At 26, Cheryl Strayed thought she had lost everything. In the wake of her mother’s rapid death from cancer, her family disbanded and her marriage crumbled. With nothing to lose, she made the most impulsive decision of her life: to walk eleven-hundred miles of the west coast of America – from the Mojave Desert, through California and Oregon, and into Washington state – and to do it alone. She had no experience of long-distance hiking and the journey was nothing more than a line on a map. But it held a promise – a promise of piecing together a life that lay in ruins at her feet. Strayed’s account captures the agonies – both mental and physical – of her incredible journey; how it maddened and terrified her, and how, ultimately, it healed her. Wild, which has been a huge bestseller in the United States, is a brutal memoir of survival, grief and redemption: a searing portrayal of life at its lowest ebb and at its highest tide. Nick Hornby – currently writing the screenplay for Wild – said ‘Cheryl Strayed’s Wild is one of the best books I’ve read in the last five or ten years.’ Cheryl Strayed talks about her journey.

As a result of the bad weather which is causing major travel problems, this event is cancelled. All ticket holders have been emailed. We hope Cheryl will be able to come to Bristol later in the year: those who have tickets already will have priority booking and will be contacted. We apologise for any inconvenience.