The Last Passenger Train

Join author Robert Goldstein and his wife, Melinda Denson, on a seemingly idyllic trip to celebrate his retirement by traversing Canada on the remnants of its once robust transcontinental train service. More than a routine travelogue, the author describes what happens when two individuals marry late in life, then spend a week crammed in a train compartment. Goldstein is determined to cure his inner restlessness and obsession with being on time, even inventing a new philosophy - Zen Train Mind - to keep on track. Denson constantly reminds her new husband that the trip is about relaxation, defeating anxiety and being in the moment. Initial success is met with retrenchment as The Canadian falls hours behind schedule. The author's penchant for checking timetables, composing letters to railroad officials and politicians, and concocting crazy schemes to encourage speed transforms the trip into a comedy of confinement. When not worrying about the train's pace, the author provides rich descriptions of the land the train passes through, as well as of the Herculean effort required to build Canada's cross-country railroad.