Travel writing Books

Book SynopsisContinuing from A Thousand Days in Venice, this is the story of Marlena and her Venetian husband, Fernando, as they make a life for themselves in rural Tuscany. Amongst the many people they befriend is Barluzzo, an old sage who takes the couple under his wing and initiates them in the age-old traditions of Tuscan life: since their house lacks electricity, he helps them build a traditional brick oven in the garden; in autumn he wakes them at dawn to gather chestnuts and porcini mushrooms, and at the onset of winter he takes them to pull grapes from the vines and beat olives from the trees. Beautifully written and richly seasoned with mouth-watering recipes of the region, this book is filled with the carpe diem attitude that so captivated readers of A Thousand Days in Venice.Trade ReviewDe Blasi's glittering descriptions and mouthwatering recipes take you directly into the heart of Italy and into the souls of the Italian people * Adriana Trigiani, New York Times bestselling author of Lucia, Lucia *Filled with warmth and the rich and simple drama of a beautiful life. The evocation of country dishes is mouthwatering, the lyrical beauty irresistible * Susan Herrmann Loomis, author of On Rue Tatin: Living and Cooking in a French Town *A love poem to de Blasi's professional life as a chef' USA Today * 'This memoir of the seasons in a small Tuscan village is rich with food, weather, romance, and, above all, life . . . [de Blasi] immerses her readers in life's poignancy, brevity, and wonder' Publishers Weekly *

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Book SynopsisMatthew Fort has worked on the food pages of the Guardian for more than ten years. He also writes for the Observer, Esquire, Country Living, Decanter and Waitrose Food Illustrated and appears as a judge on BBC2's Great British Menu. One of Matthew's greatest passions is Italy, which he visits every year. Sweet Honey, Bitter Lemons is his fifth book.Trade ReviewWitty and romantic * Metro *An accomplished piece of travel writing that makes you want to explore the island all for yourself * Sunday Express *Perfect summer holiday reading * The Bookseller *Matthew has an infectious delight in proper food * Rick Stein *The finest book on this fascinating cuisine since Peter Robb's Midnight in Sicily -- Christopher Hirst * The Independent *

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Book SynopsisWhen Tessa de Loo saw Albania for the first time, no foreigners were allowed to enter. Filled with a great curiosity, longing, and a sense of wonderment by this isolated land, de Loo gazed toward the mountains that stood like 'the backs of patiently waiting elephants' across the water from Corfu. Inspired by the famous Thomas Phillips portrait of Lord Byron in Albanian national costume, and enthralled by the image of Lord Byron since her teenage years, she sets about exploring not only his physical journey, but attempts to understand his inner one as well. de Loo stole her way in and found a country suffering the hardships of post-communist reality and the constant and sometimes fractious clash between tradition and modernity. In the tradition of Bruce Chatwin, de Loo, the award-winning author of "The Twins," has written a fascinating travelogue and a very personal reassessment of the a formative chapter in Lord Byron's short life.Trade Review'[One notes] the seriousness and humour with which De Loo laces her contribution to superior travel literature... She gives her report in the form of letters to Byron (My dear friend, My dearest George) alternated with chapters where she recounts Byron's journey. However euphoric De Loo's report is not too affected, it stays lively and informative... is a book of contrasts, surprises and disappointments, written cheerfully and with eye for details.' Vrij Nederland

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Book SynopsisAlexander Burnes travelled up the Indus to Lahore and to the Khanates of Afghanistan and Central Asia in the 1830s, spying on behalf of the British Government in what was to become known as the 'Great Game'. His account of these travels was a bestseller in its day and this brand new edition brings the heady sense of excitement, risk and zeal bursting from the pages.

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Book SynopsisTired of airport security queues, delays and all those extra taxes and charges, Tom Chesshyre embarks on a series of high-speed adventures across the Continent on its fast trains instead. From shiny London St Pancras, Tom travels to places that wouldn't feature on a standard holiday wish-list, and discovers the hidden delights of mysterious Luxembourg, super-trendy Rotterdam, much-maligned Frankfurt and lovely lakeside Lausanne, via a pop concert in Lille. It's 186 mph all the way - well, apart from a power cut in the Channel Tunnel on the way to Antwerp. Is our idea of 'Europe' changing as its destinations become easier to reach? And what fun can you have at the ends of the lines? Jump on board and find out!Trade ReviewMake a note to buy this... If you're tired of the endless delays and extra costs at airports, this book will inspire you to hop on a train. Discover hidden delights of Europe with no hidden charges or taxes. It's a fun-packed read, as well as being very informative. * Prima *Featured on BBC Radio 4 - Excess Baggage * BBC Radio 4 - Excess Baggage *

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Book Synopsis* A thrilling story of three months in the most remote spot Tanzania, the Malagarasi river, the 'river of bad spiritsTrade ReviewGrant is a fearless, literary-minded travel writer. In his latest escapade he makes a maiden descent down the unexplored East African river, the Malagarasi -- Richard Fitzpatrick * Irish Examiner *A high-energy book -- Iain Finlayson * The Times *Grant has the makings of a first-class travel writer. He's wide-eyed without being too trusting, good at ferreting out unlikely people and possessed of ample reserves of both masochism and self-pity -- John Preston * Spectator *

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Book SynopsisAfter nearly two decades in Britain, Bill Bryson took the decision to move Mrs Bryson, little Jimmy et al back to the States for a while. But before leaving his much-loved Yorkshire Bryson insisted on taking one last trip around old Blighty, a sort of valedictory tour of the green and kindly island that had for so long been his home. The resulting book was a eulogy to the country that produced Marmite, George Formby, by-elections, milky tea, places names like Farleigh Wallop, Titsey and Shellow Bowells, Gardeners'' Question Time and people who say ''Mustn''t grumble''. Britain would never seem the same again.Since it was first published in 1995, NOTES FROM A SMALL ISLAND has never been far from the top of the bestseller lists, and has sold over one and a half million copies. This special hardcover eidtion is published to mark the book''s unique place in the hearts of readers around the world and to celebrate Bill Bryson''s standing as the best-loved travel writer and humorisTrade ReviewNot a book that should be read in public, for fear of emitting loud snorts * The Times *Laugh-out-loud funny * The Good Book Guide *Splendid... What's enjoyable is that there's as much of Bryson in here as there is of Britain * Sunday Telegraph *Bryson is funny because he is not afraid to give completely of himself * Daily Express *Astute and funny...a tribute to [Britain's] enchantments by an unabashed anglophile. * New York Times *

