Most travelers enjoy reading about the adventures and journeys of other obsessive travelers and there are an infinite number of travel tales out there, running the full array from informative and rough to the imaginative, story-telling styles. Here is a list of the most fascinating, adventurous and stimulating travel books to tease your wanderlust genes and bring it to play!
On the Road – Jack Kerouac
For all those “free spirited” souls, this book is surely going to be your drug! Based on the travels that Jack Kerouac and his friends took across America, this semi-autobiographical piece defines a generation, and continues to fascinate travelers of the 21st century! Living life against a backdrop of jazz, poetry, and drug use, the protagonist indeed captures all sorts of madness well- madness to go where ever the road take you. This Beat Generation classic is a timeless travel novel, which many of you will connect with!
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Travels with Charley – John Steinbeck
This travelogue depicts a 1960 road trip around the United States made by the protagonist, Steinbeck along with his doodle named Charley. Moved by a desire to see his country on a personal level, Steinbeck later realizes that he had concerns about much of the “new America” he witnessed. So, what are you waiting for? Get ready to accompany Steinbeck and Charley on their voyage!
The Alchemist – Paulo Coelho
This is one of my most favorite book of all times and I believe everyone must have read it at least once. For those who still haven’t- this book tells the story of a young shepherd who travels from Spain to Egypt in search of his dreams.
It is a story of pursuing your dreams relentlessly, that helps you understand the meaning of life. The Alchemist is a story with a marvelous blend of dreams, ambition, love, struggle and life! Loaded with inspirational quotes, this books is certainly a source of inspiration for one and all.
The Sun Also Rises -Ernest Hemingway
This is a story about a group of expatriates who travel from Paris to Pamplona in Spain to watch bullfighting. It was the first time that the bull festival became known world-wide. The story follows the love and life of Jake Barnes and Brett Ashley and the characters are based on real people of Hemingway’s circle, and the action on real events. The themes of love, death, renewal in nature, and the nature of masculinity have been explored by Hemingway in the book! So, go grab the book!
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The Beach – Alex Garland
The 1996 travel story, set in Thailand, is about a young backpacker’s search for utopia and an unsullied beach. The book moves through a whole range of emotions, from sheer adventure and exploration, to feelings of loneliness and isolation.
You get to be a part of this journey as much as the protagonist Richard as you get to experience how is it to live in a paradise community away from the world. And, when the shit hits the fan, you realize that you are nearly as mad as he is.
The Call of the Wild – Jack London
The Call of the Wild is a story about a much loved and pampered dog named Buck who is also the central character of this novel. Owned by a wealthy and caring judge, Buck is then sold off by a servant to pay a debt.
The novel captures the struggle of Buck in Alaska where dog-sleds are the primary mode of transportation and the only way to survive is to adapt in that dog-eat-dog world. Buck is later sold to many other masters and each one is very different from the other… And I will not spoil the suspense because I want you all to feel as thrilled as I did while reading this book!
The Road To Oxiana- Robert Byron
Robert Byron jots down a captivating travelogue depicting his encounters, discoveries and misadventures, his book is considered to be one of the finest examples of great modern day travel writing. Robert jots down his 10 month long journey through the middle east in 1933, where he shares rare accounts of his architectural treasures that insinuates nostalgia to an irretrievable innocent time.
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn –Mark Twain
One of the most celebrated travel books in American literature, Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is noted for its colorful description of people and places along the Mississippi River. Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is an often scathing satire on entrenched attitudes, particularly racism and it deals with Huck’s emotional growing pains of becoming a man in a morally flawed society..
The statement at the end of the book is just so enigmatic: “So endeth this chronicle. It being strictly the history of a boy, it must stop here; the story could not go much further without becoming the history of a man.”
Travel and books share a deep bond with every solo traveler, as they love to take his favorite books along. Some books remind us of our forgotten journeys while some make us feel an urge to pack the bags again! Which are your favorite travel books? Share with us in the comment box below. After all, we all have amazing stories to tell!
