Rating: 
Summary: interesting story about an interesting place
Review: A book reviewIt is safe to say that although there are many travel opportunities available today, the majority of people on this planet will seldom stray far from their home roots. Some may take a trip here or there but in the main, few casual travelers (of the several billion earth occupants) will go very far away. All of this is to say that though we may not go ourselves, we can travel to far away places by motion pictures, video and, of course by reading books by those who have gone to the places that, for many people, will never be on their travel agenda. Karin Muller does this as she traveled "Along The Inca Road," which is the name of her book, published in 2000 by the National Geographic Society of Washington, D.C. It is her journal of traveling this historic road of some 3,100 miles which runs along the coast line and nearby mountains of western South America. There were adventures at nearly every juncture as Muller encountered people and cultures reflecting the days of the Inca. Though those days are long gone, the Inca live on through many of the customs and lives of those peoples who today inhabit the villages and cities along this road. In a vivid way the book is a mix of the past & the present. That is, in order to understand the lives of today's people along this road, it became necessary to appreciate their roots. How did it happen that they exist as they do? What are the many tales they repeat and repeat, as parts of their cultures? The nearly 300 pages of Muller's work is a word by word trip, to say the least. It brings into closer focus lands, people and history that most of us have long ago forgotten, having met the facts in elementary school, if at all. It is an easy and pleasant read. Dan Schobert
Rating:
Summary: Take a walk
Review: A book review It is safe to say that although there are many travel opportunities available today, the majority of people on this planet will seldom stray far from their home roots. Some may take a trip here or there but in the main, few casual travelers (of the several billion earth occupants) will go very far away. All of this is to say that though we may not go ourselves, we can travel to far away places by motion pictures, video and, of course by reading books by those who have gone to the places that, for many people, will never be on their travel agenda. Karin Muller does this as she traveled "Along The Inca Road," which is the name of her book, published in 2000 by the National Geographic Society of Washington, D.C. It is her journal of traveling this historic road of some 3,100 miles which runs along the coast line and nearby mountains of western South America. There were adventures at nearly every juncture as Muller encountered people and cultures reflecting the days of the Inca. Though those days are long gone, the Inca live on through many of the customs and lives of those peoples who today inhabit the villages and cities along this road. In a vivid way the book is a mix of the past & the present. That is, in order to understand the lives of today's people along this road, it became necessary to appreciate their roots. How did it happen that they exist as they do? What are the many tales they repeat and repeat, as parts of their cultures? The nearly 300 pages of Muller's work is a word by word trip, to say the least. It brings into closer focus lands, people and history that most of us have long ago forgotten, having met the facts in elementary school, if at all. It is an easy and pleasant read. Dan Schobert
Rating: 
Summary: You won't be able to put it down
Review: Along The Inca Road is a fresh and exciting experiential travel documentary written by a woman who follows a route of the ancient Inca Road from Quito, Ecuador to Santiago, Chile, along the mountains and coast of western South America. Her experiences are immediate, vivid, demanding and colorful. She clearly enjoys the challenge of dipping into and sampling all aspects of local culture. We are with her as she learns to pilot a caballero (reed boat) on the coast of Peru, carries the feast table of Mama Negra in Lacta Cunga, and climbs endless roads and trails to meet the people. Along The Inca Road is a book about the author's experiences with the people as much as about geography and history. After many hair-raising, sometimes hilarious, always challenging and intriguing experiences, she sums it up with the following: "I had once thought that I was embarking on a 'hero's journey' - an odyssey into the unknown, filled with obstacles, success and failure, and newfound knowledge. And so it had been - only I wasn't the hero of this story. I was just the chronicler. The true heroes were the people I met along the way... They had all stopped for a while to lend me a hand. What I learned from them would carry me through the weeks to come. As long as their memories stayed with me, this journey would never really end (p. 294-295)." And even more succinctly, she remarks: "The history books have it all wrong. The Inca Empire was never really conquered. It's alive and well (p.294)." To participate vicariously in her fresh experiences, read this bright travelogue. You won't be able to put it down. Nancy Lorraine, Reviewer
Rating: 
Summary: The Gringo Trail, Again
Review: As always, Karin Muller makes a good adventure statment through her solid writing. However, as an adventurer and history buff, I thought the book lacked the depth and content both the jacket synopsis and the introductory chapter might suggest. Karin provides some interesting adventures that a typical gringo trail adventurer might encounter - without fully providing her view on how historical cultures are reflected in the "modern-day" Inca. I scored this book with three stars because it had some entertainment value, but was disappointing overall.
Rating:
Summary: Magnificent!
