Some people might think that a book with this title would necessarily be about converting to Roman Catholicism. It's not. It's quite literally about the physical path to Rome, the hiking trail that Belloc trudged along from eastern France to the City of Rome in 1903. Hilaire Belloc was a French-English, turn-of-the-19th/20th century writer and a very enthusiastic Catholic indeed. No, not of the Bernanos variety. Not into serious suffering. Back in 1903, as a young man, Belloc felt he needed to carry out a vow he had made by walking from France to Rome. He did this dressed in a suit, a tie and city street shoes. No baggage. No hiking equipment. No knapsack. No. He just up and took off from an eastern French town, walked across the Alps, and walked down to Rome. Not a change of clothes with him. By the end he did indeed require a new pair of shoes. His wingtips had been worn out. He went on to write a zillion books and articles. He was very well-known and appreciated in his time, though in certain respects he was a dork. But many people think that "The Path to Rome" was his best book. He was a very, very good and entertaining writer. The Path to Rome is available for free here: http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/7373
