Travel books are such a pleasure to look at! Travel guides from the most popular series can be found at the library: Fodor’s, Frommer’s, Rough Guides, Rick Steves, Lonely Planet. These are updated fairly frequently, and cover common tourist destinations. They are great for finding out about hotels, restaurants, and attractions in a geographical location. Often, they include succinct histories of an area, maps, and transportation information.
A different kind of travel guide has emerged recently - a type that is more aspirational in nature. Studies show that the #1 item on most bucket lists is travel-related, so why not capitalize on that with targeted travel guides? Whatever your interests, there is probably a guidebook tailored for you. Let me share some examples:
- 150 Spas You Need to Visit before You Die by Devorah Lev-Tov (2024)
- Fifty Places to Travel Solo: Travel Experts Share the World’s Greatest Solo Destinations by Chris Santella (2024) The Fifty Places guidebooks also include paddling, golfing, diving, camping, hiking, birding, and traveling with your dog.
- Atlas Obscura: An Explorer’s Guide to the World’s Hidden Wonders by Joshua Foer (2019)
- A Haunted Road Atlas: Sinister Stops, Dangerous Destinations, and True Crime Tales by Christine Shiefer (2022) On order is Volume 2, titled A Haunted Road Atlas: Next Stop, just published in 2024. These are from the podcast “And That’s Why We Drink”.
- Official Guide to the Smithsonian by the Smithsonian Institution (2021)
- The World’s Most Romantic Destinations: 50 Dreamy Getaways, Private Retreats and Enchanting Places to Celebrate Love by Abbie Kozolchyk (2017)
- The Best Places for Everything by Peter Greenberg (2012)
- The Lunatic Express: Discovering the World - Via Its Most Dangerous Buses, Boats, Trains and Planes by Carl Hoffman (2010)
And then, of course, there are travel books about imaginary locations, or places that resemble those described in books, such as:
- Go to Hell: A Traveler’s Guide to Earth’s Most Otherworldly Destinations by Erika Engelhaupt (2024)
- 100 Places to See After You Die: A Travel Guide to the Afterlife by Ken Jennings (2023)
- The Writer’s Map: An Atlas of Imaginary Lands edited by Huw Lewis-Jones (2018)
- Plotted: A Literary Atlas by Andrew DeGraff (2015)
Bon voyage, and remember to send me a postcard!
New at the Library
Fiction
- Brightly Shining by Ingvild Rishøi
- A Pirate’s Life for Tea : a Cozy Fantasy Where Love Sets Sail by Rebecca Thorne
- The Christmas Tree Farm by Melody Carlson
Nonfiction
- Art, Annotated : Your Expert Guide to 500 of the World’s Greatest Works of Art by Aliki Braine
- Erasing History : How Fascists Rewrite the Past to Control the Future by Jason Stanley
- The Gangs of Zion : a Black Cop’s Crusade in Mormon Country by Ron Stallworth
Children
- I’ll Love You Till the Crocodiles Smile by Kathryn Cristaldi
- Divya Far From Home by Sita Jit
- Call the Bee Doctor! : How Science is Saving Honey Bees by Sandra Markle
