Walden on Wheels: On the Open Road from Debt to Freedom Paperback – 14 May 2013

This is quite an unusual book and one which I greatly enjoyed. The author is burdened with a student debt of $32,000 when he finishes college and I mean burdened. The weight of the debt weighs so heavily upon him that he feels he has to move heaven and earth to remove it. However, this is not just a tale of the menial, low wage jobs he was prepared to take to make a dent in his indebtedness. Ken is clearly something of a free spirit and Alaska and the wilderness greatly appeal to him so he manages to have a lot of fun and do the things he wants to do whilst still accomplishing his prime objective.When he finally pays off the debt one senses that he did not achieve the release he was expecting and was in something of a dilemma as to what to do next. Along the way he has achieved a taste for learning and manages to get a post graduate place at Dukes, a prestigious university. However, this time round he is determined not to end up with any sort of debt. This involves him in something of a solitary and spartan existence living in his camper van in the utmost secrecy as he suspects the college authorities would take a dim view of his lifestyle.Ken is inspired by the example of Thoreau, who demonstrated that it was possible to live a frugal existence and wrote a book on his experiences which have inspired the title of this book since he was living by Walden Pond. I was wondering as I went along how this was all going to turn out. If the author achieved a debt free graduation which was his aim, would he continue to be a free and spontaneous spirit or would he settle for a more conventional existence. I will leave you to read it for yourself and discover the outcome. This is an absorbing real life tale which I personally found a great read.

I've had this book languishing on my kindle for years and finally decided to read it. Firstly, the title and blurb is a bit misleading, you think the book is about a man living in a van, well part of it is, but the main story is about Ken working jobs in Alaska and Mississippi to save money to repay his student debt. I had a few issues with the book, the Alaskan section was by far the most interesting but the author never strays far from describing everyone he meets in 2 sentences using only derogatory words about them. It ever seems we saw fair fight when you place a liberal arts degree student up against a poorly educated, low paid alcoholic or ex- criminal and the author's sneering just makes me dislike him. I also had massive issues with the main premise of the book, after deciding to save money to repay the debt the author tells us at length how he can't be like us morons, working 9-5 and owning property and cars, we are so boring, he needs to be free, however he's pretty happy to sleepmon other people's couches when he needs a roof over his head, accept money from parents or food from others, I found this hypocritical. I was astounded when he says to himself he may need to distance himself from his parents as he can't align his own values to theirs - they are also dumb wage slaves!This book could have been funny, informative and enthralling but Ken is just not likeable, sorry Ken, he seems to want to become an internet sensation because he lived in a van but as he's a middle class arts student it is always his free choice to do this, there are may less fortunate people who live rough who do so because they have to, Ken doesn't give these people the time of day. Not for me.

I came to this as a recommendation following reading Mike Hudson's ridiculously long titled: 'How to live in a van and travel: Live everywhere, be free and have adventures in a campervan or motorhome' (covering all his bases for searcches, eh?). I checked out a couple of reviews and was particularly drawn to the reviewer who disliked author Ken Ilgunas's negative criticism of everybody from fat people to the homeless and even to his own parents. I thought this is the book for me. And I wasn't disappointed.That criticism, is wrong and unfair but equally this book has only a little to do with van dwelling (though Ilguna covers it well) and a lot more to do with a young man's journey through the debt of college and the subsequent enforced participation in 'normal' life. It is a reflection on the United States' structure and an enormous amount about the author's discovery with his own place in the world. He works in Alaska as he seeks to clear his $32,000 student loan and prepares for a post-grad course at Dukes (meant nothing to be as a Brit, but it's a top drawer Uni). He hitchhikes from Alaska to his parent's home in New York state, and returns to Alaska on the Arctic circle repeatedly. Alsaka is cool, Ilguna's reflections on the wilderness and how it equates to his own life experience is worth the price of admission.I'm old, but I would honestly recommend this book to anyone between the age of 17 and 30. Not because it preaches - which is does occasionally - but because it offers a perspective on your options.The author is a product of the video age and admits to underachieving as a youngster, as so many of his generation who are used to instant gratification from computers or video games. More importantly, while this book was written in the shadow of the financial crash, with all the implications that held for reducing living expenses, it is surely once again a timely read in 2020 as the world is still unsure of its way out of the impending Covid-induced recession, set to make 2008/9 look like a mere overture.I enjoyed this book. As I said at the beginning, it was some of the irritated reviews that drew me to it and then I saw the reviewer who wrote he could take a chance for $3.99. That was the clincher and sure enough Amazon UK was offering it for just £1 as an eBook.Bargain read of the year for me so far. Recommended. If van living interests you, add it to your list, for a glimpse into life in Alaska, also worth it but far more importantly, if you are a youngster trying to find your way in this crazy world, it's worth a read.

Often you take a punt on an author unknown to you and often in recommended travel literature I wonder if it's going to be too simplistic, too jovial or at the other end of the spectrum far too indulgently learned and dry. This book falls in to the perfect in-between of balancing intelligent humour with insight and theory as well as wonderful wild descriptions of wide open places. I loved this book, so much so that I felt a sense of loss when I finished it. But I also felt enlightened and encouraged. His insights in to society by trying to escape from it in Alaska, the education system that left him with huge debts, the way so many have unwittingly been hoodwinked by a capitalist society that has stolen so much of our freedom without us even realising...it's disturbing, refreshing and yes a little idealistic; we cannot solve societal weaknesses and the failings of burgeoning debt sold to us by an infrastructure we are supposed to blithely trust, by all of us turning to and converting our vehicles in to our primary residence...but this is a brave memoir of someone who stuck two fingers (I'm British!) up at the system. His sense of wonder and initial hikes in to the wilderness are honest and often foolhardy...but his self discovery is a lesson worth being present for. I want another book please Ken Ilgunas. I'm recommending Walden on Wheels to everyone.

Enjoyed reading about this lad's journey into adulthood written at the start of the last recession. Good reminder of the rewards from living a simple life, though perhaps only someone with Scots lineage could have lived such a frugal life!Author seems to assume that everyone with a car, house and job is a wage/salary slave - needs to realise that many enjoy their lives and jobs and would find his lifestyle abhorrent.Good he recognised that he was never actually poor as he always had family and friends as a back up.Would be interesting to read an updated version now that lending is more controlled and unemployment levels declining along with real incomes.All good stuff, hopes there's a follow up.Many thanks

An incredible story about a disillusioned graduate who owes tens of thousands of dollars and wants to pay it off as quickly as possible even it means extreme saving or working in conditions that many of us would not.He ends up working in Alaska cleaning and working in a diner, he also tells us of his experiences hitch hiking through the US and the people he meets along the way.The last third or so of the book is about his life living in a van in a car park of a very expensive college he managed to get into, while he lives on less on less than $5 a day, he does not befriend any fellow students at the start in case he gets discovered and fights boredom and loneliness, he tells of how he'd play with a pile of leaves for an hour.IIgunas is a very gifted young writer and spins great tales, I finished the book in a matter of days. The author and his story remind me of the excellent  Into the Wild A fantastic story - Highly Recommended. Into the Wild