard in an earthquake, 'riding' the trees in the wind, or descending a mountain on an avalanche, Muir had no shortage of incredible adventures that he was relentless in chronicling.This novel is a concise and very readable collection of some of Muir's best adventures; with helpful forewords by Lee Stetson to give context to each entry. While this doesn't tell the entire story of John Muir, this brief anthology gives the reader a delightful sense of how adventurous and brazen the man was, and leaves them wanting more.

I've been reading this to my kids - a chapter a day. Even though the language is a bit sophisticated for an 11 year old, we've found it very entertaining, and as my 13 year old says "That John Muir was crazy". Certainly adventurous, and makes one want to go exploring.

This book of short stories excerpted from John Muir's own writings shows just how crazy (and crazy smart) John Muir was! Really fun catalog of some of his adventures in an incredibly readable format. I have given copies of this and The Wilder Muir (a "sequel" of other short stories) to several friends and family members who love the outdoors, and they enjoyed it as well. I gave the pair of books to one friend to read to her grandkids as bedtime stories while they were camping, and they really enjoyed it as well.

As described!

Caution: do not try this at home!I was suspicious of this book when I originally got it as a gift, but now I've given two copies away. It combines a keen appreciation of nature (which should be no surprise given Muir's reputation) with a writing style as keen and vivid as the Sierra sun, plus a tremendous faith in the human spirit and particularly Muir's own ability to overcome difficult situations. A joy to read, in more ways than one.