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Armchair Travel December 2019
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| A Beginner's Guide to Japan: Observations and Provocations by Pico IyerWhat it is: lyrical, thought-provoking snippets and essays that ponder life in Japan, covering such varied topics as silence, signage, emotion, clothing, anime, baseball and more.
About the author: British-born bestselling travel writer Pico Iyer is married to a Japanese woman and the country is his adopted home.
Want a taste? "Being in Japan has taught me to say, 'I wonder,' more often than 'I think.'" |
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| Classic Krakauer: Essays on Wilderness and Risk by Jon KrakauerWhat it is: a compelling collection of ten essays, all previously published between 1985 and 2014, that profile adventures and adventurers around the globe, including a poignant look at surfer Mark Foo's last ride.
Reviewers say: "A solid mix of conversations, background, and travel adds up to cleareyed reportage that still shocks" (Kirkus Reviews).
Read this next: For a more lighthearted collection about outdoor exploits, pick up Out There by the editors of Outside magazine. |
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| On the Plain of Snakes: A Mexican Journey by Paul TherouxWhat happened: Erudite 70-something travel writer Paul Theroux drove the entire length of the U.S.-Mexico border alone, crossing over the border multiple times; he also visited Mexico City, Oaxaca, Chiapas, and other areas.
Why you should read it: Theroux saw the border situation up close, met locals, witnessed the monarch butterfly migration, visited historic locations, taught writing, and learned about drug cartels and corruption.
Read this next: Richard Grant's God's Middle Finger, about his trip through the Sierra Madres; or, for a penetrating look at both U.S. borders, try Stephanie Elizondo Griest's All the Agents and Saints. |
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Focus on: Traveling Through History |
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In the Land of Giants: A Journey Through the Dark Ages
by Max Adams
Explores the medieval past of Britain through 10 walking narratives that explore paths through valleys, hills and fields and taking note of the remnants of forts, fyrds, crypts, crannogs, churches, causeways, holy wells and memorial stones.
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Horatio's Drive: America's First Road Trip
by Dayton Duncan
Chronicles the nation's first road trip by Horatio Jackson, a thirty-one-year-old Vermont doctor who drove his car from San Francisco to New York on mainly unpaved roads in 1903.
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Underland: A Deep Time Journey
by Robert Macfarlane
The award-winning author of The Old Ways presents an exploration of the planet's underworlds as they exist in myth, literature, memory and geography, offering unsettling perspectives into whether or not humans are making the correct choices for Earth's future.
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London: The Biography
by Peter Ackroyd
Filled with stunning photographs, illustrations, and maps, an enthralling tour of London, from the time of the Druids to the present, delves into the human dramas that have molded this great city by recreating its pungent odors, bawdy street life, and diverse population and quoting the impressions of such famous Londoners as Dickens, Pepys, and Pope.
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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