Review: Compelling, entertaining, historical... this book is a real page-turner. Muller's keenly-observed journey skillfully interweaves past and present, giving the reader a glimpse of what life must have been like in the golden heyday of the Inca empire as she walks along stones and walkways trodden by warriors and peasants for hundreds of years. She writes with compassion and genuine understanding of those she meets along the way - peopling her book with characters who come to life and leap off the page. Along the Inca Road transports the reader into a world most of us will never see - probably for the best, since the road is long and arduous. I'm glad I didn't have to do it - but I'm even more glad that she did!
Rating:
Summary: Great Read
Review: I just returned from two months in Peru. "Along the Inca Road" was an inspiration. It encouraged me to become more of a participant and less of a spectator. I made more friends and had experiences that I will remember for the rest of my life. South Americans are a warm and welcoming people. In my limited experience, they seem to prefer visitors who join in than those who just stand off to one side. I was given candles at saint`s festivals and swept along in parades. And anyone who says a single foreign woman can muscle in on South American men has obviously never been south of the border! If they let you join them it is on their terms, and only because they want you there. "Along the Inca Road" is entertaining and the people in it are very engaging. The scope of this journey was awesome and the book moves along quickly, but Muller includes a good deal of interesting history and cultural background. The map could have been better -- I really wanted to know where those remote villages were along the way. The photos were stunning. The cover is too complicated.
Rating:
Summary: Onward and upward
Review: I was privileged to see bits of this prior to publication - Karin is as brilliant a writer as she is intrepid an adventuress. An inspiration! Pay attention for her third book, covering her journey through Dai Nippon...
Rating:
Summary: facinating
Review: I've always been facinated by the Incas. This book only whetted my appetite further and now I'm reading everything I can about them. This book is full of Karin Muller's adventures while travelling the Inca road and has plenty of Incan history, too.
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Summary: Trying to be one of the guys....
Review: If I had realised that "Along the Inca Road" was written by the same author who previously graced us with "Hitch-hiking Vietnam" I probably never would have picked it up. Karin Muller's first book showed a singular lack of empathy with the Vietnamese & their culture; altho she seems much more sympathetic to South Americans, Muller still lacks the ability to bring a foreign land to life. In almost every chapter of "Along the Inca Road", Karin Muller bulldoggedly attempts to muscle in on the local men & their activities. We find her bullying a fisherman into making her a reed boat & taking her out to fish with him, jumping into a bullring with no preparation or permission, & accompanying the Bolivian drug squads into the jungle as they search for cocaine labs. Then when she is blistered, burned & gored she complains through gritted teeth on her way to her next misguided attempt to be "one of the guys". As someone who has spent a good deal of time in Central/South America, I can attest these are people to whom gender roles are very much an unchanging part of their culture. Muller's attempts to break this divide down simply alienate those whom she is trying to get close to. Some of the other difficulties I have with Muller's travels include the fact that she seems to spend very little time in each area. The total time she spent "On the Inca Road" traveling thru 4 countries (all new to her) was 6 months. This means she spent approximately 1 week at the longest of her destinations. That doesn't seem to give much time for studying a culture or getting to know the locals. This is reflected in her writing which is superficial & lacking in any strong descriptive passages. I never truly "saw" the areas she passed through, & the photos included in the book were not much help either. A more detailed map of her travels would have been helpful as well. This is a fast paced book, which is interesting when dealing with the historical Incan Empire & the vestiges of it still in existance today. It's too bad she couldn't have spent more time in less places so that the feeling of South America could come through a little more clearly.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful romp through a significant part of South America.
Review: Muller is a wonderful travel writer with the ability to make even the mundane come alive. Her way with words ("The main square was full of Saturday-night drunks all walking like wobbly bowling pins") keeps you reading on to find out where she will land next, and among whom. From helicopter crashes to street festivals, Karin Muller follows this ancient road, and allows serendipity to play its hand. She encounters not only the absurd and strange (having your head beaten with a guinea pig to find out your disease or ailment), but the beautiful and sublime ("people who reached out to help a stranger through a day of violence and despair"). Her travels follow the famed Inca Road. This ancient highway reached from Equador down to Chile, and played a critical role in homogenizing the Inca Civilization. I have been to South America over a dozen times in the past six years and her highly entertaining stories ring true. There is a significant weakness to this book - the lack of maps. I find it a bit baffling, that National Geographic, curator of some of the world best maps, failed to include any quality maps of a journey that snakes down and around South America. Rather, National Geographic gives you one decrepit and confusing black and white map of South America. BUT! They do include 26 excellent color photographs. Go figure. In 'Along the Inca Road', Karin Muller gives you more than just a great read, she furnishes you with provocative and informative insights into both the history of the Inca and their culture. This is a wonderful book and will be enjoyed by all who appreciate the Inca culture, South America and great travel writing. You should read this book. 4 1/2 Stars Recommended
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