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Travels with a Donkey in the Cévennes
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Travels with a Donkey in the Cévennes

journal by Stevenson
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History

Travels with a Donkey in the Cévennes, journal by Robert Louis Stevenson, published in 1879. Recovering on the French Riviera from a respiratory ailment, Stevenson spent 12 days walking 120 miles from the town of Le Monastier to Saint-Jean-du-Gard in the Cévennes mountain range, accompanied only by his donkey, Modestine. A classic of travel literature, Travels gives a humorous account of Modestine’s idiosyncrasies and the mutual adjustments of author and donkey. The account is enlivened by Stevenson’s fresh, vivid descriptions of the landscape and its inhabitants, his detailed record of his travel preparations, and his depiction of his visit to a Trappist monastery.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Kathleen Kuiper.