Travel book reviews

Apart from Moleskine notebooks and iPods, a good book is an essential companion for long journeys. And what book could be better than one about traveling?

I’ve read a fair bit of travel books in my days. Guides such as Lonely Planet provide great facts for a traveler while you’re on the road and have saved me on numerous occasions, but they are rarely inspiring. In fact, boring would be a more suitable description. So put down your overly expensive Lonely Planet brick bible and browse the shelves containing personal travel stories.

My kind of bookstore, found in Prague.

The best kind of travel literature is where the writer travels both internal and external, describing the travel experience while analyzing the situation and gaining a bit of insight along the way. I seldom need to know the exact number of steps in Notre Dame or the height of the Empire State Building, but a nice story about the buildings is always welcome. That’s why I tend to read a lot of travel stories in addition to the usual guides.

My favorite authors each have a unique voice. Bruce Chatwin is often dry, detached and philosophical, but still childishly curious about the world. Reading about Bill Bryson’s adventures in the outback gives me visions of a jolly Santa Claus roaming western Australia. And so on.

Reading Chatwin by the Thames in London.

Sometimes my friends ask me for advice on travel literature. That’s why I will start to write a few lines about some of my personal favorites.