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Inspirational Books

These books involve itineraries that would be difficult or impossible to emulate. I choose to list them here based only on the proof of concept they impart; the methodology of understanding the panorama of people and places far removed from one's personal history.

Paul Theroux, one of the best-known travel authors today, takes his routes seriously and does not shy from criticizing both what he sees, and at times, his own limitations. The result rings honestly about the travel experience as a whole. Below are four of his many books that I've found the most enjoyable.

Dark Star Safari walks the reader through one of the most difficult and highly rated goals of many backpackers - that of going overland from Cairo to South Africa.

The Pillars of Hercules follows the author around the Mediterranean, including countries and region that, at the time, were rarely traveled.

The Happy Islands of Oceania in an ingenious and often humorous journey through the South Pacific and Australasia, with the help of a collapsible kayak.

Riding the Iron Rooster goes into great detail about riding trains in China, when it was the only way most people traveled long distances. Though not the experience one would have today, it serves as a great documentary.

Wilfred Thesiger stands out as a true adventurer of yesteryear. He immerses himself completely in the subject, hence is able to give an exacting description of his experiences and the people he meets. Below are two of my favorite accounts.

Arabian Sands is a journey taken by the author through the Rub' al Khali (Empty Quarter) of the Arabian Peninsula, with a group of nomadic herders.

The Marsh Arabs documents the author's journeys in Iraq, in the marshlands between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers.

Other authors

Danziger's Travels by Nick Danziger is a good primer to the challenges and rewards of going off the beaten path, narrated by someone who is willing to really put themselves on the line for a story.

The Devil Drives, a biography of Sir Richard Francis Burton by Fawn M. Brodie, is not a travel narration but rather a peek into a life dedicated to prying open the worlds hidden to most Europeans in the 1800's.

A World of Villages by Brian Schwartz mixes budget travel with musings about the meaning of the travel life, sometimes bordering on the philosophical.

A Million Mutinies Now by VS Naipaul throws the reader into the colorful chaos that is India, on journeys taken by the author in his homeland.

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