New York Times bestseller - "Thrilling, tender, utterly absorbing . . . Every chapter shimmered with truth." --Cheryl Strayed

From travel writer Jedidiah Jenkins comes a long-awaited memoir of adventure, struggle, and lessons learned while bicycling the 14,000 miles from Oregon to Patagonia.

On the eve of turning thirty, terrified of being funneled into a life he didn't choose, Jedidiah Jenkins quit his dream job and spent the next sixteen months cycling from Oregon to Patagonia. He chronicled the trip on Instagram, where his photos and profound reflections on life soon attracted hundreds of thousands of followers and got him featured by National Geographic and The Paris Review.

In this unflinchingly honest memoir, Jed narrates the adventure that started it all: the people and places he encountered on his way to the bottom of the world, and the internal journey that prompted it. As he traverses cities, mountains, and inner boundaries, Jenkins grapples with the questions of what it means to be an adult, his struggle to reconcile his sexual identity with his conservative Christian upbringing, and his belief in travel as a way to "wake us up" to life back home.

A soul-stirring read for the wanderer in each of us, To Shake the Sleeping Self is an unforgettable reflection on adventure, identity, and a life lived without regret.

A contemplative and poignant memoir from the bestselling author of To Shake the Sleeping Self. When his mother, Barbara, turned 70, Jedidiah Jenkins was reminded of a sobering reality: our parents won't live forever. For years, he and his mother, Barbara, had talked about taking a trip together, just the two of them. They landed on an idea: retrace the thousands of miles Barbara trekked with Jedidiah's father as part of the "Walk Across America" that became a sensation in the 1970s. And they would do it, as Barbara said, "Before an earthquake or asteroid destroys the world." From New Orleans to the Oregon coast, listening to podcasts about serial killers- the only media they could agree on - they relived the trek that changed Barbara's life. Jenkins revisits who she was as a 30-year-old writer walking across America; who she was later, as a wife scorned by infidelity; and now, as a parent who loves her son while holding on to a faith that sees his sexuality as a sin. Along the way, Jenkins peels back universal questions of belonging, respect, and inheritance. What is our duty to our parents? How do we have hard conversations with the people we love? How do we make sense of the surprising directions life takes us in, and the differences that push us apart? Tender, witty, and ultimately profound, Mother Nature is an unforgettable mother-son adventure story and a journey into our most pressing questions today.

'Liberating and life affirming' Fearne Cotton 'A thrilling, tender, utterly absorbing book. It's an unforgettable debut' Cheryl Strayed A soul-stirring read for the wanderer in each of us, To Shake the Sleeping Self is an unforgettable reflection on adventure, identity and a life lived without regret. On the eve of turning thirty, terrified of being funnelled into a life he didn't choose, Jedidiah Jenkins quit his dream job and spent sixteen months cycling from Oregon to Patagonia. He chronicled the trip online, where his photos and reflections drew hundreds of thousands of followers, all gathered around the question: What makes a life worth living?