There are stories that help you get lost and into scrapes. Stories that leave you yearning for the places it talks about. There are stories that make you feel like grabbing your passport and follow in your favourite character’s footsteps.
We give you a list of these stories, these books that give you an unforgettable sense of a place, help you feel the joy of watching a sunrise in an unknown land, get you to understand the thrill of eating different cuisines and take you on an adventure ride.
So let the sojourn begin, happy bookworms.
- The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy follows a boring everyman around the universe after the Earth has been destroyed to make way for an intergalactic superhighway. Read it, and your world will feel smaller.
2. The Motorcycle Diaries, by Che Guevara
The trip of Ernesto Che Guevara and Alberto Granada in South America is a book which is one of the most common mentioned when talking about travel. You begin to realize the road changes the riders in a way that travel by plane or train does not. The motorcycle cannot be separated metaphysically from the traveller and the trip is where Guevara transformed into Che. The Motorcycle Diaries is a powerful read and inspirational tale.
3. Eat, Pray, Love, by Elizabeth Gilbert
You have had terrible breakups and thought about ditching the real world for a while and eating and drinking your way through exotic lands with waterfalls. Think no more. Just read this book. Gilbert’s honest and beautiful prose about her own adventure is an interesting read.
4. The Alchemist, by Paulo Coelho
A story about following your dreams, this is one of the most read books in recent history. The story follows a young shepherd boy from Spain to Egypt as he follows his heart, goes with the flow, and learns to love and the meaning of life.
5. Three Weeks with My Brother, by Nicholas Sparks
Nicholas Sparks is not just all about tear-jerking, gut-wrenching romantic dramas. This bestselling author set out on a journey with his brother as the only two left in their family. They gallop around the globe on a spiritual journey to check out holy sites, however the trip is really about grief, loss, and love.
6. Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, by Robert M. Pirsig
This is a classic book that will make you want to travel the country. A tale of a father and son on a long motorcycle trek across America, it’s really all about compassion. You might just research on how to get a motorcycle license after you read Pirsig’s lovely and thoughtful prose.
7. Into the Wild, by Jon Krakauer
Krakauer’s classic Into the Wild tells the mysterious story of Christopher McCandless, a recent college graduate who was found dead in the Alaskan wilderness, that lingers in the mind long after you close the book. Krakauer is sympathetic to the spirit that led McCandless to ditch his car, burn the money in his wallet, and set out for life off the grid. In a rousing section, he recalls his own youthful climbing adventure in Alaska, on a stark and wondrous peak called the Devils Thumb, which was both exhilarating and nearly fatal.
8. Wild, by Cheryl Strayed
Cheryl Strayed’s book is about her journey along the Pacific Crest Trail when she was 26. She sets off in hopes of finding herself and coming to grips with the death of her mother, break-up of her marriage, and drug use. She’s looking for a fresh start. Along the way, she encounters kindness, happy fellow hikers, and a deep sense of belong. Filled with wonderful prose, I found this book deeply moving. It’s easy to see why the book became such a hit.
9. City of Djinns: A Year in Delhi, by William Dalrymple
One of the best Indian travelogues, City of Djinns is the first account of the British writer’s love affair with Delhi, where he has lived on and off for 25 years. Written more like a novel, the book follows various figures including his Sikh landlady, British survivors of the Raj and eunuch dancers.
10. The Great Railway Bazaar, by Paul Theroux
Theroux persuades us that one of the best ways to discover the culture of a country is by riding its trains. The author reached nearly every corner of Asia, and just reading the names of the notable trains he rode — the Direct-Orient Express, the Khyber Pass Local, the Mandalay Express, the Golden Arrow to Kuala Lumpur, and the Trans-Siberian Express — is enough to summon visions of a kind of travel that even then was beginning to fade away.
