On the Primitive Way: Two Texan Brothers Journey to Santiago - Softcover

Roussel, Landon

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0996968105 ISBN 13: 9780996968102

Publisher: Communitas Press, 2015

Synopsis

At first glance, Spring of 2013 couldn't have been a more inopportune time for brothers Landon and Cory Roussel to walk the historic Camino de Santiago. Landon had a newborn child at home and had just completed medical school, ready to stay at home and relax with his new son before beginning residency. Cory, on the other hand, had just been released from Federal prison and had neither a job nor a penny to his name. On closer inspection, however, the time could not have been better for these two brothers, separated for over ten years by Cory's addiction and imprisonment, to walk the Way of St James. After much to do with flight planning, route mapping and child-care arranging, these two brothers finally manage to get to Spain, where they embark together from Oviedo into the mountains of Asturias Spain on the Primitive Way to Santiago. As they encounter torrential rains, blindsiding blizzards and grueling climbs, the author comes to find that the real challenge is not to endure the elements but to reconcile with each other after a tumultuous past.

Will the two brothers reconcile? Or will they be driven further apart? Is healing possible after enduring such hurt from wounds inflicted by Cory's addiction? These are some of the questions Landon wrestles with in this riveting tale as he chronicles their journey through the Asturian Mountains.

In this page-turning memoir, Roussel captures not only his and his brother's story but also the story of many who struggle to connect with loved ones when their loved ones fall down in life ..."None of us are guaranteed a future with our loved ones," he writes. "If we don't cherish moments with them for what they are, we risk not cherishing our loved ones for who they are, but rather who we want them to be." On the Primitive Way is a moving, heart-warming reflection on the challenge of loving someone close even as they struggle and of finding joy in each day's journey.

About this title

From the Back Cover

"Addiction, Estrangement and Reconciliation on the Primitive Way."

About the Author

Landon Roussel is a three-time pilgrim on the Way of Saint James. He has written multiple articles on the Way and was inspired to write his first book after the death of his brother, with whom he walked the Way just before he died. In addition to writing on the Way, Landon also hosts a blog site, Communitas Blog, and is a primary care doctor at Communitas Primary Care. He and his wife Amanda, son Benny and daughter Jeanne-Marie live in Saint James Parish, Louisiana.

Edition details

• Publisher: Communitas Press
• Publication date: 2015
• ISBN 10: 0996968105
• ISBN 13: 9780996968102
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 228
• Illustrator: Rodriguez Christina