“Walk everyday if you want to stay on this planet” was the simple yet non-nonsense advice imparted to Peter Carpenter by his physiotherapist, coming on the heels of a major heart surgery. The freelance writer, tutor and publisher not only paid complete heed to the instruction but transformed his peripatetic episodes into a memorable garland of tributes to one of rock and roll’s greatest ever artists, David Bowie.

Bowieland is both a homage to David Bowie as well as an ode to the pleasure of assiduously putting one foot in front of another in a sustained and resolute manner. An impossible and incorrigible fan of David Bowie, Carpenter finds himself moved by the spontaneous vigils mushrooming around “Bowie shrines” across not just the United Kingdom but also spanning continents. Carpenter decided, spurred by a combination of circumstance and fancy, to embark on a series of “Bowie walks,” visiting as many Bowie shrines as time and energy would permit a recuperating heart patient to visit.

What follows is an elaborate and poetic descriptions of memorable experiences that throw shades of wistful nostalgia upon the spiritual psyche of carpenter. Chance acquaintances with shared admiration led to jaw dropping stories and recollection of captivating incidents. For example, an impromptu meeting with photographer Daro Montag brings out the fascinating tale of how Montag happened to find the pair of boots worn by Bowie in the video “Space Oddity,” in an apartment in the West End – Number 39 Manchester Street to be precise. Upon an excited Carpenter inquiring about the fate of the illustrious boots, the response is indescribably gobsmacking – “I think they were just chucked out.”

Carpenter chugs along at a brisk pace traipsing through Brixton, Beckenham, and Soho. We are introduced to hallowed places and events, veritable portals leading to a multitude of Bowie heavens. Heddon Street, for example, the reader is informed represented the site of the cover photo shoot for one of the most popular Bowie albums, The Rise and Fall of the Ziggy Stardust and Spiders from Mars (mercifully shortened to just Ziggy Stardust).

Carpenter’s Bowie mania is not restricted to the shores of his homeland alone. He also pays a visit to Berlin, where Bowie famously and in a manner that caused horripilation amongst millions of his fans, belted out an immortal rendition of Heroes in the year 1987. Bowie, while performing on the second night, began by telling the crowd, in German, “We send our wishes to all our friends who are on the other side of the wall.” A decade earlier Berlin had hosted Bowie, in tandem with producer Brian Eno as the duo recorded the Berlin Trilogy, three studio albums which have now attained status of legendary proportions.

Bowieland is replete with reminiscences, unabashed adulation, fanboy moments and bouts of serene introspection. In Carpenter’s own words, “My peripatetic trampings, I came to see, echoed Bowie’s own creative spirit. A self-confessed lodger, a nomad, acting out the role of the explorer. From Tolworth to outer space, from Pett Level to New Mexico.”

Bowieland – honest, humble and heart-warming!