Book Review: Once Upon a Camino
Once Upon a Camino
by Matthew S. Wilson
Torwood Avenue, 2022
460 pages
on Goodreads
Reviewed by Sara Steig Gradwohl | Mooresville, IN
Australian writer Matthew S. Wilson walked the Camino in 2010, and his experience inspired his second novel, Once Upon a Camino.
Tom Anderson, is a 28-year-old British investment banker. Wanting to propose to Ana, his Spanish girlfriend, he flies to Santiago de Compostela to seek her family’s blessing. His plan runs aground when her grandfather, Tito, insists the marriage cannot occur until Tom walks the Camino. As Tom sits speechless Tito asks, “A man would walk across a country without hesitation for the love of his life, no?”
Tom is up for the challenge, sort of, and he soon boards a train to St. Jean Pied de Port with his newly purchased backpack and gear. He falls asleep and when he wakes, the train has stopped, he’s alone, his backpack (including his passport and phone charger) has mysteriously disappeared.
Tom stumbles into his pilgrimage with only his wallet and smartphone, trying to understand what has happened. After several days he is startled to learn it’s no longer 2010, but 1954, which explains why he can’t get a phone signal, there’s no WiFi, and he can’t spend Euros.
Used to having everything at his disposal, Tom must now rely on others for a meal and a place to sleep, and even for his own safety and security. We’re introduced to a motley band of pilgrims bound for Santiago, each with a secret. One is Ana’s considerably younger grandfather with a mission to accomplish. If he fails, Ana will never be born. Tom soon finds himself attacked, gored, hunted by the Guardia Civil, and often questioning his own sanity. Ultimately, he will learn that true love is an act of self-sacrifice.
Veteran pilgrims will recognize many sights and locations in this engrossing and enjoyable read. Wilson’s tale expertly illustrates the unique sense of adventure and camaraderie found on the Camino and weaves together fictional people and events with real places, exploring Spain’s 20th century history. At times cruel and violent, Wilson includes some gory descriptions and a despicable Guardia Civil officer.
Love. Adventure. Time travel. This is a story of friendship, love, pilgrimage, sacrifice, redemption and untrodden paths, reminding us to follow our hearts over life’s next hill. It’s written both for veteran pilgrims and for others who simply enjoy life’s unpredictable journey and the strangers we meet along the way. While improbable, it has the potential to spark the reader’s imagination while on their own journey. As on the Camino de Santiago, in Once Upon a Camino, the impossible becomes possible.
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