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Book SynopsisA TOP 10 SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLERSHORTLISTED FOR THE 2018 SPORTS BOOK AWARDSLONGLISTED FOR THE WILLIAM HILL SPORTS BOOK OF THE YEAR 2017The incredible true story of four ordinary working mums from Yorkshire who took on an extraordinary challenge and broke a world record along the way.Janette, Frances, Helen and Niki, though all from Yorkshire, were four very different women, all juggling full time jobs alongside being mothers to each of their 2 children. They could never be described as athletes, but they were determined to be busy and the local Saturday morning rowing club was the perfect place to go to have a laugh and a gossip, get the blood pumping in the open air, and feel invigorated.Brought together by their love of rowing, they quickly became firm friends, and it wasn't long before they cooked up a crazy idea over a few glasses of wine: together, they were going to do something that fewer people than had gone into space or climbed Everest had succeeded in doing. They were going to cross 3,000 miles of treacherous ocean in the toughest row in the world, The Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge.Yes, they had children and husbands that they would be leaving behind for two months, yes they had businesses to run, mortgages to pay, responsibilities. And there was that little thing of them all being in their 40s and 50s.But two years of planning, preparation, fundraising, training and difficult conversations later, and they found themselves standing on the edge of the San Sebastian harbour in the Canary Islands, petrified, exhilarated and ready to head up the race of their lives.This is the story of how four friends together had the audacity to go on a wild, terrifying and beautiful adventure, not to escape life, but for life not to escape them.Trade Review‘We’re so impressed, what an incredible experience and a great achievement.’ITV This Morning ‘They raced into the record books, and the hearts of many people inspired by the story of four ordinary women who proved that anything is possible.'BBC Breakfast ‘The legacy of their adventure will be felt by thousands of people across Yorkshire in years to come.’Yorkshire Post

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Book SynopsisEd Glinert was born in Dalston. In addition to The London Compendium, he is the author of Literary London, East End Chronicles, West End Chronicles and The Manchester Compendium, among other titles. He founded Manchester's City Life magazine, has written for Private Eye and and leads walking tours in both London and Manchester.

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Book SynopsisA Childhood Dream. A Lost Land. The Journey of a Lifetime.How do you become an explorer? It''s a question every child has asked. And, Steve Backshall was no different. But after a rainy-day visit to an exhibition of artefacts from Papua New Guinea, it was a question that began to obsess the seven-year old Backshall. Due to this childhood interest, the vast, untamed wildness of Papua New Guinea was where Backshall forged his unlikely path. From crushing lows of early failures to the extraordinary highs of the BBC''s Lost Land of the Volcano expedition, it was this dark island which gave Backshall his opportunity. Full of incredible wildlife, extraordinary wilderness, jungles, cannibals, pitfalls, triumph, danger and excitement, Looking for Adventure is the irresistible, inspiring story of a little boy who let his heart rule his head.

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Book SynopsisIn April 2008, Ed Stafford began his attempt to become the first man ever to walk the entire length of the River Amazon. Nearly two and a half years later, he had crossed the whole of South America to reach the mouth of the colossal river.With danger a constant companion - outwitting alligators, jaguars, pit vipers and electric eels, not to mention overcoming the hurdles of injuries and relentless tropical storms - Ed''s journey demanded extreme physical and mental strength. Often warned by natives that he would die, Ed even found himself pursued by machete-wielding tribesmen and detained for murder.However, Ed''s journey was an adventure with a purpose: to help raise people''s awareness of environmental issues. Ed had unprecedented access to indigenous communities and witnessed the devastating effects of the deforestation of the Amazon rainforest first-hand. His story of disappearing tribes and loss of habitats concerns us all.Ultimately though, Walking the Trade ReviewWalking from the Pacific, over the Andes and along the entire length of the Amazon to the Atlantic is truly extraordinary ... To do all this in more than 800 continuous days with just a backpack puts Stafford's endeavour in the top league of expeditions past and present. -- Sir Ranulph Fiennes OBEIs this Britain's most intrepid explorer since Scott of the Antarctic? * The Daily Mail *All generations need heroes; it's lovely to have a real one for a change. -- Antonia Senior * The Times *Ed Stafford is the real deal. * The Times *

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**Shortlisted for the 2017 André Simon Food and Drink Book Awards****Shortlisted for the 2018 Fortnum & Mason Food Book Award**'The next Bill Bryson.’ New York TimesFood and travel writer Michael Booth and his family embark on an epic journey the length of Japan to explore its dazzling food culture. They find a country much altered since their previous visit ten years earlier (which resulted in the award-winning international bestseller Sushi and Beyond). Over the last decade the country’s restaurants have won a record number of Michelin stars and its cuisine was awarded United Nations heritage status. The world’s top chefs now flock to learn more about the extraordinary dedication of Japan’s food artisans, while the country’s fast foods – ramen, sushi and yakitori – have conquered the world. As well as the plaudits, Japan is also facing enormous challenges. Ironically, as Booth discovers, the future of Japan’s culinary heritage is under threat.Often venturing far off the beaten track, the author and his family discover intriguing future food trends and meet a fascinating cast of food heroes, from a couple lavishing love on rotten fish, to a chef who literally sacrificed a limb in pursuit of the ultimate bowl of ramen, and a farmer who has dedicated his life to growing the finest rice in the world… in the shadow of Fukushima.

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Book SynopsisThe Marsh Arabs of southern Iraq were one of the most isolated communities in the world. Few outsiders, let alone Europeans, had been permitted to travel through their homeland, a mass of tiny islands lost in a wilderness of reeds and swamps in southern Iraq. One of the few trusted outsiders was the legendary explorer, Wilfred Thesiger, who was Gavin Maxwell's guide to the intricate landscape, tribal customs and distinctive architecture of the Marsh Arabs. Thesiger's skill with a medicine chest and rifle assured them a welcome in every hamlet, and Maxwell's training as a naturalist and writer has left an invaluable record of a unique community and a vanished way of life.

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Book Synopsis'Jonathan Raban is one of the world's greatest living travel writers.' William Dalrymple 'The best book of travel ever written by an Englishman about the United States' Jan Morris, IndependentNavigating the Mississippi River from Minneapolis to New Orleans, Raban opens himself to experience the river in all her turbulent and unpredictable old glory. Going wherever the current takes him, he joins a coon-hunt in Savana, falls for a girl in St Louis, worships with black Baptists in Memphis, hangs out with the housewives of Pemiscot and the hog-king of Dubuque. Through tears of laughter, we are led into the heartland of America – with its hunger and hospitality, its inventive energy and its charming lethargy – and come to know something of its soul. The journey is as much the story of Raban as it is of the Mississippi. Navigating the dangerous, ever-changing waters in an unsuitably fragile aluminium skiff, he immerses himself with an irresistible emotional intensity as he tries to give shape to the river and the story – finding himself by turns vulnerable, curious, angry and, like all of us, sometimes foolishly in love.

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Book Synopsis'Of all his generation's travellers, Jonathan Raban is the most sophisticated, writing with a subtle and imaginative brilliance.' Colin Thubron 'One of the most humane and visionary of all travel writers.' Jeremy SealInto Jonathan Raban's familiar Earls Court neighbourhood after the 1970s oil boom came new visitors from the Arab world, dressed in floor-length robes and yashmaks. A people apart, little known, Raban wanted to get behind the myth and the rumour to discover the reality of their lives and world. His journey took him through Bahrain, Qatar, Abu Dhabi, Yemen, Egypt and Jordan. What he discovered was a far cry from the camel, tent and sand dune archetypes of early European explorers. Oil wealth had seeped into almost every corner, and Bedouin encampments had been replaced by cosmopolitan boomtowns, camels by Range Rovers. The sons of Bedouin nomads were now studying medicine in Europe and engineering in New York. Yet in this fast-moving world, old certainties remained – and cultural innovation lagged miles behind economic change.Raban's gift for friendship introduces us to a series of memorable individuals – rich and poor – set against the feel, the smells, the sounds and the nuances of Arabia.

