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Armchair Travel August 2016
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My heart is warm with the friends I make, And better friends I’ll not be knowing, Yet there isn’t a train I wouldn’t take, No matter where it’s going.” ~ from Edna St. Vincent Millay's Travel Welcome to August's Next Reads Airmchair Travel
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| Voyager: Travel Writings by Russell BanksThough Russell Banks is known for acclaimed novels such as Affliction and The Sweet Hereafter (which have both been made into award-winning movies), he now turns his keen eye to travel writing. In Voyager, his thought-provoking essays vary in time (taking place over several decades), place (destinations include the Andes, Cuba, Florida, Alaska, North Carolina, Scotland, and the Caribbean), and purpose (such as fun, work, a college reunion, and eloping with his fourth wife). As the essays coalesce, they provide an intimate examination of Banks' life as well as an evocative look at the world. |
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| The Return: Fathers, Sons, and the Land in Between by Hisham MatarHaving left Libya when he was an eight-year-old boy, London-based writer Hisham Matar finally returns, hoping to learn his father's fate. Matar's family fled their homeland when Muammar Qaddafi took control in 1978; they moved first to Kenya, then Egypt, as Qaddafi's government hunted dissidents and their families, kidnapping or murdering them. Matar's father took cloak-and-dagger precautions, but in 1990, he was kidnapped in Cairo and sent to the worst prison in Libya. Riveting, powerful, and personal, The Return is a must-read for anyone interested in Libya or lyrically told family stories; for another look at the effect of political upheaval on ordinary people, pick up Janine di Giovanni's The Morning They Came For Us. |
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| Walking the Himalayas by Levison WoodWhat does an adventurous travel writer do after walking the length of the Nile? Take a 1,700 mile trek through the Himalayas! Recounting his trip from Afghanistan (where a helicopter dropped him off in a remote area) to Pakistan, India, Nepal, and Bhutan, British explorer and travel writer Levison Wood discusses the history, religions, and cultures of the people he encounters, including His Holiness, the Dalai Lama. There were adventurous moments, too, of course, involving landslides, monsoons, tigers, and crocodiles. Where will Wood go next? It's recently been announced he'll say "hola" to Central America, walking from northeastern Mexico to Colombia. |
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| Ghost Train to the Eastern Star: On the Tracks of the Great Railway Bazaar by Paul TherouxIn the 1970s, author Paul Theroux took a railroad trip through Eastern Europe, Asia, India, China, Japan, and Siberia, and wrote about his adventures in The Great Railway Bazaar, a book that became a modern travel classic. More than 30 years later, he revisited the past and recreated his journey, which revealed the dramatic changes that had occurred since the writing of his original travelogue. Publishers Weekly says, "no matter where his journey takes him, Theroux always sends back dazzling postcards." Ghost Train to the Eastern Star is a must-read for fans of Theroux, travel, and trains. |
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| Train: Riding the Rails that Created the Modern World -- From the Trans-Siberian... by Tom ZoellnerDo you love trains or wonder what the world would be like without them? Then climb on board the Train express! Combining fascinating social history and a sparkling travelogue with lyrical language, author (and train buff) Tom Zoellner engagingly chronicles the innovation and sociological impact of railway technologies that have changed and continue to change the world. Lucky him, he also travels to such far-flung locales as India, Britain, Russia, China, Peru, Spain, and the United States, soaking up local culture and riding an assortment of trains, from old stalwarts to modern bullet trains. All aboard! |
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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Lambton County Library 787 Broadway St. Wyoming, Ontario N0N1T0 519-845-3324www.lclibrary.ca |
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