books
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Books to Read While Boarding
“In books I have traveled, not only to other worlds, but into my own.” —Anna Quindlen There is absolutely no way you can convince me that anything makes travel more fulfilling than reading. For every destination I travel to, I find a book that takes place in that corner of the world. These stories, true or fictional, draw me into the place, making my destinations come alive. Nothing beats the rush of discovering the history of a place or being delighted by a romance set in a foreign city. While you’re packing your bags, consider throwing some of these books into your carry-on. I have curated a list of books that you must read as you travel to these places. If you want to travel to these places but don’t quite have the funds yet, these are perfect for you! As Jhumpa Lahiri said, “That’s the thing about books. They let you travel without moving your feet.” Stateside Travel If you’re traveling to New York City read Summer at Tiffany by Marjorie Hart. Summer at Tiffany is the true story of two friends, Marjorie and Marty, who move to New York City in 1945. They become the first women to ever work on the sales floor at Tiffany & Co. This charming book is a homage to friendship, hard work, and the wonder of the city. If you’re visiting the Midwest, read The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend by Katarina Bivald. Sara, a timid book-lover from Sweden, makes her way to Iowa to meet a pen pal. The small town of Broken Wheel, Iowa is skeptical of Sara but eventually she wins them over. Asia Travel If you’re traveling to Southeast Asia, read Carpe Diem by Autumn Cornwall. Vassar Spore is a sixteen-year-old girl with a ten-year plan. What she didn’t plan on was an eccentric relative forcing her to spend the summer backpacking through Southeast Asia. Join these two on their crazy adventure. If your destination is Russia, read A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles. Count Alexander Rostov has been sentenced to house arrest in the Metropol Hotel in Moscow during a time of political unrest. This historical fiction is both a romance and a thriller. Europe Travel If you’re vacationing in France, Italy, or England read A Rather Lovely Inheritance by C. A. Belmond. Penny Nichols’s humdrum life is turned upside-down when she is left an unexpected inheritance. This leads Penny on an adventure across Europe, discovering family secrets and protecting her inheritance. Africa Travel If your trip takes you to Morocco or Spain, read A Time in Between by Maria Duenas. Sira Quiroga is a young girl from Madrid who is swept into a life in Morocco. Set in the time of the Spanish Civil War and WWII, Sira’s story is a coming of age story full of espionage, romance, and family. South America Travel If you’re exploring Brazil or the Amazon, read Lost City of Z by David Grann. Lost City of Z is the true story of Percy Fawcett, a British explorer who disappeared in the Amazon while searching for a city of gold. Grann also tells of his own trips and discoveries deep in the Amazon.
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Book It Across the US
Bookstores—places of knowledge, refuge, and tranquility. A hideout where you can wander aimlessly down aisles packed with the words of the greats. A sanctuary where you can learn about everything from the Civil War to astrophysics to the deepest human emotions. Within the walls of each bookstore is a unique world waiting for you to come and explore. Whether you’re looking for a hushed haven or a place to embark on your next great literary adventure, you’re sure to find it in one of the following US bookstores.
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The Art of Looking Up
In a world of increasing connectivity, innovative technology, and hyper ingenuity, are we actually in a state of regression? You see, this summer I was in Oxford—the home of Oxford University and the inspiration for Hogwarts—and I spent most of my time glancing down at my phone. Whether I was looking for directions, making sure I got a good photo, or staying connected with my friends who were checking out London, I was missing the beauty all around me. In fact, there was a statue on top of a building that I didn't even notice until someone pointed it out. As I looked up, I wondered how I had missed it. The seven-foot-tall statue was staring right at me! It was something I should have noticed, whether because it seemed so creepy staring down at me, or because it looked like someone potentially about to jump from the roof.
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The Southern Literary Trail
For the past century, southern writers have significantly shaped the literary world. Their writing has closely reflected the challenges of our nation, making their work essential American reads. Today, visiting many of their homes is as easy as driving through the neighboring states of Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia. Mississippi is the ideal starting place for your southern literature road trip. Jackson, the heart of southern literary tradition, is home to Nobel Prize award-winners William Faulkner, Tennessee Williams, Alice Walker, Richard Wright, and Eudora Welty. Oxford, just outside of Jackson, is suspected to be the model for Faulkner’s fictional universe, Yoknapatawpha. In Oxford you can visit Faulkner’s mansion, Rowan Oak, that now doubles as a museum. A nearby home, known as The Sound and the Fury House, is the supposed setting for this critically-acclaimed work. Faulkner fans can also visit his nearby grave. Close by in Jackson, Mississippi, bibliophiles can visit the Eudora Welty Home and Garden. The home and museum contain the largest collection of Eudora Welty materials. Exhibits are hosted in honor of Welty, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Optimist’s Daughter.
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Japanese Animal Cafe: an Introvert's Paradise
Have you ever wanted to be surrounded by hooting owls or stared at by sleepy felines? The Japanese certainly have, and like any good enterprising individual, they have worked to make their dreams a reality.
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Shakespeare and Company Bookstore
Just across the street from the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, France, sits the iconic English-language bookstore Shakespeare and Company. George Whitman founded the current Shakespeare and Company in 1951 after being inspired by Sylvia Beach’s original bookstore and library of the same name. Beach’s bookstore became a gathering place for expatriate writers like Hemingway, Fitzgerald, Joyce, and Eliot, to name a few. Following suit, Whitman’s Shakespeare and Company has served as a gathering place for authors such as Allen Ginsburg, William Burroughs, Henry Miller, and countless others. At Shakespeare and Company you’ll find a broad range of antiquarian, used, and new books, as well as a café, a piano room, and several typewriters that patrons are invited to use to leave letters in the store for other visitors. You may even run into the cat who lives in the store. This bookstore is a must-see for any book lover who visits to be Paris.
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Essential Sites for the Sherlocked
From books to films to television, Sherlock Holmes has managed to fascinate us since 1887. If you can’t get enough of him and can travel to England, here are the best places to investigate.
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Biblioparadise Found: Hay-on-Wye, Wales
It’s nearly two o’clock in the morning, and Alexis Jensen and her family are still maneuvering the ever-narrowing road that winds through the Black Mountains in southern Wales. Not having anticipated the farmland, tricky terrain, and occasional stretch of forest, the Jensens were expecting to have reached their destination hours ago. But Jensen is on a quest, and no thickets of brambles or crumbling infrastructure can stand in her way. Soon enough, an idyllic town comes into view, framed by the vast wilds of Wales. And though the town’s cobblestone streets and old-fashioned appearance seem quite similar to other English and Welsh hamlets, the shops found in Hay-on-Wye set the town apart from most tourist destinations found in the British Isles, making it the perfect location for Jensen’s journey.
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Make a Novel Escape
Want to get away from it all without the hassle of rolling out of bed?
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