Soul Food for Pilgrims: Embracing the Transformative Power of Reading on a Camino de Santiago Walking Retreat

It was Helena’s third morning on the Camino retreat when I spotted her in the garden. While the others had gone for an early walk, she’d claimed the weathered bench beneath the oak tree, curled into its corner like she belonged there. In her hands was the copy of Mary Oliver’s “Devotions” I’d left on the communal bookshelf.

From the kitchen window, I watched her turn each page with reverence. Her coffee sat untouched beside her, the steam no longer rising into the crisp morning air. Whatever conversation she was having with those poems had rendered everything else invisible.

Later that day, as the group wound along the ancient path toward Manciet, Helena walked slightly apart. The afternoon sun filtered through beech leaves, casting dappled light across her face. When we stopped at a small stream for water, she sat on a flat stone, pulled the book from her daypack, and read aloud:

“Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?”

Her voice caught on “wild.” The sound hung in the air alongside the gurgle of water over stones and the distant call of a blackbird. No one spoke. She just listened to the words and the wind.

“This book,” Helena said to her companions, tucking a strand of silver-streaked hair behind her ear, “smells like my grandmother’s garden.” She held it up, pages fanned toward her face. “Seriously, sniff it.”

José, our resident sceptic, leaned in with eyebrows raised. “It smells like… paper?”

“No, no,” Helena insisted, laughing. “Beyond that. Earth after rain. Rosemary. Peppermint.”

That evening over dinner—roasted peppers and local cheese that melted on our tongues—Helena explained how she’d packed her suitcase with practical things: sensible shoes, blister plasters, rain gear. “Not one single book,” she said, swirling ruby wine in her glass. “After thirty years of teaching literature! But I’d convinced myself this trip was about moving forward, not reading.”

The candles flickered as she described finding “Devotions” that morning. “Those poems… they’re asking me the questions I’ve been avoiding since retirement.”

When Teresa passed the bread basket, Helena’s fingers trembled slightly. “There’s this poem called ‘The Journey’ about finally doing the thing you must do. I’ve read it to students for decades, but today—” she pressed her palm against her sternum—”today it felt like Oliver wrote it just for me.”

By the final night of the retreat, “Devotions” had travelled over forty kilometers in Helena’s pack. The book’s spine was now creased in several places, and she’d filled the margins with tiny, precise handwriting. I noticed she’d stuck wildflowers between certain pages—purple thistle, yellow gorse, white stars of wild garlic.

At breakfast before departure, Helena pressed the book into my hands. “Keep this in your library,” she said. Her eyes, clear blue and steady where they’d been uncertain days before. “It needs to find someone else next.”

Inside the cover, she’d written simply: “I came looking for direction and found my voice again.”

Pilgrimage Classics

1. “The Pilgrimage” by Paulo Coelho – A semi-autobiographical novel about Coelho’s own journey along the Camino de Santiago, blending spiritual quest with adventure and self-discovery.
2. “Walking the Camino: A Modern Pilgrimage to Santiago” by Tony Kevin – A heartfelt memoir of an older Australian’s journey on the Camino, filled with historical context and personal transformation.
3. “I’m Off Then: Losing and Finding Myself on the Camino de Santiago” by Hape Kerkeling – A humorous yet profound account by a German comedian who walked the Camino, offering refreshing insights and warm observations.

Transformational Narratives

1. “Wild” by Cheryl Strayed – Though set on the Pacific Crest Trail rather than the Camino, this powerful memoir of healing through long-distance walking resonates deeply with pilgrims.
2. “The Alchemist” by Paulo Coelho – A fable about following your dreams and recognizing the omens along your path that has inspired countless pilgrims to embark on their own journeys.
3. “Tracks” by Robyn Davidson – The extraordinary tale of a woman’s 1,700-mile trek across the Australian desert with camels, exploring themes of solitude, endurance, and transformation that mirror the pilgrimage experience.