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Book SynopsisBritain's foremost woman travel writer Sara Wheeler records her life of adventure, from the Antarctic to Zanzibar'Funny, furious writing from the queen of intrepid travel' Daily Telegraph'Intrepid and sparky, full of canny quips and lightly poetic observations' Mail on Sunday'Magnificent and unusual' Viv Groskop, Spectator Sara Wheeler is Britain's foremost woman travel writer. Glowing Still is the story of her travelling life - what is 'important, revealing or funny' - in a notoriously testosterone-laden field. Growing up among blue-collar Conservatives in Bristol where 'we didn't know anyone who wasn't like us', Wheeler knew she needed to get away. In her twenties she began a dramatic escape: Pole to Pole, via Poland. Glowing Still recalls happy days on India's Puri Express; an Antarctic lavatory through which a seal po

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Book SynopsisThe Maya of Central America created one of the most dazzling civilizations on this earth, which is often compared to Ancient Greece. The Maya had a delight in creation, expressed in art, architecture, pottery, astronomy, mathematics and mythology, all combined with a deep, metaphysical fascination with time. This civilization seems to have collapsed in the ninth century, some five hundred years before the Spanish conquest of America. Ronald Wright travelled through the old territories of the Maya (the jungles and mountains of Guatemala, Belize and Mexico) to explore the ancient roots of their culture and to map out what has survived. Despite civil wars and centuries of oppression by first an Hispanic, then Mestizo culture, he discovers a region where seven million people still speak Mayan languages and struggle to maintain their resilient, indigenous culture. It is at once a riveting journey, written with wit and wisdom, but also a study of a civilization. It is travel writing at its broadest and its best.

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Book SynopsisIn little more than a century, Fiji islanders have made the transition from cannibalism to Christianity, from colony to flourishing self-government, without losing their own culture. As Ronald Wright observes, societies that do not eat people are fascinated by those that did, and often used this fact as an excuse to conquer, kill and enslave. Touring cities bustling with Indian merchants, quiet Fijian villages and taking part in communal ceremonies, he attributes the remarkable independence of Fiji to the fact that the indigenous social structure remains intact and eighty-three per cent of the land remains in local hands. Wright tells their story with wit and evident pleasure.

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Book Synopsis"The Island That Dared" is a passionate book from the pen of Dervla Murphy, which begins with a three-generational family holiday in Cuba. Led by their redoubtable hard-walking grandmother, the trio of young girls and their mother soon find themselves camping out on empty beaches beneath the stars with only crabs and mosquitoes for company. This pure Swallows and Amazons experience confirms Dervla in her quest to understand the unique society that has been created by the Cuban Revolution. She returns again and again to explore the island, investigating the experience of modern Cuba with her particular, candid curiosity. Through her own research and through conversations with Fidelistas and their critics alike, "The Island That Dared" builds a complex picture of a people struggling to retain their identity in the face of insistent hostility, and to stand against the all-but-overwhelming fire-power of capitalism. Whatever the fate of Cuba, "The Island That Dared" beautifully fulfils the role of a great travel book, 'to catch the moment on the wing, and stop it in Time' - Colin Thubron.

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Book SynopsisIn "The Waiting Land" (first published in 1967) Dervla Murphy affectionately portrays the people of Nepal's different tribes, the customs of an ancient, complex civilization and the country's natural grandeur and beauty. This is the third of Dervla Murphy's early travel books: an exploration of Nepal by a feisty, generous-hearted young Irish woman. Yet it can also be seen as the completion of a trilogy of books concerned with her experience of self- sufficient mountain cultures, first tasted in crossing Persia and Afghanistan in "Full Tilt", and deepened with her experience of working with Tibetan refugees in the frontiers of Northern India, as told in "Tibetan Foothold". Having settled in a village in the Pokhara Valley to work at a Tibetan refugee camp, she makes her home in a tiny, vermin-infested room over a stall in the bazaar. In diary form, she describes her various journeys by air, by bicycle and on foot into the remote and mountainous Lantang region on the border of Tibet. Murphy's charm and sensitivity as a writer and traveller reveal not only the vitality of an age-old civilization facing the challenge of Westernisation, but the wonder and excitement of her own remarkable adventures.

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Book SynopsisLonely Planet: The world's leading travel guide publisher*Unexpected stories from unexpected places.Many places can feel like nowhere: a desert, an isolated village, even the middle of a bustling, impersonal city. And then something happens: an adventure, a revelation, an experience that changes the whole landscape. The discovery that every place is the centre of the world to somebody and has its own riches and wonders. The authors of these 30 real-life tales find passion, surprise and illumination in the middle of Borneo or Beijing, in a Mayan mountain village, along a timeworn trail in Tuscany, on an isolated South Pacific island, or under a desert moon in Mali.These richly varied stories all celebrate and illuminate one simple truth: if we embark on each adventure with an open heart and an open mind, travel will take us places we never planned to go, and enrich and enlighten us in ways we never otherwise would have known.Featuring stories by: Anthony Sattin, Danny Wallace, Jason Elliot, Pam Houston, Ralph Potts, Pico Iyer, Tim Cahill, Simon WinchesterAbout Lonely Planet: Started in 1973, Lonely Planet has become the world's leading travel guide publisher with guidebooks to every destination on the planet, as well as an award-winning website, a suite of mobile and digital travel products, and a dedicated traveller community. Lonely Planet's mission is to enable curious travellers to experience the world and to truly get to the heart of the places where they travel.TripAdvisor Travellers' Choice Awards 2012 and 2013 winner in Favorite Travel Guide category'Lonely Planet guides are, quite simply, like no other.' - New York Times'Lonely Planet. It's on everyone's bookshelves, it's in every traveller's hands. It's on mobile phones. It's on the Internet. It's everywhere, and it's telling entire generations of people how to travel the world.' - Fairfax Media (Australia) *#1 in the world market share - source: Nielsen Bookscan. Australia, UK and USA. March 2012-January 2013

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Book SynopsisThe Station follows three high-spirited young men as they visit twenty monasteries on Mount Athos in 1927.

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Book SynopsisShortlisted for the Edward Stanford Travel Book of the Year Award A fascinating, lyrical account of an east-west walk across Britain's westernmost and most mysterious region. A distant and exotic Celtic land, domain of tin-miners, pirates, smugglers and evocatively named saints, somehow separate from the rest of our island... Few regions of Britain are as holidayed in, as well-loved or as mythologized as Cornwall. From the woodlands of the Tamar Valley to the remote peninsula of Penwith – via the wilderness of Bodmin Moor and coastal villages where tourism and fishing find an uneasy coexistence – Tim Hannigan undertakes a zigzagging journey on foot across Britain's westernmost region to discover how the real Cornwall, its landscapes, histories, communities and sense of identity, intersect with the many projections and tropes that writers, artists and others have placed upon it. Combining landscape and nature writing with deep cultural inquiry, The Granite Kingdom is a probing but highly accessible tour of one of Britain's most popular regions, juxtaposing history, myth, folklore and literary representation with the geographical and social reality of contemporary Cornwall.Trade ReviewA magnificent work of travel and historical deconstruction – deeply personal, meticulously researched and hugely enjoyable. * Philip Marsden *Tim Hannigan writes with an authentic Cornish voice and a true internationalist’s breadth of understanding. * Patrick Gale *Anyone – tourist or resident – who has been seduced by the beauty and strangeness of Cornwall will find Tim Hannigan a congenial guide and companion. * Tom Fort, author of A303: Highway to the Sun *Beautifully researched and written with care. * Wyl Menmuir, author of The Draw of the Sea *Hannigan roams the country on foot, stitching together not only its geography but its histories and communities, while disentangling fact from myth, folk from folklore' * BBC Countryfile *Absorbing and insightful... skilfully interweaves geography, geology, travel memoir and history with an overview of the ways in which Cornwall has been portrayed in art and literature. There’s a lot to explore. * The TLS *The best kind of traveller, Hannigan is brimful of boundless curiosity... a beguiling book that throbs with passion, Hannigan has captured a portrait of a hidden and often mysterious Cornwall, conveying it with style, ternderness and passion * The Irish Times *PRAISE FOR TIM HANNIGAN: 'An excellent and thought-provoking book... What could have been a scholarly theoretical discourse is thoroughly enlivened by Tim Hannigan's decision to turn it into a travel odyssey' TLS. 'Travel writing used to be dominated by Old Etonians with colonialist tendencies; but [Tim Hannigan's] well-researched critique shows that the "travellees" are writing back' Guardian. 'A highly readable and entertaining narrative' Lonely Planet. 'A deft piece of genre-hopping' Telegraph. 'A timely look at the genre – why we travel, and why and how we write about it' * Irish Independent *

