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Pre-order Releases Mar 30, 2027

Hardcover

Traveling Light: The Shared Wandering Way of Jesus and Other Spiritual Pioneers

by Stephen Prothero

From $17.70 / copy at 25+ copies; lower per-copy prices at higher quantities (see Volume pricing) As low as $14.70 at 1,000+

304 pages HarperCollins ISBN 9780062463982
Traveling Light: The Shared Wandering Way of Jesus and Other Spiritual Pioneers book cover by Stephen Prothero
Ships on release · Mar 30 Releases Tuesday, March 30, 2027. Pre-order now: your copies ship on release and usually arrive around the release date.

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About the book

Traveling Light

The New York Times bestselling author and renowned religious studies scholar Stephen Prothero asks: What might it mean to reclaim the practice of wandering—its trust in strangers, its rejection of materialism, its intimacy with nature—as a bedrock principle of the world's religions?

In the spirit of Sapiens and other "big think, big picture" books, Traveling Light uncovers a fascinating commonality among Christianity, Buddhism, Daoism, and other religions: their founders were all wanderers who left their hometowns to pursue a new way of life on the road. Prothero, the author of eleven acclaimed books including the equally expansive God Is Not One and Religious Literacy, brings his deep knowledge of world civilizations to this big history of spiritual innovation and religious betrayal amid the rise of empires.

Reaching from the emergence of sedentary agriculture around 8000 BCE, to the lives of Jesus, the Buddha, and Laozi, Traveling Light reveals how:

  • the lives of these holy wanderers were both anti-imperial critiques and affirmations of the lifeways and values of our hunter-gatherer ancestors
  • over time, later followers betrayed these revolutionary founders by shifting the focus of their stories from lifeways to beliefs, and by replacing their radical witness with rigid, power-driven institutions we now refer to as religions.


This eye-opening perspective on religious evolution will appeal to readers disillusioned with organized religions but eager to deepen their connections with the spiritual entrepreneurs who inspired them, and to big history enthusiasts keen on examining the role spiritual and religious impulses have played from the beginning of human civilization. Along the way, Traveling Light commends to its readers a way of being human that is somehow both ancient and revolutionary.



Details

Publisher
HarperCollins
Author
Stephen Prothero
Format
Hardcover
Release date
Mar 30, 2027
ISBN-13
9780062463982
ISBN-10
0062463985
Pages
304
Carton quantity
28 copies

Who it's for

Made for groups that grow together

Pre-order copies for everyone on your list, and they ship on release.

  • Small groups and studies A copy for everyone in the group. Get a quote
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Before release day

Need them before Mar 30?

Books ship on release and usually arrive around the release date. Early delivery is common, and we arrange it often. It needs the publisher’s OK, so tell us why you need them early and we’ll make the request for you.

  1. Tell us the date and the reasonA class unit, an event, a program launch: one line is enough.
  2. We ask the publisherWe make the request on your behalf. It’s a routine part of what we do.
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Your order panel turns into the quote request with this date filled in. It asks the reason, so we can make the request. We’ll ask the publisher and confirm.

Buying for a group

Traveling Light for groups: pricing

Volume pricing applies automatically in your cart. No codes, no account needed.

CopiesPrice per copyYou save
25 – 99 $17.70 41% off list
100 – 249 $16.80 44% off list
250 – 499 $15.90 47% off list
500 – 999 $15.30 49% off list
1,000+ $14.70 51% off list

Where can I buy 100 copies of Traveling Light?

BookPal sells Traveling Light in quantity. At 100 copies the price is $16.80 a copy, against a list price of $30.00, and the cart applies the volume tier automatically. Free shipping on most orders over $95 in the contiguous US. A specialist can quote a larger or mixed order.

  • New books only, straight from the publisher
  • Volume prices apply automatically in the cart, with no code needed
  • Order at least 10 business days before you need the books (11 from mid-November through December)

Ask a specialist about a larger or mixed order

What does Traveling Light cost when I buy for a group?

Volume pricing applies automatically in your cart, with no code needed. Price per copy: 25 to 99 copies, $17.70 (41% off list); 100 to 249 copies, $16.80 (44% off list); 250 to 499 copies, $15.90 (47% off list); 500 to 999 copies, $15.30 (49% off list); 1,000+ copies, $14.70 (51% off list). Need a different quantity, or a quote to forward for approval? Ask a specialist and we will confirm pricing before you pay.

How fast can I get copies of Traveling Light?

This title is not released yet. Pre-orders ship when it is, currently scheduled for March 30, 2027. Need them by a specific date? Request a quote and we'll confirm timing before you pay.

Can you ship to several locations or people's homes?

Yes. We ship group orders to one address, to multiple sites, or to individual recipients, in the US and internationally. See fulfillment options.

Can I get a formal quote for approval before ordering?

Yes. Request a quote and we'll send a PDF you can forward for approval.

Do you accept purchase orders and tax-exempt orders?

Yes. We accept purchase orders upon approval, as well as cards, PayPal, ACH, wire transfers and checks. BookPal is a tax-exempt supplier in all 50 states. See purchase orders and sales tax exemption.

What if I find a lower price?

Send us the link. We match prices from other booksellers and distributors on a new copy in the same edition, available to ship in the quantity you need. Clearance sales and pricing errors are the exception, and we'll tell you quickly if that's the case. Start a price match.

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