Excursions Author:Henry D. Thoreau Henry David Thoreau was an American author, poet, naturalist, tax resister, surveyor, historian, philosopher, and leading transcendentalist. He is best known for his book Walden. He was deeply interested in the idea of survival in the face of hostile elements, historical change, and natural decay. He was a strong abolitionist and his belief i... more »n a philosophy of civil disobedience influenced the political thoughts and actions of such later figures as Leo Tolstoy, Mahatma Gandhi, and Martin Luther King, Jr. The Table of Contents for Excursions includes Biographical Sketch, Natural History of Massachusetts, A Walk to Wachusett, The Landlord, A Winter Walk, The Succession of Forest Trees, Walking, Autumnal Tints, Wild Apples, and Night and Moonlight.« less