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Book SynopsisSHORTLISTED FOR THE RICHARD JEFFERIES AWARD 2023'Roger Morgan-Grenville, one of Britain's leading conservationists' - The HeraldA veteran nature writer walks the length of Britain in pursuit of spring, and of hopeFed up with bleak headlines of biodiversity loss, acclaimed nature writer Roger Morgan-Grenville sets out on a 1,000-mile walk through a British spring to see whether there are reasons to be hopeful about the natural world. His aim is to match the pace at which the oak leaves emerge, roughly 20 miles north each day.Fighting illness, blizzards and his own ageing body, he visits every main habitat between Lymington and Cape Wrath in an epic eight-week adventure, encountering, over and over again, the kindness of strangers and the inspiring efforts of those fighting heroically for nature. With surprising conclusions throughout, what unfolds is both life-affirming and life-changing.Trade ReviewPrescient, perceptive and powerful: an articulate and thoughtful account of nature's increasingly fragile state experienced through an advancing spring. -- Tim Birkhead * author of Birds and Us *a good read ... I enjoyed it very much. -- Dr Mark Avery, wildlife campaigner * Mark Avery *

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Book SynopsisAlthough one of the world's smallest countries, Qatar punches well above its weight in terms of art and culture. It is home to innovative and striking pieces of public art as well as art-filled museums designed by world-famous architects. This is all part of a far-reaching plan to focus on becoming a culture-based, rather than carbon-based, economy a plan which Sheikha Mayassa has spearheaded on every level. It is this which makes The Power of Culture so informative and readable. Sheikha Mayassa's personality shines through every page, whether discussing the delights to be found in museums and galleries, or commenting on her favourite place to see wild life and where to find the best abayas. Part easy-to-read guide and part memoir, The Power of Culture offers a completely original insight into the Qatar of today,enhanced with in-depth interviews by Sheikha Mayassa with some of the leading architects and artists who have contribute

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Book SynopsisAfter trekking nearly 7,500 miles, from Istanbul, Turkey to Xi’an, China, French travel writer Bernard Ollivier thought he had put the Silk Road behind him—enough for a retiree to rest on his laurels! But that was before meeting his now-partner-in-life Bénédicte Flatet. Why, she asked, hadn’t he set out from France? After all, the city of Lyon was once Europe’s silk capital. Now, at seventy-five years old, Ollivier decides to lace up his walking boots and head out to complete his Silk-Road journey, once and for all: 1,900 miles, from Lyon to Istanbul. Only this time, he won’t be alone. Flatet has long yearned to hike side-by-side with Ollivier, so the couple sets out together . . . This unexpected fourth volume in Ollivier’s Silk Road series (Out of Istanbul, Walking to Samarkand, and Winds of the Steppe) is a wonderful bonus for the author’s fans: not only is it the enthralling continuation of his long walk across Asia, it’s a new journey unto itself, across Europe, full of delightful firsts, such as the inclusion of short chronicles by Flatet. Through ten countries—from familiar France and Italy to the more mysterious Balkans—the intrepid pair invites us to discover the sometimes happy, sometimes tragic history of those they encounter, and to share in their daily lives. Back to Istanbul is both a fervent appeal for greater understanding among peoples, and a magnificent declaration of love.Trade ReviewPraise for Bernard Ollivier “A journey with heart.”— The New York Times “Ollivier takes us on an absorbing walking tour of the Silk Road, experiencing many of the same marvels and dangers as the ancient caravans. . . . Though having an episodic feel, Ollivier's account brims with a sojourner's passion and an insatiable hunger for new vistas and peoples.”—Kirkus “Bernard Ollivier is a man eager to learn about the world around him, a writer who opens his readers’ eyes. As a journalist, he knows how to extract life’s real secrets from people’s memories. Truth is, in heading out onto the Silk Road, he wasn’t seeking history, but wisdom. And he finds it in the exceptional openness of nomads. This is the gift he offers to us.”—Dominique Gerbaud, president, Reporters Without Borders “Ollivier is a traveler. He doesn’t consider himself a writer. As a result, his prose is at times better than that of professional travel writers: he writes simply, focused not on fancy phrasings, but on providing a true-to-life account of his experiences. He doesn’t travel in order to write or publish a book. He travels as do so many of Conrad’s protagonists: for self-discovery.”—Le Monde "Though Ollivier's walk in this book comes to an end, it continues to evoke images and prod the reader’s wonderings long after it has been set aside, such is the author’s unrelenting candor and bent for description. In the end, it is not a solitary journey you read about, but one in which the reader is with him every step of the way."—Rick Antonson, author of Full Moon Over Noah’s Ark: An Odyssey to Mount Ararat and Beyond

