Blogcritics Category: Books: Travel

Book Review: St Pancras Station by Simon Bradley

Natalie Bennett — Sun, 4 Jan 2009 04:42:55 EST

An odd little book, mostly an architectural history, but with some great snippets of social anecdote about one of the great train stations of Europe.
You might describe my reading interests as catholic (very definitely with a small "C"): I read history, science, politics, philosophy, and bits of fiction. I would have given you good money that railway station architecture was not particularly likely to feature on my reading list, but I'd have lost that money.When I saw a little paperback entitled...

Book Review: I Believe In Yesterday by Tim Moore

James Carson — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 16:18:36 EST

The author steps joins Roman re-enactors and Viking retromaniacs, and discovers they're not just playing for time.
Modern life getting you down? Feel like getting away from it all? Perhaps a week as a Roman legionary will put the colour back in your cheeks. Or maybe you'd prefer to pillage a village in the company of rampaging Vikings. Historical re-enactments may not be the most relaxing form of relaxation, but for many time travel beats Benidorm on all...

Book Review: Visions of Paradise edited by Bronwen Latimer

El Bicho — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 06:14:31 EST

National Geographic reveals heaven on Earth.
Published by the National Geographic Society, Visions of Paradise is a glorious collection of black and white and color photographs taken all over the world based on editor Bronwen Latimer’s question, “where is heaven on Earth?” The 88 participants submitted snapshots of the assignment that not only cover the obvious natural...

Beyond the Books: Interview with Jenny McGill, Author of Drama & Diplomacy: In Sultry Puerto Vallarta

Dorothy Thompson — Mon, 8 Dec 2008 19:45:49 EST

"Very few people knew I was writing a book, but those who did encouraged me to keep plugging away."
Jenny McGill is represented by the interviewer's Pump Up Your Book Promotion, a public relations agency specializing in online book promotion. Although the American flag is given the highest respect, diplomacy takes on a new meaning as the author slips and slides through the darker side of consular work on foreign soil. This is the...

Book Review: Don't Go There! - The Travel Detective's Essential Guide to the Must-Miss Places of the World by Peter Greenberg

Tim Gebhart — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 10:41:52 EST

Peter Greenberg's handy and useful compendium may help you decide where you don't want to go on your next trip.
When we think about vacations, "Where would I like to go?" is probably the most frequent question. Peter Greenberg, the travel editor for NBC’s Today show, CNBC and MSNBC, suggests "Where should I avoid?" should also be on the list.In Don't Go There!: The Travel Detective's Essential Guide to the Must-Miss Places...

Book Review: Frommer's 500 Places To See Before They Disappear

Lou Novacheck — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 07:56:17 EDT

Nailing Jell-O to a wall, or Going, Going...
Frommer’s 500 Places To See Before They Disappear is both a travel book and a conservation guide of sorts. It encourages travel to the endangered places, not so much as to see them before they’re gone, but to contribute toward their preservation or rescue.I was feeling pretty smug as I started paging through the book prior to reading....

Interview with Adventurer and Travel Writer Brandon Wilson

Mayra Calvani — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 17:59:14 EDT

"We were shot at, trudged through a blizzard, slowly starved, never knew where we would spend the night�or if we�d be taken into police custody."
Brandon Wilson is an adventurer and travel writer. From the Himalayas, to Mount Kilimanjaro, to the Camino de Santiago, to his most recent 2,620-mile trek from France to Jerusalem, Wilson has been in over a hundred countries and faithfully recorded his experiences in his books. He's the author of the award-winning titles Yak Butter Blues, Dead...

Book Review: Chelsea Hotel Manhattan by Joe Ambrose

Alyse Wax — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 00:33:15 EDT

Life at the infamous Chelsea Hotel and beyond.
The Chelsea Hotel is one of the most famous -- or infamous -- landmarks in New York City. Starting as luxury lodgings at the beginning of the 20th century, the Chelsea gained even more notoriety the scummier it got. It became a flophouse for writers, artists, musicians, junkies, and assorted transients. Some famous, some infamous.Chelsea Hotel...

Book Review: A Walk Up Fifth Avenue by Bernard Levin

Philip Spires — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 14:31:16 EDT

Bernard Levin offers a British journalist's reflection on the heart of New York City.
Bernard Levin begins A Walk Up Fifth Avenue with three quotations from descriptions of New York City. These date from 1916, 1929 and 1949 and were written by Jane Kilmer, Theodore Dreiser and E. B. White respectively. Bernard Levin uses these vignettes to establish the reality, or perhaps unreality of a changing city, a superficially permanent...

Book Review: Swimming with Crocodiles by Will Chaffey

Maggie Ball — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 08:22:31 EDT

What starts off as a coming-of-age story - mingled with travelogue and Nat Geo-styled adventure tale - becomes a life or death struggle...
Swimming with Crocodiles is an interesting hybrid: a coming of age story, mingled with travelogue and Nat Geo-styled adventure tale. Eighteen year old Will Chaffey was rejected by a number of universities after completing his High School diploma at the prestigious Milton school, and decided to take a trip overseas to Australia. It was there he met...