I believe Audible recommended The Way Home to me because I'd previously listened to The World-Ending Fire, which is a collection of amazing Wendell Berry essays (which I can't recommend enough). The Way Home was quite a different exploration of technology and nature. The author, who is also a contributor to The Guardian, wrote the book (as far as I can tell) as a kind of journal of his exploration of giving up technology and living as entirely without technology and fiat money as possible. As far as I can tell, he's still living off-grid and without money at the time of this post (at least according to The Times).

Boyle is Irish and the narrator of this audio version is Gerard Doyle (oddly similar last names...), whose parents are Irish and who went to school in England. Simply listening to the accent and cadence of Doyle's narration is calming and almost meditative. The story itself is fascinating. Boyle weaves together his personal observations on nature, technology, society, economy, and humanity with philosophy, the challenges (aka frustrations) of building a house and growing sustainable food supplies, and the experience of a pint at the pub in a refreshingly earnest exploration of the challenges presented by modern technology without participating in the currently popular sport of bashing everyone over the head with his personal values.

One of the parts I most enjoyed was his process of determining what line he would draw in relation to technology. For example, a pencil is indeed technology, as is a ballpoint pen -- not using a computer was a simple decision, but if he was going to write, what limit does he set for himself? What about notebooks and paper? And what is the implication of sending his stories to a newspaper--which obviously uses endless modern technology--through the postal service? He discusses this in detail, and also the amusing negotiation with his editor at the newspaper who wasn't thrilled about receiving handwritten drafts through the mail and then needing to send back edits, again via the mail.

This is a wonderful read (listen) for anyone who likes to think about the topics described above. Boyle is a great writer and discusses his topics of interest with both depth and levity. It's a great read for any luddite, naturalist, or someone wrestling with the tensions between technology, nature, and society.