Travel Writing

earth | roaming

UPDATE: 30 September 2006

Travel Writing

So you think traveling is a bit expensive??? Then travel with your mind! I owe some of my greatest adventures to books. Through the eyes and typing skills of other people, I have swum in the South Pacific's shallow island waters and have hiked across the plains of Africa. Below is a list of my favorite travel writing.

"I Dreamed of Africa" by Kuki Gallmann.
The movie was very so-so. But I will remember this book as long as I live. It's truly the best book I have read in many years. It's the true story of the lives of European settlers in Kenya in the 1970's and 80's. I can't do it justice -- just read it.

"African Nights: True Stories from the Author of I Dreamed of Africa" by Kuki Gallmann.
I loved I Dreamed of Africa and have really enjoyed the short stories in Gallmann's latest publication. Her characters are so rich and her descriptions are so vivid that I almost feel as if I have spent some time in eastern Africa - meeting these people and seeing these places! Oh it is wonderful.

"Under the Tuscan Sun: At Home in Italy" by Frances Mayes.
I recommend this book to anyone who has traveled to Italy, lived in Italy, or dreamed of doing so. It's basically a diary of the life of an American woman - a college professor from California - who buys a home in Tuscany. She and her husband spend their summers and Christmas holidays restoring the house, dealing with local workers, shopping in the market, taking driving tours of the region, and eating amazing food. It's a book that mimics the Tuscan lifestyle - it's slow and colorful - a book to be savored.

"Bella Tuscany: The Sweet Life in Italy" by Frances Mayes.
Building off of her first book, "Under the Tuscan Sun", Mayes gives us more visions of her life in Tuscany. Most of the renovations to their home have been completed, so now she can focus on enjoying the sweet life. She spends her weekends on driving tours of the countryside - exploring churches, antiques markets, and ancient ruins - and of sharing more of her wonderful recipes. Anyone who loves Italy will love her book.

"On Foot Through Africa" by Ffyona Campbell.
Ffyona is a maniac! She decided to set a Guiness record for walking around the world, one continent at a time. In this book, she crosses her third continent, Africa, beginning in Cape Town and ending at the Mediterranean Sea, encountering all manner of wildlife and civil unrest along the way. It's just unbelievable what she goes through. What a woman! (And oh yeah, she was only 24 when she did this.)

"Notes from a Big Country" by Bill Bryson.
Bryson spent 20 years in England, married an English woman and spawned English off-spring, before returning to the U.S. to find that he was a stranger in his own country. Bryson's perspective of American life is a riot -- he goes crazy over the vast amount of junk options at the grocery store and the fun of playing with the garbage disposal. I think most people would get a good laugh out of it, but this is an absolute must read for anyone who has lived overseas and had a tough time on the return!
"Notes from a Small Island" by Bill Bryson.
As with "Notes from a Big Country", Bryson's astute observations on the humor of day to day life comes through in this sharp collection of stories from the 20 years he spent living in Great Britain.

"Into Africa: The Epic Adventures of Stanley & Livingstone" by Martin Dugard is not a book for the faint-hearted. This brutal, honest depiction of life in late 19th century central Africa paints a picture that stands in sharp contrast to the relatively peaceful depiction of life in East Africa at about the same time in Isak Dinesen's "Out of Africa". Although often violent, the book is a fascinating glimpse into the lives of two of the most famous explorers and their amazing survival in the African bush.

"Spies' Wives: Stories of CIA Families Abroad" by Karen L. Chiao and Mariellen B. O'Brien is a seriously fun read for anyone who enjoys a vicarious brush with death, danger and espionage. This is an incredible collection of true stories from the families of CIA agents living overseas - and offers the reader a glimpse into the odd mix of circumstances required to live a covert life within the context of a seemingly normal lifestyle with friends and a family and children.