Greatest travel books
Jun 11, 2019, 9:13 am
#1
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Greatest travel books
Like all lists this one by Conde Nast of the best travel books is a subjective one too. What would you add to this list?
I'm embarrassed to admit that I've only read about 15 of these books and am familiar with another 10 or so (but have not got around to reading them).
Fermor's 'A Time of Gifts' was probably the first book on this list that I read as a teenager. I was mesmerized by its meditative quality. And although Bruce Chatwin made it to this list, his non-fictional works were peppered with fiction. Here's a fact about Songlines that I read somewhere: the character Arkady in the book is semi-fictional. It was actually Salman Rushdie that Chatwin traveled with to the Outback. There's a memorable exchange between Chatwin and a local small-business owner that goes like this. 'What do you do?' the guy asks. 'I'm a writer,' says Chatwin. 'Ever done an honest day's work?' the other chap responds. I find it hilarious, memorable as well a realistic and sobering reflection of how the world views writers in general. Of course, given that the narrator was Chatwin, this conversation might never have actually happened in real life.
And in other miscellaneous literary gossip, one of the authors on this list and one of the jury members had a falling out over the former's portrayal of the latter's brother-in-law. If you can guess this pair, I'll send you an autographed freshly-minted $3 bill.
I'm embarrassed to admit that I've only read about 15 of these books and am familiar with another 10 or so (but have not got around to reading them).
Fermor's 'A Time of Gifts' was probably the first book on this list that I read as a teenager. I was mesmerized by its meditative quality. And although Bruce Chatwin made it to this list, his non-fictional works were peppered with fiction. Here's a fact about Songlines that I read somewhere: the character Arkady in the book is semi-fictional. It was actually Salman Rushdie that Chatwin traveled with to the Outback. There's a memorable exchange between Chatwin and a local small-business owner that goes like this. 'What do you do?' the guy asks. 'I'm a writer,' says Chatwin. 'Ever done an honest day's work?' the other chap responds. I find it hilarious, memorable as well a realistic and sobering reflection of how the world views writers in general. Of course, given that the narrator was Chatwin, this conversation might never have actually happened in real life.
And in other miscellaneous literary gossip, one of the authors on this list and one of the jury members had a falling out over the former's portrayal of the latter's brother-in-law. If you can guess this pair, I'll send you an autographed freshly-minted $3 bill.
Jun 11, 2019, 9:50 am
#2
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For me, it's hard to beat The Odyssey. I'm a voracious reader, but I don't really like reading about travel or anything I can experience directly. And I'm more interested in the here and now than in history; there is plenty of here and now to keep me occupied.
There are times when I wish I was more interested in history, since it does shape the present. But...
There are times when I wish I was more interested in history, since it does shape the present. But...
Jun 11, 2019, 9:54 am
#3
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Two that I've enjoyed that aren't on the list: The Day the World Came to Town (about 9/11 in Gander, Newfoundland) and The Path Between the Seas about the building of the Panama Canal. Maybe neither qualify as travel books per se but both are worth the read.
Jun 11, 2019, 2:09 pm
#4
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Blood River by Tim Butcher
Blood River is the harrowing and audacious story of Tim Butcher’s journey in the Congo and his retracing of legendary explorer H. M. Stanley’s famous 1874 expedition in which he mapped the Congo River
Blood River is the harrowing and audacious story of Tim Butcher’s journey in the Congo and his retracing of legendary explorer H. M. Stanley’s famous 1874 expedition in which he mapped the Congo River
Jun 11, 2019, 9:12 pm
#5
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William Least Heat Moon's travel books, especially Blue Highways (a now-classic) and River Horse.
Larry McMurtry's .
John Wesley Powell
Joseph Cerquone In Behalf of the Light: The Domínguez and Escalante Expedition of 1776
Isabella Bird's travel books (especially the Hawaii and Colorado ones -- these can be found in public domain as downloadable e-books)
Larry McMurtry's .
John Wesley Powell
Joseph Cerquone In Behalf of the Light: The Domínguez and Escalante Expedition of 1776
Isabella Bird's travel books (especially the Hawaii and Colorado ones -- these can be found in public domain as downloadable e-books)
Last edited by cblaisd; Jun 11, 2019 at 9:35 pm
Jun 11, 2019, 11:52 pm
#6
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Jun 12, 2019, 2:51 am
#7
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Not as bad as this, but I'm impressed by the OP's education.
I hugely enjoy, and I think the OP would, going to Daunt's Book Shop in Marylebone, London. The interior alone is worth a trip but the key thing is their travel section. They group books by country, of course, but within a country's grouping and alongside the inevitable tourist books sit relevant literature and history. It's a must particularly when planning a visit to a new or obscure destination. Highly recommended.
