Travel & Travel Writing

Revisit the epic landscape of the Oregon Trail without having to worry about dysentery (digital or otherwise). Spurred on by his memories and his insatiable desire for adventure, Rinker Buck tackles the still-marked trail with his brother, a dog, and three cranky mules. First-hand experiences paired with historical facts make this book perfect to take along on your own cross-country road trip.  —Rachel

While working at an Alaska oil field, Ken Ilgunas had an idea: what if he hiked the proposed route of the Keystone XL pipeline from start to finish? Starting in Canada, ending in Texas, and trespassing on private property pretty much the whole way, he did just that. Travelogue, meditation on climate change, and tribute to the people living on the Great Plains, this is a thoughtful, entertaining book.  —Flannery 

Whether you have long been a fan of Annie Dillard or are coming to her for the first time, prepare to be stunned. Dillard has selected essays from a lifetime of work, ranging from Pilgrim at Tinker Creek to An American Childhood, to illuminate her observations on the natural world and our very human place in it. Thoughtful, beautiful, harsh, real, fanciful, funny, and all out revealing—both in the ordinary and in wonder. What a gift.  —Melinda

Ferlinghetti’s rich life of world travel provides us the window through which to see this seminal poet, artist, and cultural icon. Peppered with sketches, poems, political commentary, and stream of consciousness observations, his journals span continents and decades, from Cuba in the 1960s to France, Italy, and Latin America at the turn of the century. Adventurous and thoughtful, damning and full of delight, this collection is essentially Ferlinghetti’s long-awaited memoir.  —Melinda

My family is from Alabama, and I have a deep love of the South, so I am thrilled that noted travel writer Paul Theroux has turned his eye to the Deep South for his first American travelogue. Exploring back roads and meeting residents from all walks of life, Theroux paints a warm, vivid portrait of the Southern states that revels in the good without shying away from the bad.  —Flannery

Most famous for his long free solos (climbing with nothing more than shoes and chalk), Alex Honnold takes us on his adventures around the world in his memoir Alone on the Wall. Giving us an inside look at a person operating in such a different plane, on a level of adrenaline that would give most of us a heart attack, Honnold leaves the reader gripping the pages of the book as he describes being alone 2,000 feet off the ground—and off course. His excitement and passion for climbing and exploring will leave you itching to get outside after reading this book.  —Centa

I love transit maps. There’s something about the idea of a map within a map, a secret system of passageways that open up whole worlds for those initiated in their ways, that captures my imagination. This fascinating book compiles transit maps, both current and historical, from all over the world, allowing us to see how the systems have changed and grown. This is a unique book that illuminates the history of public transit.  —Flannery

Published in honor of the 100th birthday of the National Park Service, this book is a gorgeous look at the Park Service’s history, with amazing photography and personal stories as varied as the parks themselves. Exploring parks from the Grand Canyon and Yosemite to stark battlegrounds and vibrant ocean life, The National Parks makes me want to start planning a road trip (or five) immediately! Also perfect for those who enjoy armchair travel.   —Rachel

In the first book by the Economist’s veteran Asia correspondent, Dominic Ziegler, the longtime journalist weaves two tales: one, the story of the greatest leader ever born in northern Asia, Temujin (or as he was later dubbed, Ghengis Khan); the other, of Ziegler’s own arduous journey down northern Asia’s Amur River. Ziegler’s ornate words build like the strokes of a paintbrush and draw the reader into a world mostly unknown to Westerners.  —Aric

As a history lover and a fan of the macabre, this book is incredibly exciting for me. It combines beautiful antique maps with the great disasters and mysteries of the human race. Places where the ground burns with fire constantly to those where bats black out the sky to the most popular suicide location in the world. This beautiful tome makes history so enticing.  —Ivy