What We Carry - by Matt Wilks (Paperback)

About the Book

What We Carry is for those who have coped, held it together and carried a great deal for years, often without words for how that has affected them. Framed by three Caminos, it offers recognition, language and a steadier way forward.

Book Synopsis

What We Carry is a book for those who have coped. Who have held it together. Who have carried responsibility, pressure, and other people's needs for years, often without language for what that has cost.

When the sudden death of a close friend affected him more deeply than he expected, Matt Wilks began to question the habits of endurance that had sustained life and family through decades of military service. Needing space to think, he began walking.

Framed by three Caminos and other walked landscapes in Jerusalem, Portugal, and Galicia, What We Carry moves between life on the road and the reflections that arise from it: grief and stress, faith and doubt, the expectations we place upon ourselves, and the habits and reflexes that once helped us endure but may no longer be fit for purpose.

Warm, thoughtful and quietly humorous, What We Carry offers recognition and language for experiences often left unnamed. It does not claim that what has been carried can simply be set down. Instead, it suggests that what has been borne for a long time can, with awareness, be carried differently, opening a steadier way forward.

Review Quotes

'Transportive, evocative and deeply moving, What We Carry is far more than a Camino book. It is thoughtful, hopeful, beautifully balanced, and a joy to read. I have read it three times. This is a very, very good book.'

Heather C, 18,000 km walked on 26 Caminos since 2015

'I didn't rush What We Carry, but I barely put it down. In many ways, as the kids would say, I felt seen. I cried my way through parts of it from the first few pages onwards. I'm not sure I have any feedback on it other than this: it is a remarkable book.'

Mark N, Infantry Officer, Military Cross

'My wife read What We Carry before I did and thought it was brilliant. She was right. There is something genuinely special in this book. The movement between the Caminos and the reflections they prompt is handled beautifully. Honest, thoughtful and deeply credible, I thoroughly enjoyed it. An outstanding book.'

Rupert K-E, Guards Officer and pilgrim

'I found myself in these pages far more often than I expected and couldn't put the book down. Hugely resonant and emotional, it certainly unlocked some things for me. I may be about to start a similar journey. My wife loved it too and has already chosen it for her book club.'

Mark W, Senior Executive and former Royal Marines Officer

'Loved it! You must publish!'

Robert Lyman, historian and author