Books that will take you there

By now you’ve probably realized that I spend a fair amount of the work day talking travel with colleagues. Now and again I do change it up and talk about travel… books. With only a few weeks of vacation, sometimes I need to escape vicariously. I make a habit of checking in regularly with other passionate travellers to find out what they are reading. I don’t have a lot of time to read, so I am always in search of those stellar books that really take you on an adventure with the turning of each page. You know the books I mean, the ones where you can feel the warmth of the sun on your face or smell the local cuisine. As the author builds the characters she paints vivid images in your mind of the surroundings and you find yourself longing to experience this destination for yourself. Funny it seems my reading time these days if often on planes, don’t you love an airport with a good bookstore? Books and travel just go together so well.

Favorite travel books have defined destinations for me, before I visit the destination and then as I explore the destination the book becomes the frame of reference – this was the case with In a Sun Burnt Country—Bill Bryson’s colourful book about Australia. The book painted such an amazing picture of Australia that in my mind there are some memories that I can’t recall if I experienced the cultural icon or read about them, perhaps that says more about my memory than the quality of the book.

Other books transport me back to those favorite destinations where I longed to linger just a little longer. True escapism is reading somebody else’s vivid tales when their interests and reactions to cultural experiences mirror the exact ones I had in that country, reading such books truly creates mini vacations.

I’ve sorted a few of my favorites by destination and are as follows:

Around the World
Three Weeks with my Brother by Nicholas Sparks
Leaving Microsoft to Save The World by John Woods

Russia
To Russia with Fries by George Cohon

France
A Year in the Merde (and all the sequels to this one all provide ample opportunity for a good laugh) by Stephen Clarke
Weekend in Paris by Robyn Sisman
French Woman Don’t Get Fat by Mireille Guiliano – I actually ‘heard’ this book (audio books are such a great way to get through more books on a jammed pack schedule) this one is read by the author with an appropriate and quaint French accent which truly brought the stories to life.

Various Countries
Red White and Drunk All Over by Natalie MacLean – a Native Nova Scotian’s self discovery of wine throughout France and California. I appreciate the back roads overview of France offered in this book, it went well beyond typical portrayals of Paris and Provence and much of book was set in the area of France where I too had lived.
Bill Bryson (anything) and including: In a Sun Burnt Country, Notes from a Small Island, I’m a Stranger Here Myself
Eat Love and Pray by Elizabeth Gilbert

Here are just two on my list that I have not read but that come highly recommended by passionate travellers: Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson (on Pakistan and Afghanistan) Nights of Rain and Stars by Maeve Binchy is sure to have you dreaming of a vacation in Greece.

What’s on your list of books that will take you there?

Until next time
Melanie Taljaard