Notes from the Shelf

This post contains spoilers. This post also contains affiliate links. If you buy through Bookshop.org, I may earn a small commission—at no extra cost to you. Thanks for supporting the blog and indie bookstores!

To Shake the Sleeping Self by Jedidiah Jenkins is a 336-page memoir. Jedidiah takes the reader with him on his bike ride across two continents. About to turn 30, terrified of being forced into a life he didn’t choose, he quit his dream job, buys a cheap bike, and spends the next 16 months cycling from Oregon to Patagonia. He originally chronicled the trip on Instagram, which helped create the book later. Throughout the trip, he narrates the people and places he encounters as well as his internal conflicts on his sexuality, what it means to be an adult, and finding your place in the world.

I think this book is a must read. It’s one of my favorite memoirs I’ve ever read, and that’s because to me it didn’t read like a typical memoir. There’s a sense of adventure, where anything is possible, even while he struggles through serious physical challenges that come with biking 14,000 miles, carrying everything you need on your back or bike, and setting up camp every night.

It’s a beautiful reminder that whatever you want out of your life, it’s worth the effort to try to make it a reality. Whether it works out or not, it’s at least much more interesting to try it out than to sit there and let life happen to you.

I give To Shake the Sleeping Self 5 stars.

If you’re interested in buying the book, consider buying through Bookshop.org. Bookshop.org helps indie bookstores thrive, and your purchase also supports my blog—so I can keep reading, reviewing, and recommending great books.

Love what you’re reading here? Support the blog and fuel my next cozy reading session by buying me a coffee.