The Top Two:
Wind, Sand and Stars
by Antoine de Saint-Exupery
The author of "The Little Prince" recounts his experiences as a mail pilot over nothern Africa in the 1920's & 1930's. A beautiful translation from the French; Saint-Exupery lost his live over the Mediterranean with a French air squadron in 1944.
The Happy Isles of Oceania--Paddling the Pacific
by Paul Theroux
Theroux forgoes the rails in this book to paddle his fold-up kayak around the isles of the South Pacific.
And the rest, alphabetical by author...
Tales from Margaritaville
by Jimmy Buffet
fact and fantasy blur for a suprisingly readable and entertaining look at a music icon's love affair with travel in the Caribbean.
Three by Heinrich Harrer:
Seven Years in Tibet
The White Spider
Return to Tibet
Harrer chronicles his escape from a World War II prison camp, his time tutoring the Dalai Lama in Llasa, and his conquering of several of Europe's toughest rock faces.
Two by Thor Heyerdahl:
Kon-Tiki
Aku-Aku
A large, thick copy of Aku-Aku stared at me forbiddingly from my elementary school's library shelf. Years later, I found an identical copy with the original dust cover at a used bookstore in Columbus, Ohio. Reading it satisfied and conquered an unmet childhood challenge.
Both books are easy reading and are somewhat romanticized accounts, but still make for a great, true adventure story.. Heyerdahl's methods have been somewhat discounted, but his treks and writings opened the door for anthropological work in regions he explored.
On the Road
Jack Kerouac
Kerouac documented the beginnings of the Beat movement with this book, which went on to become the Beatnik movement, then, of course the Hippies. The beginning of youth consciousness in America, several of the people he wrote about became well-known writers and poets in their own right (such as Alan Ginsberg, of "Howl" fame).
Blue Highways
William Least-Heat Moon
His record of a journey around the backroads of the United States in a dying van. In rediscovering our country, he rediscovers himself.
The Magic Mountain
Thomas Mann
I read this as I prepared for my trip to Switzerland ten years ago. Set in Davos, it's a travelogue of the soul. It is considered a classic, and has been translated into many languages. I spotted a Portuegese copy on my the bookshelf of my friends in Brazil...
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance
Robert Pirsig
"The real cycle you're working on is a cycle called 'yourself'".
Investment Biker
Jim Rogers
Rogers and his girlfriend ride their BMW motorcycles around the world. His travelogue is interspersed with observations of the world's economies from the eyes of a successful investor.
Nearly Anything by Paul Theroux:
Both a prolific novelist & travel writer, noted for his tempestuous friendship with writer V.S. Naipaul, Theroux remains my favorite travel writer.
Dark Star Safari--overland from Cairo to Cape Town
The Happy Isles of Oceania--paddling the Pacific
The Pillars of Hercules--a grand tour of the Mediterranean
The Great Railway Bazaar--by train through Asia
The Old Patagonia Express--from Boston to Patagonia
This book includes my all-time favorite line, describing a South American locomotive as looking like
"a demented samovar"
The Kingdom by the Sea--his candid and compulsive account of a journey round the coast of Great Britain
Sailing through China
Riding the Iron Rooster--by train through China
Rudolph Wurlitzer
Hard Travel to Sacred Places
Though occasionally whiney, the screenplay writer of "Little Buddha" gives us a valuable look at the sacred sites in Thailand, Burma and Cambodia.
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