10 BOOKS TO BRING OUT YOUR INNER EXPLORER

Finally, after nearly two years of almost constant lockdown, Wales has finally opened back up. After all this time, we are now allowed to drink in cafes, sit inside restaurants, visit indoor skateparks, and live our lives as we were able to before. Honestly, it feels like a weird, hushed type of freedom.

Over the past few months, I have found myself devouring travel book after travel book – one week even saw me read eight whole ass novels! Throughout that time, I have stumbled upon some absolute gems that I am super excited to share with you all.

Gulliver’s Travels

Since spotting this tatty, water-drenched Tenth Edition of Gulliver’s Travels in a local old bookstore, it has become one of my most prized possessions.

We all know the premise of the plot: Jack Black is on an assignment in the Bermuda Triangle when a magical vortex transports him to a half-mythical land of teeny tiny people. He falls in love with Emily Blunt, becomes the hero of Lilliput, and all in all, does what Jack Black is best known for: exploration.

As it happens, the original story was originally published in 1726, and as such, the novel plot is a little different to the Hollywood movie. Because of this, some of the writing can be slightly (see: extremely) difficult to navigate – but all in all, it’s a pretty sick story. It’s one of those novels that grabs your heart strings even when you don’t know your thou from your thy.

Around India in 80 Trains

There’s no doubt that Monisha Rajesh is one of the best living British travel writers, known for her borderline obsession with the beauty of train travel. Of course, Around India in 80 Trains is one of her most iconic train memoirs – and easily one of my favourite travel books.

I first read this book whilst in the first ever lockdown, desperate to escape the Welsh winter to somewhere new and exciting. As you can expect, a book about India really hit that nail on the head, and I immediately fell in love with the world of milky chai, dusty sunshine, and Mumbai’s infamous commuter trains.

After having left India in 1993, Monisha decides to return to her old home. Along the way, she meets a kaleidoscope of characters who help her to uncover the reason why the railways are considered the ‘lifeline that keeps India’s heart beating’. She wants nothing more than for these 80 train journeys to lift the veil on a country that has become a stranger to her.

Monisha is one of the most down to earth travellers there is, and I love how honest and genuine she is within this book. She meets the coolest people in the most incredible places, and it truly is a beautiful travel memoir to get lost in. I devoured it in hours, and then promptly moved over to ordering her latest book.

Round Ireland with a Fridge

Whilst researching other walking adventures for my Walking Wales Expedition, I came across this book. It’s funny, upbeat, and lowkey relatable, and is a great way to alight your heart with a little flicker of adventure. The whole premise is pretty wacky – as the title suggests, it really is just some bloke wandering round Ireland with a fridge – and just goes to show that all you need is passion, drive, and a little bit of ingenuity.

The Lost City of Z

Quite unbelievably, this book is based on the true story of Percy Fawcett, an old-era explorer who ventured into the forest to find his El Dorado, only to never return. As such, the premise of the novel is the author of this book following in Fawcett’s footsteps to uncover the hidden city of gold.

It’s one heck of a story, as the author contacts Fawcett’s living relatives (Wales represent!) and scours through his old travel journals, along with even winding up in ‘El Dorado’ himself…

Tazmamart

Oh my goodness, where do I possibly begin?

Tazmamart is a truly devastating book illustrating the 18 years that Aziz BineBine spent locked in a secret political prison; with death, disease, and desolation shadowing his every move. I wrote a full-length review on this book for the New Welsh Review, and honestly, have been unable to forget about the book since. It’s burrowed deep into my skin, and I still can’t shake the experiences that BineBine led me through throughout the course of this book.

The book reads like a piece of poetry. The imagery and sheer detail woven into the book is as impressive as it is mesmerising, as the fact that BineBine still remembers the exact treatment they received each week, the precise death dates of the inmates, and everyone’s complex life stories after so many years is truly incredible. The telling of his experience is interlaced with references to other literature, religion, and philosophical ideals, rendering it so much more than just an autobiography.

It’s the most heartbreaking book I have ever read, and honestly, I believe that BineBine is one of the most inspiring people to have lived.

On the Front Line with the Women Who Fight Back

This is a harrowing, inspiring book that shows the incredible strengths that women possess and the feats they undergo on a daily basis all around the world.

Stacey Dooley is a popular documentary host who goes out of her way to show British viewers the most incredible, shocking, and outrageous parts of life – and in this book, she details the incredible women she has met along the way. It offers an insight to the behind the scenes of her popular documentaries, and introduces a personal side to Dooley’s best-loved interviewees.

The Road to Oxiana

The Road to Oxiana was first published in 1937, and is considered to be the ‘first example of great travel writing’ – and as such, it can serve as a great example to fellow travel writers.

Oxiana is a region along Afghanistan’s northern border, and the book details Robert Byron’s ten-month journey to the Middle East. It’s an interesting book which talks about a lost and now almost unattainable form of travelling, and an insight into lives long gone.

As Paul Fussell once wrote, ‘The Road to Oxiana is to the travel book what Ulysses is to the novel between the wars.’ If that doesn’t convince you, then I don’t know what will.

Adventures of a Young Naturalist

Adventures of a Young Naturalist delves into further detail of Attenborough’s first ever expedition. In 1954, he was offered the opportunity of a lifetime, travelling the world finding rare and elusive animals for London Zoo’s collection – and oh boy, what an adventure it was.

Of course, David Attenborough is one of the sweetest souls on the planet, and his book summarises everything that Britain loves about him. The honesty in the way he writes, and the methods in which he documents meeting people – it all comes together to be a book that is so thoroughly Attenborough.

Stranger to the Desert

Stranger to the Desert is easily one of the best travel books ever written, and yet hardly anyone even knows about it. It’s almost impossible to find out information about the author – Dorothy Ross – which is as surprising as it is a shame. Honestly, she seemed like a sick woman, and there should be more information about her.

This book was written in the 1950s, and follows Dorothy as she marries a cowboy and moves to the wild, wild West. It’s absolutely hilarious, and I love everything that she has to say – even if it is a little disjointing at times (with the blatant sexism and racism that was prevalent at the time and thus in her writing).

The Book of Exploration

Quite possibly the best book detailing the most infamous and loved explorers of all time, this book zooms through the ages to talk about the people who have helped shape society and adventure into what it is today.

I largely use this as a reference book and as something to curl up with every now and then, drinking a fat cup of tea and jotting down endless notes. It’s super interesting to learn more about the world’s top explorers – and I have it on a table for guests to flick through when they enter my room, really drawing the whole adventure aesthetic together.

And so, have you guys read any of these books, or now plan on doing so? If so, which one do you think would be your favourite? Let me know in the comments below!

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