"East or West: A Walking Journey Along Shikoku’s 88 Temple Pilgrimage" is an abridged diary, an account of a mystical journey, and a photographic poem in the form of a book. The images are studies in luminous detail, reflecting the loneliness, quiet intensity, and grace that all true spiritual seekers come to know.

In September 2010 (a few days before her thirty-third birthday), the photographer Alexandra Huddleston set out on an 800-mile walk around the island of Shikoku, Japan. To complete the Shikoku Ohenro trail pilgrims worship at 88 temples on the island, following a route that loosely traces the life and legends of the Buddhist saint Kōbō Daishi. In the course of her journey, from time to time, the material world unexpectedly gave way to a voyage of mystical transformation. This is the story of East or West.