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Book SynopsisHow can we think more deeply about travel?This was the thought that inspired Emily Thomas to journey into the philosophy of travel, to explore the places where philosophy and travel intersect. Part philosophical ramble, part memoir, The Meaning of Travel begins in the Age of Discovery in the sixteenth century, when philosophers first began thinking and writing seriously about travel It then meanders forward to encounter the thoughts of Montaigne on otherness, John Locke on cannibals, and Henry Thoreau on wilderness.On our travels with Emily Thomas, we discover the dark side of maps, how the philosophy of space fuelled mountain tourism, and why you should wash underwear in woodland cabins... We also confront profound questions, such as the debate on the ethics of ''doom tourism'' (travel to doomed places such as glaciers or coral reefs), and how space travel might come to affect our understanding of human significance in a leviathan universe.The first ever history of the places where history and philosophy meet, this book will reshape your understanding of travel.Trade ReviewEmily Thomas combines a personal voice with highly informative, well-researched glimpses of particular philosophical travellers... It's accessible and it's entertaining, but also opens up interesting philosophical ideas. It's very original. * Nigel Warburton, Five Books, Best Philosophy Books 2020 *Emily Thomas has used her command of the philosophical canon to extend our understanding of an impulse that many of us share but few examine in such depth. The Meaning of Travel is a manifesto for the virtues that travel can bestow on the traveller not just an increase in knowledge, but a deep humility at the scale and diversity of the world, and an enduring wonder that we live on such a planet. * Philip Marsden, The Spectator *No one could ask for a more congenial companion than Emily Thomas on her 2,000-plus year journey through The Meaning of Travel ... an engaging primer on how travel has transformed both what we know and how we think. * Richard Larschan, The Times Higher Education Supplement, Book of the Week 02/04/2020 *Exceptionally thoughtful. * Sara Wheeler, Literary Review *Given our Covid confinement, "The Meaning of Travel" could not have come at a more poignant and appropriate time this profound little book explores why humans choose to wander from their homes with no ostensible purpose other than to make the excursion in question... Thomas is particularly engaging on the subject of the wilderness, and an account of a trip she made by herself to Alaska runs parallel with her broader inquiry. * Tunka Varadarajan, The Wall Street Journal *Novelty, knowledge and insight can be found in travel. It can make us wiser as well as better-informed ... having read this book, I am now both. * Graham Elliott, Standpoint *Emily Thomas's original and fun book The Meaning of Travel is my top pick in a year when travel is going to be difficult. One of the joys of the book is she's found so many great quotations from philosophers on the topic. * Nigel Warburton, Five Books, Summer Reading 2020: Philosophy Books *The author moves deftly from one aspect of travel and philosophy to the next and her delight in the subject is well conveyed... [The book] is more like an old map, an invitation to adventure which might take the form of travel or philosophy or, preferably, both. I recommend it especially to those with a strong faith in universal common sense, for travel and philosophy can sometimes disturb any such notion. * Stephen Leach, Philosophy Now *A real delight... Treat yourself! * Peter Smith, Logic Matters *Brilliantly researched and detailed, while staying humorous throughout, 'The Meaning of Travel' is a fantastic exploration of how travel can broaden the mind. * Stuart Kenny, Much Better Adventures (13 of the best travel books to read while you self-isolate) *A unique and extraordinary read that is as informed and informative as it is thoughtful and thought-provoking. * The Midwest Book Review *A highly enjoyable and stimulating read - definitely a good book to take with you on your travels. * Paradigm Explorer *An original, engaging book... Emily Thomas has a lightness of touch that never undercuts the seriousness and complexities of the issues discussed. * Julian Baggini, author of How the World Thinks: A Global History of Philosophy *This is the finest kind of travel: not just across continents, but through time, space and our infinite minds. The journey is the joy, and Emily Thomas a terrific guide. * Mike Parker *At last - a book not about where we travel, but why. The Meaning of Travel illuminates the reasons weve been tempted to set out on untrodden paths for centuries. * Dea Birkett, author of Serpent in Paradise *A highly enjoyable and stimulating read - definitely a good book to take with you on your travels. * David Lorimer, Paradigm Explorer *Table of ContentsTravelling well: top 10 vintage trips 1: What is travel? Montaigne and otherness 2: What are maps? Brian Harley on cartographic deception 3: Francis Bacon on exploration and apocalyptic philosophy of science 4: Innate ideas on Descartes, Locke, and Cannibals 5: Why did tourism start? A grand tale of education and sex 6: Travel writing, thought experiments, and Margaret Cavendish's 'Blazing World' 7: Mountain travel and Henry More's philosophy of space 8: Edmund Burke and sublime tourism 9: Wilderness philosophy, Henry Thoreau, and cabin porn 10: Is 'travel' a male concept? 11: The ethics of doom tourism 12: Will space travel show the Earth is insignificant? Returning home: top 10 vintage trips Notes Select Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisTHE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLERWith a foreword by Diana Gabaldon. Two men. One country. And a lot of whisky.As stars of Outlander, Sam and Graham eat, sleep and breathe the Highlands on this epic road trip around their homeland. They discover that the real thing is even greater than fiction. Clanlands is the story of their journey. Armed with their trusty campervan and a sturdy friendship, these two Scotsmen are on the adventure of a lifetime to explore the majesty of Scotland. A wild ride by boat, kayak, bicycle and motorbike, they travel from coast to loch and peak to valley and delve into Scotland's history and culture, from timeless poetry to bloody warfare. With near-death experiences, many weeks in a confined space together, and a cast of unforgettable characters, Graham and Sam's friendship matures like a fine Scotch. They reflect on their acting careers in film and theatre, find a new awestruck respect for their native country and, as with any good road trip, they even find themselves. Hold onto your kilts... this is Scotland as you've never seen it before.Trade Review'A breath of fresh Scottish air in lockdown, it's one to stick in your sporran and consult when compiling your wishlist of places to escape to once restrictions are lifted.' * Scotsman Magazine *The "Outlandish" tour of Scotland with Sam Heughan and Graham McTavish is the armchair adventure we all need right now. * BBC Scotland *This book is full of anecdotes, history and hilarious interactions between the pair as they travel around Scotland in their trusty campervan. * Express *A breezy roadtrip full of banter between the chalk-and-cheese friends. * Sunday Post *For anyone who wants to know more about Scotland's past or hear the inner monologues of two fine gentlemen, this provides a warm and wicked adventure in a magical land. * Magic Radio Book Club *Their odyssey is self-deprecatingly styled as "the story of two men who know nothing". In fact, Heughan and particularly McTavish are keen students of Highland history * Scotland on Sunday *A joyously eclectic mix of historical trivia, travel diary and journey of self-discovery. * Scottish Field *The actors have a lovely dynamic, which is as enjoyable in the book as it promises to be in the upcoming TV series. * The People's Friend *Clanlands is a must for anyone who loves Scotland... a riotous, engaging and dynamic journey. * Dumfries & Galloway Life *'It all comes across as fun-loving and tongue-in-cheek and that's what raises this book above the usual Scottish history/travel books that have become so prominent.' -- Cameron McNeish * Scots Magazine *

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Book SynopsisThis is a year of Sicilian life, its seasons and its sacred festivals, its gorgeous fruits and demanding family life, its casual assassinations and village feasts, its weather and the neighbours. It chronicles a life divided between an apartment in the city of Palermo with the weekends and summer devoted to sustaining life in an old family farm. What makes this journal truly exceptional is that Mary Simeti is both an outsider, (an American who had studied medieval history and worked as a volunteer on a social welfare programme) and an insider. For this journal was written after twenty years of immersion in Sicilian life, as wife to a Sicilian, mother to two Sicilian teenagers, as gardener, cook and carer for a suspicious mother-in- law.

