King Solomon’s Mines

This is the first of any of Belloc's works I've read. As a big devotee of Chesterton, who was a close friend and promoter of Belloc, I had to check him out. And I'd read that the Path to Rome was a great primer.

The book is a travelogue and sort of stream-of-consciousness collection of observations Belloc journaled as he embarked on this trek from the northeast of France (Toul) to Rome. Along the way we get his insights and observations on everything from local culture and theology to notes on the geography and natural beauty of the Alps to the hills of Tuscany and more.

It reads like a straightforward travel diary, with descriptions of everyday life in the Swiss and Italian village he passes through, blended with daydreamings of a guy spending hours and hours alone, with his mind wandering into digressions, asides, and little rabbit holes everywhere. But they're fascinating distractions!

He took this walk in 1901, so the book gives us a look at what European rural life was like in the years before the wars. It's amazingly quaint – you forget how truly pre-modern technology and culture were. Much of what he writes could've been said in 1800 as readily as in the early 20th century.

Recommended, and looking forward to more from his bibliography.