Nancy Pearl is a self-professed unenthusiastic traveler, but as she notes in the introduction to her Book Lust to Go that makes her an expert in armchair traveling. Thank goodness, because the rest of us have a valuable and readable (ha!) resource to turn to whether we're packing our bags for a rugged trip to Timbuktu or grabbing a towel and heading to the beach for a virtual tour of Iceland.Pearl's collections range from travel narratives to "biographies of explorers, memoirs, novels . . . and a smattering of history." Although not all the books are still in print, you should be able to find what you want at the library (or via inter-library loan) or on the Internet.
The book is arranged alphabetically from "A Is for Adventure" and "Afghanistan: Graveyard of Empires" to "Zambia" and "Zipping through Zimbabwe/Roaming Rhodesia." If you don't see what you want in the table of contents, you can choose countries from a map or find authors, locations, and book titles in the well-done index.
Pearl takes on whole countries, types of transportation, cities, islands, and states. For example, are you familiar with Lyme Regis, a seacoast city in England? You might say no, but if you've read The French Lieutenant's Woman, Persuasion, Remarkable Creatures, or The Way through the Woods (a mystery), then you're a Lyme Regis expert. In the Canada chapter, Pearl alerts Bill Bryson fans to Will Ferguson's Beauty Tips from Moose Jaw: Travels in Search of Canada. Not sure where to wander? Try Dorothy Gilman's Mrs. Pollifax mystery series. Each book takes place in a different country, and in the first adventure (The Unexpected Mrs. Pollifax) our hero visits Albania.
No matter your taste—mysteries, memoirs, history, traditional travel literature, or literary fiction—and no matter where in the world you want to go—the poles, Oceania, Africa, the United States, or Rome—you'll find plenty of titles to keep you entertained via a lifetime of reading.
For more about Nancy Pearl and the Book Lust series, you can visit her website, friend her on Facebook, or follow her on Twitter.
Give it to me quickly: Fantastic reading lists for virtual and literal world travelers written in an entertaining style and presented in an easy-to-use format.
Book Lust to Go at Powell's
Book Lust to Go at Book Depository
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Published by Sasquatch Books, 2010
ISBN-13: 9781570616501
YTD: 68Source: Review (see review policy).
Rating: B
Copyright © cbl for Beth Fish Reads, all rights reserved (see review policy)
ISBN-13: 9781570616501
YTD: 68Source: Review (see review policy).
Rating: B
Copyright © cbl for Beth Fish Reads, all rights reserved (see review policy)
I have wanted to read more literary travels - and I trust Nancy Pearl's suggestions. I will definitely check this book out.
ReplyDeleteI've had this book on my TBR list for quite a while now. I need to get around to reading it!
ReplyDeleteWonderful! I gleaned so much from Ms. Pearl's other Book Lust lists. I love armchair travel--can't wait to get this book.
ReplyDelete~
Actually I spent many holidays at Lyme Regis. Lovely idea for a book.
ReplyDeleteAnn
I have the original Book Lust, but I MUST get this one before my next trip.
ReplyDeleteI borrowed Book Lust to Go from the library a few months ago - what a great book!
ReplyDeleteI have been wanting to grab a Nancy Pearl book for some time, but I have a feeling that it would just make my collecting problem worse. It sounds as if this book would be a great addition though, and would really help me branch out geographically. Thanks for sharing your opinions on it with us.
ReplyDeleteNancy Pearl is a reader's author, you know? She is so very cool. We've got the original one in the kids' school library and is very popular.
ReplyDeleteI am a list maker so this book appealed to me for that reason, but then when I read it I found myself upset when a book I liked from a certain place wasn't included! Silly me
ReplyDeleteLove this! I definitely want this for Christmas -- I'm adding it to the list now!
ReplyDeleteI love to read about the places I've been (or plan to visit) so I think this sounds fabulous!
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like this book combines a bunch of different things that I LOVE: travel and books. I love grabbing books that inspire me to read even more books (or in some cases even revisit books that I have read and loved). This book sounds really great.
ReplyDeleteArmchair traveling? I think I can just about manage that :)
ReplyDeleteAnd I have traveled with Mrs Pollifax and several other sleuths quite often. Wonderful, eventful journeys.
This sounds great! I really like the Book Lust series and I love to match places and books so this will be a terrific resource.
ReplyDeleteI keep checking this book out from the library and not reading it. I must remedy that!
ReplyDeleteMmm this sounds totally yummy. I think it's on my list of summer must-haves. I love traveling and I love books...can't go wrong, right? ;O)
ReplyDeleteI must be a Lyme Regis expert. I've read 3 out of 4. This sounds really interesting!
ReplyDeleteI loved this book and I'm a huge fan of reading books set wherever I'm traveling. My only complaint about this one was the way it was set up. It wasn't the simplest thing to navigate, but the good outweighs the bad.
ReplyDeleteMelissa: I think the index was well put together, which made up for the table of contents, which could have been better.
ReplyDeleteHow cool! I am planning a trip to Bali in the fall, so I wonder if this falls under 'B'?
ReplyDeleteI just gave this book to my mom for mother's day!! She loves to travel and to read, so it seemed perfect.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the review!
Sue
So glad you loved this! It's such a great addition to any bookworm's shelves.
ReplyDeleteI've got this book waiting patiently for me. This year I seem to spend more time writing about books than I do reading them.
ReplyDeleteA reluctant traveler?? Say it ain't so, Nancy.
ReplyDelete