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Book SynopsisBen Hatch is on the road again. Commissioned to write a guidebook about France (despite not speaking any French) he sets off with visions of relaxing chateaux and refined dining. Ten thousand miles later his family''s been attacked by a donkey, had a run-in with a death-cult and, after a near drowning and a calamitous wedding experience involving a British spy, his own marriage is in jeopardy. A combination of obsessions about mosquitoes, French gravel and vegetable theme parks mean it''s a bumpy ride as Ben takes a stand against tyrannical French pool attendants, finds himself running with the bulls in Pamplona and almost starring in a snuff movie after a near fatal decision to climb into a millionaire''s Chevrolet Blazer. Funny and poignant, Road to Rouen asks important questions about life, marriage and whether it''s ever acceptable to tape baguette to your children''s legs to smuggle lunch into Disneyland Paris.Trade ReviewBen Hatch makes me laugh more and more -- John CleeseMagnifique! -- Terry WoganBen Hatch is a very funny writer. His work is fresh and heartfelt -- David JasonA French odyssey to rival the greatest adventures in history - if you like jokes, and a car full of cheese. Funny and touching * Danny Wallace *Highly recommended to anyone holidaying in France this year. Or to anyone holidaying anywhere. Or to anyone holidaying with kids. Or to anyone with kids but no holiday plans. Basically to anyone with a sense of humour * Sunday Express *Although Hatch's writing strength is in absurd comedy, there's a heart-warming spirit underpinning the book, that of the sheer joy of tackling what life throws at you as a united team and spending time together as a family. * Daily Mail *I am going to shout this very loudly. YOU MUST READ THIS BOOK. The funniest travel memoir you will read this year. Ben Hatch is a genius. The funny bits were so funny. The sad bits were so sad * Lisa Jewell *Parents will either roar with laughter or roll their eyes with recognition at this family road-trip memoir * Metro *Goes from one hilarious situation to another. Very entertaining. The author is naturally funny * The Sun *Fantastically funny and touching. I laughed and winced and will never look at baguettes in the same way again * Sophie Kinsella *I loved Ben Hatch's funny, honest, touching memoir * Jenny Colgan *A lovely, funny, scary adventure * Tim Brooke-Taylor *Haven't laughed as much in ages * Mike Gayle *A funny, poignant tale of life and surviving it * Guardian *

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Book SynopsisSHORTLISTED FOR WATERSTONES BOOK OF THE YEARIn Island Dreams, Gavin Francis examines our collective fascination with islands. He blends stories of his own travels with psychology, philosophy and great voyages from literature, shedding new light on the importance of islands and isolation in our collective consciousness.Comparing the life of freedom of thirty years of extraordinary travel from the Faroe Islands to the Aegean, from the Galapagos to the Andaman Islands with a life of responsibility as a doctor, community member and parent approaching middle age, Island Dreams riffs on the twinned poles of rest and motion, independence and attachment, never more relevant than in today's perennially connected world.Illustrated with maps throughout, this is a celebration of human adventures in the world and within our minds.Trade ReviewGavin Francis is a wonderful writer - thoughtful, engaging, immensely knowledgeable and supremely human -- BILL BRYSONFor those who have missed travelling this year, and for anyone who has pondered the meaning of "isolation", there is an ideal present - a beautiful and highly illustrated book called Island Dreams, by Gavin Francis, exploring the place of islands in our psyche - from Lamu to the Lofoten Islands, the Faroes to the Falklands, Avalon to the Azores -- HILARY MANTELHighly absorbing . . . Francis combines memoir from a lifetime of travel and the practice of medicine, observations on the geography and history of islands across the globe, and reflections on how islands illuminate his own life and the human condition * * Guardian * *An intoxicating voyage during which maps become fictions and fictions verifiable facts. Myths of returning and older legends carry us out in a shared fugue of obsession and release. Here is a worthy companion to the dream labyrinths of Borges -- IAIN SINCLAIRA thrilling book - beautiful and spare at once . . . A real achievement -- TIM DEECombines brilliant observation with personal revelation, literary examination and even philosophical contemplation . . . Full of intriguing insights, wonderful description, well-researched detail and interspersed with a large number of historical and contemporary maps, which adds to the immersive reading experience . . . A wonderful, thoughtful and endlessly engaging piece of work -- Doug Johnstone * * Big Issue * *Not just a paean but a meditation. Drawing on psychology, philosophy and literature, Francis examines the appeal of separation and remoteness, and recounts his own trips over the years, to the Antarctic, the Hebrides and beyond . . . Filled with a cartographer's embarrassment of maps, while Francis elegantly and methodically asserts his case . . . He writes in brief, elliptical paragraphs, each as ornately designed as the diagrams that accompany them * * i * *In his elegant, questing book, flavoured by wide learning and deep experience, Francis offers a fresh look at a perennial paradox: whether we live gregariously in a city or remotely on an island, a part of us is always wondering and fantasising about the other -- PHILIP MARSDEN * * Spectator * *An uplifting and nourishing voyage through time, oceans and lands. It will reconnect you with the daring, dreaming side of yourself -- KAPKA KASSABOVAIn this charming and beautifully illustrated book, Gavin Francis asks important questions about isolation and connection, and considers the ways in which islands have been imagined and experienced by travellers through the ages -- MALACHY TALLACK

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Book SynopsisTraversing across the world by train, boat and plane, the two children in this story poem encounter the extremes of sun and snow travelling to Africa, India and China. The book begins with a poem, before revealing their journey''s details, and repetitive questions encourage the reader to turn the page and continue the voyage.Yellow/ Band 3 books offer varied sentence structure and natural language.Text type A poem with predictable structure and patterned language.The story map on pages 14 and 15 gives children the opportunity to follow the route again on a world map.Curriculum links Geography: Where in the world is Barnaby bear? Passport to the world. Music: Feel the pulse.This book has been levelled for Reading Recovery.

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Book SynopsisOn the way to a show in Skipton, in North Yorkshire, I noticed a road sign to a town called Keighley. So later, during the show, I mentioned this, asking the audience, ''Is that your rival town?'' And the room went chillingly quiet, until one woman called out with understated menace, ''Keighley is a sink of evil.''Based on his award-winning BBC Radio 4 series, Mark Steel''s In Town, is a celebration of the quirks of small-town life in a country of increasingly homogenised high streets. Steel''s bespoke observations on the small, sometimes forgotten, towns of Britain go right to the heart of British culture today, championing the very people who shape the places we live in now.As everywhere hurtles along a route towards being identical to everywhere else, it seems any expression of local interest or eccentricity is becoming a yell of defiance. Scrape away the veneer of Wetherspoons and Pizza Hut-inspired uniformity, and the march of Tesco''s towards being reclassified as a continent, anTrade ReviewReviews of Mark Steel’s In Town: ‘This programme is stand-up comedy at its very best…stand-up on radio is immensely challenging – and often unsuccessful but this programme is intelligent and rich in content, well paced and, moreover, funny…although it is clear that a lot of preparation went into making this programme, the result is fluent, natural and exciting…it was also generous to its audience and to its location – and very much in tune with the sound and appeal of the network.’ The Sony Radio Academy Awards ‘A tough gig…more like shooting fish in a barrel, to judge from the reception he received from the honest burghers of Skipton, North Yorkshire…from the moment he remarked on the fact that the hall in which he was performing was used as a cattle market during the day and was hosed out before the show – and got a roar of approving laughter – Steel must have known that he could do no wrong.’ Times (review of Skipton show) ‘Going to a place and insulting it takes guts and careful strategies…Steel made use of the fact that he is from nearby Swanley both to signal that he knows the area but also that – whatever he was about to say about Dartford – it was better than his hometown.’Guardian ‘A simple idea, kindly and wittily executed by another unfashionably humane Englishman…thank Gaia they still exist.’ Observer