Poetry for the Journey

1. “The Poetry of Impermanence, Mindfulness, and Joy” edited by John Brehm – A collection that speaks to the transient nature of our experiences, perfect for reflecting on the passing landscapes of the Camino.
2. “Ten Poems to Change Your Life” by Roger Housden – Powerful poems with insightful commentary that invite personal reflection during quiet moments on retreat.
3. “Pilgrim: Poems by David Whyte” – Whyte’s work explores themes of journey, belonging, and transformation with language that seems written specifically for those on physical and spiritual pilgrimages.

Mindfulness and Presence

1. “When Things Fall Apart” by Pema Chödrön – Gentle wisdom about embracing difficulty and uncertainty, perfect for the challenging moments of a pilgrimage.
2. “The Power of Now” by Eckhart Tolle – A guide to finding presence that complements the naturally meditative rhythm of walking the Camino.
3. “Wherever You Go, There You Are” by Jon Kabat-Zinn – Accessible mindfulness teachings that help pilgrims stay present to their journey rather than rushing toward the destination.

Local Literature

1. “As I Walked Out One Midsummer Morning” by Laurie Lee – A beautiful memoir of walking through Spain in the 1930s that captures the spirit and landscape of the country.
2. “The Sun Also Rises” by Ernest Hemingway – Set partly in Spain, this novel captures the emotional landscape and cultural richness of the region with Hemingway’s characteristic spare prose.
3. “Driving Over Lemons: An Optimist in Andalucía” by Chris Stewart – A charming memoir about rural Spanish life that provides cultural context for parts of the Camino journey.

Timeless Wisdom

1. “Man’s Search for Meaning” by Viktor Frankl – A profound meditation on finding purpose in life’s journey, even through suffering, that resonates deeply with the pilgrimage experience.
2. “The Little Prince” by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry – This deceptively simple tale contains wisdom about seeing with the heart that often strikes pilgrims with new force during their journey.
3. “Meditations” by Marcus Aurelius – Ancient Stoic philosophy that speaks directly to the challenges and revelations of the pilgrim’s path, with short reflections perfect for end-of-day contemplation.

The Open Book, The Open Road

Remember Helena? When she arrived for her Camino retreat, her suitcase was notably missing something she’d surrounded herself with for thirty years as a literature professor: books. “I came to walk, not to read,” she told me on that first evening, a hint of defiance in her voice. Yet it was Mary Oliver’s “Devotions,” discovered on our communal bookshelf, that ultimately gave Helena the courage to imagine her post-retirement life with new possibility.

Seven months later, she sent me a photograph: Helena standing in front of a small storefront with a hand-painted sign reading “Second Chapter Books.” Her dream, once just whispered into the margins of borrowed poetry, now had an address and opening hours.

This is the magic that happens when walking meets reading—when the outer journey of the Camino converges with the inner journey of a well-chosen book. The footpath and the page become parallel trails, each illuminating the other in unexpected ways.

Here at my retreats, I’ve witnessed this alchemy countless times. A businessman from London who rediscovered childlike wonder through Calvino’s “Invisible Cities.” A grieving widow who found words for her inexpressible loss in Joan Didion’s memoir. A young woman who finally understood her father after reading “The Road” by Cormac McCarthy.

As you prepare for your own retreat, I invite you to make space—both in your pack and in your days—for reading. Choose something that calls to you, even if you’re not sure why. Perhaps especially if you’re not sure why. Bring your curiosity, your questions, your willingness to be surprised.

In medieval times, pilgrims carried very little, but books of hours and small prayer collections were common companions on the journey. These texts weren’t just spiritual guides but companions through lonely stretches, conversation partners in silence, and windows to something beyond the immediate challenges of the road.

Your book might be ancient wisdom or contemporary fiction, poetry or philosophy, memoir or myth. What matters is not the genre but the conversation between your experience on the Camino and the worlds you discover between covers. As Proust reminds us, “The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes.”

When you join us on retreat, you’ll have time to let words sink deeply into your being.

Because ultimately, that’s what both walking and reading offer us: the chance to return home different from who we were when we set out—more aware, more compassionate, more fully ourselves.

And so I leave you with the words of pilgrim-poet David Whyte, whose wisdom has accompanied so many along the Way:

“Sometimes everything has to be inscribed across the heavens so you can find the one line already written inside you.”

See you on the trail.