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3.51 AVERAGE
3.51 AVERAGE
No Baggage was never the kind of book I would pick of the shelf but when it got lent to me I decided it might as well be worth a read.
Biographies have never really been my thing and I cannot tell you why as many of the ones I have read were really good. So with that in mind I was already set out to not enjoy this book but despite this I still read it. Well at least I attempted to read it, I only got about 3/4 of the way through No Baggage before I decided to give up. I don't give up on a book very easily but I found it hard to be motivated to read it and never really enjoyed this book.
With that said though I did find the description of the places she travelled to very thoughtful but sometimes confusing or too much. The idea of no baggage or plans sounds both risky and exciting. I did feel inspired by the author's story of recovering and reintegration but never felt a real connection to the book itself.
For someone who does like biographies or travel memoirs they would probably love this book as there is nothing really wrong with it, I just didn't particularly enjoy it.
Biographies have never really been my thing and I cannot tell you why as many of the ones I have read were really good. So with that in mind I was already set out to not enjoy this book but despite this I still read it. Well at least I attempted to read it, I only got about 3/4 of the way through No Baggage before I decided to give up. I don't give up on a book very easily but I found it hard to be motivated to read it and never really enjoyed this book.
With that said though I did find the description of the places she travelled to very thoughtful but sometimes confusing or too much. The idea of no baggage or plans sounds both risky and exciting. I did feel inspired by the author's story of recovering and reintegration but never felt a real connection to the book itself.
For someone who does like biographies or travel memoirs they would probably love this book as there is nothing really wrong with it, I just didn't particularly enjoy it.
I’m a sucker for books that focus on personal journeys, travel, and minimalism. This has all three! I love the honesty in regards to mental health and the sense of adventure. It makes me want to travel and explore my own city more, and it’s so unfortunate that I’m this time of COVID even that’s limited! I guess it just means I’ll have to plan for the future!
This didn't feel as obnoxiously white privilege-y as expected. Bensen is very self-aware and wonderfully open about herself and her experiences. She's fascinated with Jeff, but she is far more interesting. He is such an obnoxious child that it's hard to root for their relationship. I'm not sure a girl who didn't just come off a nervous breakdown would put up with his selfishness and emotional manipulation (however unintentional it may or may not be) and it's difficult to not root for her to realize she's the real catch in this relationship. Still, I guess they work on some level considering they're still together and how much he gets her to open up. The travel stuff is interesting and occasionally mundane, but this is really a book about self-discovery and other people. A damn fine read if you're willing to accept the uglier parts. Also, if you're listening to the audiobook, Bensen's Sissy Spacek in 'Badlands' voice is kind of mesmerizing and sort of fitting considering the subject matter. Definitely recommend.
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
View the original review on my blog, A Slice of Ky!
This little book is Clara’s retelling of her real-life experience of traveling across the world with a man, Jeff, that she had only known for a few months with nothing but the clothes on her back and her purse with just a few small belongings (and some sandals that are terrible for walking). As she recounts her experience, us readers are also introduced to anxiety stricken, existential-nervous-breakdown Clara that existed only a few months before meeting Jeff, the girl she had been for the previous two yearsof her life. Of course, as it always goes when traveling with a person one is in a newly founded, incredibly undefined relationship with, there are also the many ups and downs that these two faced as they came to meet the most intimate, and possibly undesirable, aspects of one another.
Overall, the writing was really great, easy to follow, and drew you into the story well. However, and this is completely subjective opinion on content, not quality, I was hoping for more of a travel account of the countries Clara and Jeff visited. Instead, the book seems to focus more on the emotional state of Clara as she struggles with culture shock, relationship issues, and existential questions on the purpose of life and how to best lead one’s life. Not that those aren’t equally exciting themes to think about, because they are and I enjoy them very much, it just wasn’t exactly what I was hoping for when I picked this book up.
To sum it up, I did enjoy this read and give Clara Bensen’s debut book 3/5 stars. It was a great spring break read: light, inconsequential, not requiring my brain to think too hard about what I was reading. Also, it made me realize that I really do need to read more travel writing, but it will most likely cause me to be dirt poor because all I wanted to do after reading No Baggage was take off on some great European adventure!
This little book is Clara’s retelling of her real-life experience of traveling across the world with a man, Jeff, that she had only known for a few months with nothing but the clothes on her back and her purse with just a few small belongings (and some sandals that are terrible for walking). As she recounts her experience, us readers are also introduced to anxiety stricken, existential-nervous-breakdown Clara that existed only a few months before meeting Jeff, the girl she had been for the previous two yearsof her life. Of course, as it always goes when traveling with a person one is in a newly founded, incredibly undefined relationship with, there are also the many ups and downs that these two faced as they came to meet the most intimate, and possibly undesirable, aspects of one another.
Overall, the writing was really great, easy to follow, and drew you into the story well. However, and this is completely subjective opinion on content, not quality, I was hoping for more of a travel account of the countries Clara and Jeff visited. Instead, the book seems to focus more on the emotional state of Clara as she struggles with culture shock, relationship issues, and existential questions on the purpose of life and how to best lead one’s life. Not that those aren’t equally exciting themes to think about, because they are and I enjoy them very much, it just wasn’t exactly what I was hoping for when I picked this book up.
To sum it up, I did enjoy this read and give Clara Bensen’s debut book 3/5 stars. It was a great spring break read: light, inconsequential, not requiring my brain to think too hard about what I was reading. Also, it made me realize that I really do need to read more travel writing, but it will most likely cause me to be dirt poor because all I wanted to do after reading No Baggage was take off on some great European adventure!
adventurous
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
This book got me thinking about so many things: materialism, consumerism, mental health, travel, relationships, coincidences, philosophy, and interpersonal communication. Thoroughly enjoyed this! Looking forward to a world safe from COVID so I can hop a flight and be somewhere new.
I really enjoyed reading this book! It was an adventure from start to finish, and one that definitely gave me anxiety at times from the idea of not bringing a single bag on a 3 week vacation! Clara Bensen's writing is very honest, especially when discussing her break down when realizing the world isn't as we always thought it would be.
"If the only thing I did for the rest of my life was treat others kindly, file manila folders, and sit on the porch watching the grass grow it would be enough. It had to be. I did the math. The number of people who actually achieve a significant legacy is trifling compared to the vast number who go from birth to death living relatively unremarkable lives (at least on the surface). And maybe that wasn't the failure I'd been conditioned to believe. Maybe there was something to be said in praise of an outwardly unremarkable life. Maybe there were deep, everyday forms of magic that had nothing to do with profound accomplishments or a Twitter feed that resonated down through the ages."
This book was kind of insufferable? It's billed as a memoir but it's actually all about the author's self obsessed boyfriend instead. What a slog to get through.
I think I heard about this book back when it came out because it got a lot of media attention for the gimmick of the book which is that two people that just started dating travel Europe together with no luggage. A minimalism book meets travelogue. In reality, the book is more about her existentialism, her strange romance with her travel companion, and a little bit about mental illness. She a very good writer so the existentialism is especially fun to read. The romance was a little difficult to read as her romantic companion is in turns withholding and teasing, and that is totally not my scene.