Hobo Sapien: Freight Train Hopping Tao and Zen

Garrison Keillor meets Jack Kerouac meets Mahatma Gandhi in this wry, road-wise scripture. HOBO SAPIEN is a series of freight train parables born out of the author’s twelve-plus years riding freight trains, combined with lessons learned in his seven-year stint as a Self-Realization Fellowship monk, plus the added bonus of fascinating railroad history. Reminiscent of best-selling Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance because it both informs and inspires reflective response, HOBO SAPIEN is also accessible, witty, and insightful.

ENDORSEMENTS

"Not many hobos have gone from Yale to rail or from hunk to monk. Garrison Keillor meets Jack Kerouac meets Mahatma Gandhi in this wry, roadwise scripture. Hobo Sapien is a series of freight train parables born out of the author’s twelve-plus years riding freight trains, combined with lessons learned in his seven-year stint as a Self-Realization Fellowship monk, plus the added bonus of fascinating railroad history. Non-fiction readers buy books to learn something, for reference, or to be entertained. Hobo Sapien fills all three bills. Readers will get a unique immersion into the underground world of the hobo. The spiritual takes are written with a subtle humor that helps the medicine go down. It is not your parent’s self-help book. Armchair adventurers, rail fans, spiritual seekers, and academia nuts will all gather intriguing information from this missive. It is vastly different from other hobo books because of its unparalleled combination of adventure, rail history, humor, and spirituality. The author’s background is also unique and varied. Not many hobos have gone from Yale to rail or from hunk to monk. I’ve been waiting for years to hold a copy of Wayne’s book in my hands. I admire the relaxed way he has of easing spiritual lessons into the death-defying details of freight hopping with clarity and humor. Hobo Sapien is an exceptional book, to read, re-read, and take to heart." — Karen Chamberlain, Author of Desert of the Heart: Sojourn in a Community of Solitudes

"There is some great material here and the potential for a highly popular book. I found it to be fun reading, insightful, and provocative, with vivid descriptions of how to do a number of things we never had the nerve to try. I really liked the format. The short narrative chapters, each accompanied by a succinct moral point, make for easy access and delivery of a poignant message." — Tom Massey, author of The Shovel

"Wayne Iverson lives an interesting life. He didn‟t become a hobo because of any misfortune, but to satisfy an unfulfilled sense of adventure. He later became a monk because of a similar desire to learn more about the spiritual side of life. These two seemingly different paths converge to transform him into a„"hobo sapien.‟ According to Iverson, "hobo sapien‟ means wise hobo, and he explains that both hobos and mystics lessen their material desires. While mystics do it to focus on their souls, hobos do it to experience freedom. Iverson further explains that there are two types of freedom – freedom without responsibility and the type of freedom we should all try to achieve – freedom with responsibility – doing what we ought to do when we ought to do it. HOBO SAPIEN: Freight Train Hopping from Tao to Zen” is a fun book to read that offers just the right amounts of spirituality, history, and hobo adventure. No one part overpowers the other so the reading remains light, entertaining, and informative all at the same time. Those who enjoy light-hearted non-fiction adventure, spiritual zen-like lessons taught through life stories, or the history of the American West will find this book especially enjoyable." — Marty Shaw for Reader Views.

An All-American boy from Minnesota, Wayne attended Yale University. An identity crisis led to three years of roaming. He transferred colleges and hopped freight trains. He became a city planner in western ski areas, then a monk for seven years. Married in Colorado, he and his wife moved to Oklahoma to assist her parents. That dharma done, the mountains beckon.