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Cactus Eaters, The | 
 enlarge | Manufacturer: HarperCollins e-books
Category: EBooks
List Price: $11.95
Buy New: $9.56
You Save: $2.39 (20%)
Avg. Customer Rating:  27 reviews
Sales Rank: 5059
Format: Kindle Book
Media: Kindle Edition
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 400
Dewey Decimal Number: 917.9
ASIN: B00192MNKS
Publication Date: May 20, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
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Product Description
The Pacific Crest Trail stretches from Mexico to Canada, a distance of 2,650 grueling, sun-scorched, bear-infested miles. When Dan White and his girlfriend announced their intention to hike it, Dan's parents -- among others -- thought they were nuts. How could two people who'd never even shared an apartment together survive six months in the desert with little more than a two-person tent and some trail mix? But when these addled adventurers, dubbed "the Lois and Clark Expedition" by their benevolent trail-guru, set out for the American wilderness, the hardships of the trail -- and one delicious-looking cactus -- test the limits of love and sanity.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 22 more reviews...
 Disappointed October 6, 2008
I was hoping for an engaging story akin to "A Walk in the Woods". Instead I found myself disgusted with Dan's behavior toward his hiking companion and annoyed that the story didn't talk more about the adventure of the trail. This story should have remained a diary.
I gave it three stars because I did read all 400 pages hoping to see Dan "almost find himself" and become less of a jerk. No luck.
Cactus Eater (not Eaters)... October 2, 2008
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
So as not to be spoiler, I won't explain my quibble with book's title, except to say it is symptomatic of the author's attitude. He spreads the blame to include his hiking companion, Allison, when things go wrong. I noticed in the book's Author's Notes that Dan thanks everyone on the planet except Allison, which seems very petty. I give him credit for frankly admitting his many mistakes and stupidities along the trail, which gives the book its humor and spice. It is obvious he was very immature when he hiked the trail, but Dan the author seems to have not grown up much.
The writing is medocre. However the subject is fascinating and there are several poignant moments so I can recommend it as a light read.
 Utterly Joyless Book September 25, 2008
0 out of 2 found this review helpful
I did not think it was possible to write a book about hiking the PCT without conveying the joy, beauty and spirituality of the experience, but Dan White has managed to do it.
If you are looking to understand what it is like to hike the PCT, this is not the book. This book about two inexperienced, unprepared hikers portrays the worst of the experience and almost completely misses explaining the hike itself. Instead of descriptions of the terrain, we get long reminisces about the authors past experiences [generally not very interesting] and long descriptions of tedious conversations with other PCT hikers---all which crowd out the PCT itself. For example, on the top of Mt. Whitney, which commands one of the greatest 360 degree views in America, White writes nothing about the joy of being there, but instead repeats a desultory conversation with another hiker. He walks through the southern Sierras without mentioning Rae Lakes, passes through the Yosemite High Country with few comments, then provides a detailed description of his visit to souvenir shops at Lake Tahoe!
I congratulate the author and his girlfriend for undertaking this adventure and only wish he could have captured the joy of the experience,
 How to be self-absorbed on the trail and nearly lose it September 10, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
After finishing Cactus Eaters, I walked over to the next room where my wife was in bed, hugged her hard, and repeated that I loved her at least six times. She winced a little: "Please. I'm trying to relax and go to sleep."
She had no idea that I was overcome with emotion by this allegory of trail and the outdoors as a search for love and life's meaning.
While I won't give the details away, I had been breezing through Dan White's frequently lighthearted and often self-deprecating quest to hike the Pacific Crest Trail with his hot girlfriend (Dan, post pix of her on your web site) only to be thrown for a huge reality check at the end. I suddenly felt a burning hatred for our shallow protagonist.
But it was a good thing. It helped me to crystallize a nagging realization that one must make huge choices and big sacrifices in pursuit of what you may only have one shot at achieving.
We don't really learn whether White regrets the choice he made, whether he truly did find himself. You have to assume that he did. (Then again, the title only promises that he "almost" finds himself on the trail).
While not as laugh-out-loud funny as Bill Bryson's A Walk in the Woods, Cactus Eaters is peppered with a lot of amusing stories and people.
Like Bryson, White seems a little self-absorbed, even while deprecating himself at every bend. Unlike Bryson, give Dan White credit for walking the whole trail at all costs.
As colorful as most of the supporting characters are, I see only occasional glimpses of White trying to truly understand and appreciate the people he meets along the way. An exception is the lonely trail-keeper near trail's -- and book's -- end.
I guess I have no major problem with this, since many hikers hit the trail to "discover" what's inside themselves. It's just that I read this right after Peter Jenkins' Walk Across America, which is not written with as much flare but takes the reader on a much deeper journey into the lives of the people Jenkins meets and even lives with.
The comparison just gets me to thinking that there is a world of discovery to be had by taking the time to know people -- not in dumping your vital water supply in the desert to hasten your flight from them.
Too bad the cactus didn't eat him September 3, 2008
4 out of 8 found this review helpful
OK, I love books about long distance hiking. I collect all books concerning the Appalachian Trail. I hike whenever I can. I work for a major outdoor retailer. That said I really disliked this book because I found Dan White to be a very dislikable person. Oh sure there are a few chuckles in the book but not enough. His humor is High School and sophmoric at best and the way he treats his girlfriend it's a wonder she did not leave him sooner. I had high hopes for this book based on the publishers blurb but my dislike for White grew so much that I could barely finish the book. His lady friend deserved better.
rmw
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