This collection of C. H. Spurgeon's travel letters offers a rare insight into a different side of the famed preacher. Of the many telling phrases C. H. Spurgeon gave the world, one speaks to the way he, and his contemporaries, greatly valued letters: what he called "gifts of the pen." He lived in a golden age of letter-writing, and played his part in making it so. The best letters, he knew, are written with thoughtful reflection, love of the written word, wit, and a vivid sense of place.

His travel letters model these gifts; his love of nature, history, culture, and art live--and breathe--in these pages. Rest and recreation, during precious holiday time, let him follow these interests. Such times were meaningful, renewing gifts from God. More than a preacher, he was a man who needed rest and cherished the world God had given him to enjoy. With artistic flair, scenes and experiences from the English countryside and European continent are brough to life with vivid descriptions. Eloquent, and often moving, his "gifts of the pen" shine through Spurgeon's travel letters. With this insightful new collection, Spurgeon's letters finally have a well-deserved place f honour in a book of their own. Now, we ourselves may travel with Spurgeon - enjoying the world he knew and experienced through this privileged perspective.