The Best Book You Won't Read

 I just finished a fascinating book.  It wasn't long.  It had photos. I wish I could share it with all of you, but I can't because it's not readily available.  It's the insightful self published The Heyer Family Camping Journal:  A Diary And Photographs of Their Four Month Cross-Country Journey In 1921.

Full disclosure:  I received a personalized copy of this book at no charge (although I TRIED to pay) and I know the editor/publisher.  (In the days prior to Covid, we used to sing in our church choir.)  I admit I'm completely biased.  However, if I didn't think the book/journal was worth talking about I wouldn't be writing this.  Over the years I have gotten complimentary copies of books.  When they are worth talking about; I talk.  When they are not I just shut my mouth.

This spiral bound journal is obviously a labor of love by Charles Heyer, who's grandfather was the brains (and brawn) behind the journal and the trek from New Jersey to California and back in 1915 Hudson And a pop-out trailer that he designed.  (It's obvious from the introduction that Charlie wrote that his grandfather was a gifted mechanic and designer; something that was definitely passed on to Charlie!)  The original journal, written from June 1921 to October of that year, was eventually typed up by Charlie's grandmother (a genius move) and Charlie was able to put together the text as well as photos taken during the journey.  (Real photos developed by Charlie's grandfather!  Think about the time and care that had to be put into that manual process.  There was no point, click and rapid photo.  The art of photography required skill and patience, both of which are evident in the book.)

What makes this book so fascinating, is it presents the thoughts of an "average" man (although after reading the journal, I'd say Arthur Heyer was anything BUT average) as he travels across the country.  Through words and photos we get to see America as it was; rough and majestic.  We read history, but this real life presented to us as it happened.  The difficulty of driving on unpaved (and sometimes non-existent) roads.  The planning that had to be done as there were no rest stops.  (The purchase of gasoline IS mentioned, but not as much as I might have expected.)  What it was like to find a place to camp for the night. (I had no idea that "camp sites" as described existed, yet alone seemed to be so popular by those who were brave enough to take to the road and explore.)  This is a window into life and travel as it was, not by some "celebrity" but by an adventurous family from New Jersey.  (Although they did become somewhat celebrated as their departure from New Jersey was noted by none other than The New York Times on June 21, 1921.)

The journal is a delight to read.  My favorite passage, which comes towards the end of the book as the family heads home is as follows:  "We stayed there for dinner at Hotel Nielson, a private house, turned into a hotel.  When I entered at 3 pm to see if we could get dinner it was shady and fairly dark inside. The landlady's daughter (whom we dubbed Clementine afterwards) mistook me for her loved and rushed up and threw her arms about me.  She apologized and said I looked like him and was just about his size."  You know that tale must have been told around the family dinner table for years! (It's not my story, yet I know I will never forget it.)

This book took me into life as it was a hundred years ago.  I could feel and see it, all through Arthur Heyer's words.  I wish there were more. 

This journal spoke to my particularly as my own grandmother traveled from New Jersey to California in the autumn/winter of 1919.  (The family was visiting relatives who had moved west earlier).  Although my relatives went to the southern part of California and traveled by train, not car.

They traveled again to California in the summer of 1920, and stopped at some of the same locations that Arthur Heyer would write about the following summer.

I am grateful to my grandmother for the photos and mementos that she left in an album, but I wish she had kept a journal as detailed as Arthur Heyer so that I could enjoy it with my family and share it.  Because while I imagine she would have thought her story would be mundane and boring, our lives travels and adventures never are.

I have tried to keep travel "diaries" in the past.  I have written trip reports that have ended up as posts on this blog.  I hope they are an interesting read and I wonder, who might read them in the future and perhaps have the same awe that I do for the journal of Arthur Heyer.

No matter where you travel, be it far or near, keep a record of it.  For yourself, for your family and perhaps for unknown peoples who will be drawn into your life in the future.  

I am so grateful that Charlie gifted me with this book and gave the the privilege of looking into this family's great adventure one hundred years ago.

I'd like to end with words from the summary of the trip which I find incredibly inspiring:  "Travel with an open and inquiring mind - a desire to learn and understand the life and activities in the many districts - all so different in topography -- climate -- agriculture - industry and ideals.

"Try to see each different section through the eyes of the pioneers who struggled to settle and develop it.

"Then - you can see the grim desert of lonely ranches as a promise land.  The bare, ugly little cities as centers of hope, pleasure and some culture. The seemingly desolate, rugged and arid mountains as perpetual fountains of existence or possible wealth.

"To see, to understand, to remember."

7/14/2021 Update:  Copies of the book ARE available in limited quantities.  From Charles Heyer:   have about 100 copies of the book available. $20.00 each including postage in the US. It’s comprised of 134 pages with 140 hundred year old photos interspersed among the text. If you have PayPal or Venmo, you can find my account at: charles.heyer@verizon.net.