I hugely enjoy, and I think the OP would, going to Daunt's Book Shop in Marylebone, London. The interior alone is worth a trip but the key thing is their travel section. They group books by country, of course, but within a country's grouping and alongside the inevitable tourist books sit relevant literature and history. It's a must particularly when planning a visit to a new or obscure destination. Highly recommended.
Jun 12, 2019, 3:32 am
#8
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Not as bad as this, but I'm impressed by the OP's education.
I hugely enjoy, and I think the OP would, going to Daunt's Book Shop in Marylebone, London. The interior alone is worth a trip but the key thing is their travel section. They group books by country, of course, but within a country's grouping and alongside the inevitable tourist books sit relevant literature and history. It's a must particularly when planning a visit to a new or obscure destination. Highly recommended.
I hugely enjoy, and I think the OP would, going to Daunt's Book Shop in Marylebone, London. The interior alone is worth a trip but the key thing is their travel section. They group books by country, of course, but within a country's grouping and alongside the inevitable tourist books sit relevant literature and history. It's a must particularly when planning a visit to a new or obscure destination. Highly recommended.
Jun 12, 2019, 10:32 am
#9
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I'm a big fan of Bill Bryson, he's best known as a travel writer for his books on the UK (Notes From A Small Island) and Australia (Down Under (UK) / In a Sunburned Country (US)) but I also really liked his books on travelling through small-town America (The Lost Continent) and around Europe (Neither Here Nor There)
Jun 12, 2019, 10:39 am
#10
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I'm a big fan of Bill Bryson, he's best known as a travel writer for his books on the UK (Notes From A Small Island) and Australia (Down Under (UK) / In a Sunburned Country (US)) but I also really liked his books on travelling through small-town America (The Lost Continent) and around Europe (Neither Here Nor There)
Jun 12, 2019, 10:53 am
#11
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There are a lot of good titles in this list.
I am partial to the two Eric Newby books, as I can see my own copies of them from where I sit right now. The understated humor of the difficulties faced by an under-prepared Englishman in traveling/mountaineering/boating the subcontinent are terrific, and both of them have satisfying conclusions, something that not every travel book possesses.
Tobias Smollet and Mark Twain as travel writers are great. I succeeded in getting both added to the reading lists at my kid's school, and it was a true pleasure to see her delight as she began to understand the unreliable narration as the source of much of what I found funny in the books. And I learned the term "snarky" in return.
Riding the Iron Rooster is so on the nose with respect to China that it is breath-taking.
I am partial to the two Eric Newby books, as I can see my own copies of them from where I sit right now. The understated humor of the difficulties faced by an under-prepared Englishman in traveling/mountaineering/boating the subcontinent are terrific, and both of them have satisfying conclusions, something that not every travel book possesses.
Tobias Smollet and Mark Twain as travel writers are great. I succeeded in getting both added to the reading lists at my kid's school, and it was a true pleasure to see her delight as she began to understand the unreliable narration as the source of much of what I found funny in the books. And I learned the term "snarky" in return.
Riding the Iron Rooster is so on the nose with respect to China that it is breath-taking.
Jun 12, 2019, 11:14 am
#12
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The Happy Isles of Oceania by Paul Theroux
Mutiny on the Bounty by Nordhoff and Hall
North Star Over My Shoulder by Capt. Bob Buck (pioneer in aviation, flew TWA for decades until retirement). Loved this book.
Mutiny on the Bounty by Nordhoff and Hall
North Star Over My Shoulder by Capt. Bob Buck (pioneer in aviation, flew TWA for decades until retirement). Loved this book.
Jun 13, 2019, 12:05 pm
#14
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I have a few books to add to this list:
'From the Holy Mountain: a Journey in the Shadow of Byzantium' by William Dalrymple
'The Silk Road: Beyond the Celestial Kingdom' by Colin Thubron
'Falling off the Map' by Pico Iyer
'From Heaven Lake: Travels to Xinjiang & Tibet' by Vikram Seth
'From the Holy Mountain: a Journey in the Shadow of Byzantium' by William Dalrymple
'The Silk Road: Beyond the Celestial Kingdom' by Colin Thubron
'Falling off the Map' by Pico Iyer
'From Heaven Lake: Travels to Xinjiang & Tibet' by Vikram Seth
Jun 13, 2019, 5:36 pm
#15
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Interesting list. I've read all the works of Bryson and the rather curmudgeonly Paul Theroux. Chasing The Sea is excellent.
Those who enjoyed Markham's West With the Night should check out The Long Way Home by Ed Dover. Frost on My Moustache and French Revolutions by Tim Moore are funny and insightful.
Those who enjoyed Markham's West With the Night should check out The Long Way Home by Ed Dover. Frost on My Moustache and French Revolutions by Tim Moore are funny and insightful.
