Whether you're basking in the tropical sun or backpacking
cross-country, there's one thing that could make the experience better
(besides unlimited funds): a good book. Relaxing vacations and high-energy
trips call for good reading material. Staying at home? Books can take you to places you've always
wanted to go.
The following sites offer recommendations for the road:
Fiction Picks
- "The Beach" by Alex Garland, is about a young American's pursuit of a hidden
beach paradise in Thailand. It was released as a major motion picture starring
Leonardo DiCaprio.
- Danish Baroness Karen Blixen published
"Out of Africa"
in 1937 under the pen name Isak Dinesen. This name later became famous for inspiring the seven
Oscar award-winning motion picture starring Meryl Streep and Robert Redford.
This novel will take you to her plantation in British East Africa before
World War II.
-
"Daughter of Fortune" begins with descriptions of Chile then moves
to the Californian coast. Isabel Allende combines fantasy, adventure and
romance in this Oprah Book Club® Selection.
-
"The Sun Also Rises" is the story of Lost Generation expatriates on hiatus in Pamplona
and Paris. This was Hemingway's first bestseller.
- Set in the African bush, Parisian cafes, Spanish bullfights and at sea,
Hemingway's critically acclaimed short stories are compiled in
"The Complete Short Stories of Ernest Hemingway."
Nonfiction Picks
- Bill Bryson is keeping many entertained by his witticisms and descriptions
of Australia in his latest travel book
"In a Sunburned Country."
- Paul Theroux's 36th book,
"Fresh Air Fiend" is a
collection of his travel essays from around the world.
- Famous CBS journalist Charles Kuralt tells a lifetime of travels and
discoveries in
"Charles Kuralt:
A Life on the Road".
- Mark Twain's
"The Innocents Abroad" and
"Following the Equator: A Journey Around the World" are books about his travel experiences, written with
the sarcasm and humor that made him famous.
-
"A Year In Provence," by Peter Mayle, is an entertaining read for anyone
interested in Provence, France, French cuisine
or French culture.
- American Road Trips
John Steinbeck, author of "Of Mice and Men," writes about road tripping with his dog across America in
"Travels with Charley: In Search of America."
-
"On the Road," by Jack Kerouac, was one of the first novels
of the '50s beat movement, and came to be a centerpiece of counterculture
inspiration.
- William Heat Least Moon drives along back roads in 38 states and
insightfully writes about his discoveries.
"Blue Highways: A Journey Into America" was a New York Times Bestseller and the Chicago Sun Times
declared it "better than Kerouac."
Offbeat
|
|
|