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“A passionate debut memoir bears witness to political turmoil… A stark, eye-opening, and sometimes horrifying portrait by a reporter enthralled by the ‘power and magic’ of Africa.” — Kirkus “[Gettleman’s] beautifully written memoir is about many kinds of love…The path to love is not always straight, but when Gettleman discovers his true passions, he grabs hold and doesn’t let go. Love, Africa offers a key to understanding humankind’s past and future and a key to understanding our hearts.” — Sheryl Sandberg “Rarely do you read such beautifully rendered honesty: witness the eyes and heart of Jeffrey transform into a remarkable person and writer for our time.” — Ishmael Beah “Gettleman’s memoir of his life, his love, and the excitement and perils of journalism is a page-turner. The portrait of Africa that emerges is disturbing, tender, and harsh. …. A tremendous read. I couldn’t put it down.” — Abraham Verghese “Jeffrey Gettleman’s memoir is truly, in all its complicated tragic beauty, a love story made up itself of inextricably intertwined love stories. I was mesmerized.” — Alexandra Fuller “To feel the fear, sinfulness, and rapture of being a foreign correspondent, read this book! Using self-lacerating truth and high velocity prose, Jeffrey Gettleman has written a compulsively readable new story about what it means to be ‘our man in Africa.’” — Blaine Harden “Jeffrey Gettleman has true grit. That’s why he was in my book, and why you have to read his.’’ — Angela Duckworth “…[Gettleman] takes readers... into the most terrifying and beguiling continent in the world.…Gettleman is a rare combination of dogged reporter and very fine writer…I kept catching myself wondering whether it was too late to go back and lead his life rather than my own .” — Sebastian Junger “[An] exciting, harrowing memoir that aptly displays why [Gettleman’s] a Pulitzer Prize winner and a New York Times bureau chief…. there’s a thrilling immediacy and attention to detail in Gettleman’s writing that puts the reader right beside him…Gettleman’s memoir is an absolute must-read.” — Booklist (starred review)

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Book SynopsisThe first complete how-to guide for building the latest generation of quick and easy boatsIn Ultrasimple Boatbuilding, renowned designer Gavin Atkin shows you how to create elegant, seaworthy plywood boats with a minimum of time, experience, and expense. Using clearly written and illustrated step-by-step instructions, Atkin explains the basics of stitch-and-glue construction, tools, materials, shop safety, and more, as he helps you choose and build the simpleboat of your dreams.Table of ContentsContents Introduction: The Virtues of Small and Simple Boats Part 1How We'll Build Them1.Three Simple Ways to Build Ultrasimple Boats The Simplified Chine Log MethodStitch-and-GluePolyurethane Stitch and GlueEpoxy Stitch and GlueYour Choice2.Materials and ToolsPlywoodBuying PlywoodLumberBuying LumberAdhesivesEpoxyPolyurethane GluesPaint and VarnishTools3.Basic SkillsWorking with LumberMarkingCuttingWorking with SawsJoining Lengths of LumberWorking with Plywood panelsMarking out using coordinatesCutting the panelsMaking Butt JointsUsing FastenersPre-drilling holes Working with hand drillsUsing hammers and driving nailsUsing screwdrivers and driving screws(sidebar: Working with Chisels) Working with GluesUsing polyurethane glue(sidebar: PL Hints from Bryant Owen)Using Epoxy4.Building the HullBuilding with the Simplified Chine Log MethodCleats for bulkheads and frames Cleats for the transomsAssembling the Bulkheads, Transoms, and SidesAdding Chine logsBuilding Stitch-and-Glue StyleBulkheads and Frames Initial Assembly Taping versus "Stitching"Making Fillets with polyurethaneMaking Fillets with epoxyCovering the hullAdding a SkegInwales, gunwales, breasthooks and quarter knees(sidebar: Home Made Clamps)5.Finishing Your BoatPaintingPainting with water-based paintPainting with oil-based paintVarnishing6.Fitting out and RiggingFittingsPaddling and rowing gear(sidebar: A Rowing Rant)Sailing GearDaggerboards, leeboards, and ruddersSparsSailsRigging(sidebar: Knots)Preventing rot7.Model makingPart 2Let's Build Some Boats8.Minimouse and Micromouse: two tiny, flat-bottom double-paddle pramsHullDecksSeatsLes Brown's Micromouse9.Lilypad: a stone-simple punt10.Mouse and Rowing Mouse: a V-bottomed messabout pram for double-paddle or oars11.Cruising Mouse: a two-person rowing or paddling pram with carrying capacity12.PoorBoy: a small outboard skiff13.Dogsbody: a larger outboard boat14.Jiggity: an "ultrasimplified" Auray punt15.Aurette: a small sailing Auray punt 16.Piragua: a pirogue17.Cinderella: a double-paddle canoe with a "roundish" bottom18.Flying Mouse: a child's sailing pramString Sailing19.Eek!: a larger, sportier sailing pram for more experienced kids and small adults20.Puddle Duck Racer: the world's simplest racing class?21.Summer Breeze: a versatile rowing/sailing skiffUsing the Simplified Chine Log MethodStem and transomFrameAssembling the SidesInstalling the BottomUsing stitch and glueFinishing the HullRowing AccoutrementsSailing Rig22.Doris the Dory: a rowing and sailing expedition boat Part 3: What Shall We Build Next?23.A gallery of appealing designsPhil BolgerTealHis 'n' Hers SchoonersMicroJim MichalakAF3AF4LadybugHarmonicaMurray IslesSwallowdale 15Swan BayPepper GalJohn WelsfordHoudiniTread LightlyTroverJacques Mertens-GoosensCK 17Otter 16Indian River SkiffConrad NatzioSandpiperOystercatcher

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Book SynopsisDanny Wallace is a writer and television presenter, who wears glasses and used to have a cat. Join Me was his first solo book and was described as a 'word-of-mouth phenomenon' by The Bookseller and 'one of the funniest stories you will ever read' by the Daily Mail. His second book, Yes Man - in which he decided to say 'Yes' to everything has been made into a film starring Jim Carrey. It was described as 'hilarious' by more than four national newspapers, and Richard Madeley. Both books were Sunday Times bestsellers. Danny Wallace is PPA's Columnist of the Year 2011. Find out more about Danny at www.dannywallace.com.Trade ReviewOne of the funniest stories you will ever read * Daily Mail *The hilarious true story of a bunch of strangers being swept up in a bored man's experiment * Heat *Hugely funny. * World Magazine *Join Me is the kind of book I love: effortlessly funny, painfully accurate and entertaining to the very end. Brilliant. -- Mike Gayle

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Book SynopsisDave Gorman is an award-winning comedian, storyteller and writer. He has numerous TV writing credits and was part of the double BAFTA-winning team behind The Mrs Merton Show. His live shows have won many awards and he is the only performer to twice win the Jury Prize for Best One Person Show at the prestigious HBO US Comedy Arts Festival. He was the host of Genius, which ran for three series on Radio 4 and then two series on BBC2. He has appeared in numerous other TV shows, including Absolutely Fabulous, The Frank Skinner Show, Late Show with David Letterman, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. His documentary film, America Unchained, won the Audience Award for Best Documentary Feature at the Austin Film Festival. His 2013 TV show, Modern Life Is Goodish, made for UKTV's Dave channel, saw him dissecting the foibles of modern life in six hour-long comic performances. It quickly established Trade ReviewThe road trip of a lifetime * The Times *An epic quest across America * Boys Toys *

