From the bestselling author of 'The Dark Heart of Italy' comes a different kind of travel book.
'Utopian Dreams' offers one writer's attempt to retreat from the 'real world' in order to better understand the available alternatives to our modern manners and morality. Instead of cynicism, loneliness and depression - is it possible to be idealistic, to find belonging and companionship with others who share your sadness, or even, perhaps, your happiness? Are there really communities in Italy and Britain which transcend the opposites of individualism and community, places where you can truly be yourself but also part of something else? Does obedience always preclude freedom?
Tobias Jones undertakes a pilgrimage to spiritualists and recluses, a journey to unusual orphanages, retirement homes, detox communities and old-fashioned farmyards. His book is an exploration of the meanings of community and solitude, a voyage to places where the soul, the spirit and the sacred are central concerns.