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Book SynopsisStuart Maconie is a writer, broadcaster and journalist familiar to millions from his work in print, on radio and on TV. His previous bestsellers have included Cider with Roadies, Pies and Prejudice and Adventures on the High Teas, and he currently hosts the afternoon show on BBC 6music with Mark Radcliffe as well as weekly show The Freak Zone. Based in the cities of Birmingham and Manchester, he can also often be spotted on top of a mountain in the Lake District with a Thermos flask and individual pork pie.Trade ReviewA very engaging writer with a remarkably broad frame of reference * Mail on Sunday *...compelling and often witty insight into the customs and mindsets of overlooked corners of Britain ... Maconie is an engaging and illuminating guide throughout * Independent *As funny as Bryson and as wise as Orwell * Observer *More serious than you might expect, copies should be available in every school * Guardian *

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Book SynopsisTim Moore's books include French Revolutions, Do Not Pass Go, Spanish Steps and Nul Points and I Believe in Yesterday. He lives in London.Trade ReviewHe is a rare comic talent * The Times *A very funny writer, oozing with comic ideas... There are fantastic jokes here, some lovely observation and a wealth of delicious information * Daily Mail *Witty and ingenious * Guardian *An ideal balance of travel, anecdote and dry wit * Independent on Sunday *A brilliant book that sheds new light on our capital * Sunday Express *

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Book SynopsisIn an extraordinary portrayal of one of the world''s fastest growing cities, Sam Miller sets out to discover the real Delhi. Following a spiral course through the city, he visits its less celebrated destinations; the unexpected, the ignored and the eccentric. Through his encounters with Delhi''s people - from a professor of astrophysics to a crematorium attendant, from ragpickers to members of the Police Brass Band - Miller creates a richly entertaining portrait of what this megacity means to its residents. The modern Delhi he depicts, in all its humour and humanity, is one whose future concerns us all.Trade ReviewA wild, spiralling wonder of a book... the sharpest reflection of the capital since William Dalrymple's City of Djinns... Read this book and laugh, grow and gaze in gob-smacked wonder at India's whirling dreamtown -- Rory Maclean * Guardian *The liveliest of city travelogues, a beguiling introduction to the Indian capital and an irresistible read for even the faintly curious * Literary Review *A chronicle that rivals its subject matter in energy and scope... His talent is dizzying and his narrative a rich accomplishment. I walked miles in Delhi - without moving an inch * The Times *A dizzying, droll travelogue... Miller's multitudinous city snapshots elucidate the paradoxes of gloablisation without judgement, and his tales of urban wandering form a valuable archive of a rapidly transforming city. Miller's forays into city slums are poignant, humanising evocations of Delhi's underside -- Hirsh Sawnhey * Guardian *A thoroughly entertaining book - even down to the countless footnotes - about a fascinating city * Financial Times *

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Book SynopsisThe course of the Meander is so famously indirect that the river''s name has come to signify digression - an invitation Jeremy Seal is duty-bound to accept while travelling the length of it in a one-man canoe. At every twist and turn of his journey, from the Meander''s source in the uplands of Central Turkey to its mouth on the Aegean Sea, Seal illuminates his account with a wealth of cultural, historical and personal asides.It is a journey that takes him from Turkey''s steppe interior - the stamping ground of such illustrious adventurers as Xerxes, Alexander the Great and the Crusader Kings - to the great port city of Miletus, home of the earliest Western philosophers. Along the way Seal unpicks the history of this remarkable region, but he also encounters a rich assortment of contemporary characters who reveal a rural Turkey on the cusp of change. Above all, this is the story of a river that first brought the cultures of East and West into contact - and conflict - with oneTrade ReviewThis is a wonderful book by a wonderful writer -- Robert MacfarlaneMeander is both the tale of a quixotic journey down a river and a wonderfully affectionate, funny, intimate and knowledgeable portrait of Turkey -- Barnaby Rogerson * Times Literary Supplement *There are few better travel writers than Jeremy Seal writing today, and none better on Turkey -- Geographical MagazineSuccess and enjoyment in this book spring from the fact that Seal is equally at home in the past as the present... his great ability here is to convey something of the lives, the concerns and the nature of the people of the region -- Anthony Sattin * Spectator *Meander takes us to a forgotten river and a land whose history and culture, significant as they are for bridging East and West, old and new, are all but neglected. It's wonderful stuff... a book that celebrates the dilemma in which Turkey finds itself, which records with sensitivity a story which is both epic and intensely personal... this is a fine observation of a landscape and its people and of a country whose efforts to define itself have been as circuitous as the river itself' -- Jon Berry * www.caughtbytheriver.net *

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Book SynopsisFor four months and five hundred miles Colin Thubron walked the mountains of Lebanon, following tracks and rivers. His journey was not only a survey of a remarkable country, but a quest for the gods and divinities who held the secrets of death and rebirth in the land''s ancient cults.He visited almost every place of cultural importance, and lived with the people along his way, recording a country of outstanding natural scenery, rich with a unique medley of races and religions.The Hills of Adonis is both a travel book and a personal journal; for the quest is the search for meaning, a reflection on faith and reason and a poem on the joy and complexity of living.Trade ReviewHe has the mind of a scholar, uses language like a poet and has written a lovely mosaic of a book * Daily Telegraph *An unforgettable experience * Irish Times *Adventurous, observant, modest, poetical, Mr Thubron is a traveller after one's own heart * Sunday Times *

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Book SynopsisHugh Thomson is the author of five previous travel books, the most recent of which, Tequila Oil: Getting Lost in Mexico, was serialised by BBC Radio 4. He has led many research expeditions to Peru and is a leading explorer of Inca settlements. He has also taken filming expeditions to Mount Kilimanjaro, Bhutan, Afghanistan and the Mexican Sierra Madre. His most recent book, The Green Road into the Trees, won the Thwaites Wainwright Prize for UK Nature and Travel Writing.'Everywhere Thomson goes, he finds good tales to tell...' New York Times Book Reviewwww.thewhiterock.co.ukTrade ReviewHe is an illuminating companion…frequently comic, his voice is original and engaging; proof that it is the walker, not the path, that counts. * Independent *An immensely enjoyable book: curious, articulate, intellectually playful and savagely candid. * The Spectator *He records more than impressions: there are fascinating excursions into neglected areas of British history, and conversations with hippies, travellers and farmers, which makes Mr Thomson’s journey a joy to follow. * Country Life *Often funny and always enlightening -- Candida Lycett Green * Countryfile *I would love to walk with Thomson -- John Sutherland * Financial Times *

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Book SynopsisChristopher Isherwood was born in 1904. He began to write at university and later moved to Berlin, where he gave English lessons to support himself. He witnessed first hand the rise to power of Hitler and the Nazi party in Germany and some of his best works, such as Mr. Norris Changes Trains and Goodbye to Berlin, draw on these experiences. He created the character of Sally Bowles, later made famous as the heroine of the musical Cabaret. Isherwood travelled with W.H Auden to China in the late 1930s before going with him to America in 1939. He died on 4 January 1986. His novel A Single Man was recently made into an award-winning film by Tom Ford, starring Colin Firth and Julianne Moore.Trade ReviewEntertaining * Boston Globe *Delightful * New York Times *Intelligent and sensitive * Good Book Guide *

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Book SynopsisCombining the acute observation of a nineteenth-century missionary, and the wit of a Monty Python player, Redmond O''Hanlon is famous for his adventurous travel. His new challenge is the Congo, the most dangerous and inhospitable jungle in the world.

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