TTT: The World Is A Book

So, yeah, I've been a bit of a lousy blogger lately. But life has been pretty darn awesome and gotten in the way of sitting down in front of a computer. I've been out in the sun, surrounded by friends, and working with kids who have just been a pleasure to be around. You'll forgive me, won't you internet friends? 

So, I have missed the Top Ten Tuesdays hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. I love writing about books I've read, am reading, or want to read. Because I'm a nerd like that. So what? This week's topic is perfect - the top ten books featuring travel in some way - because man have I been bit by the travel bug again. I want to sink my toes into some sand in some tropical location, eat some fancy dish in some foreign land, and I want to meet people I've never connected with before. But, sadly, that won't be my life for a little while. So, for now I'll have to read about it - how about you?

Also, note: #1-5 are books I've already read. #6 I'm about half-way through. And #7-10 are books I am so excited to venture off into reading. So, that's the break down. Let's get going!

1. Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert - Say what you will about this book (and a lot has been said), I loved reading this book. Was it great literature? Probably not. But it took me out of my living room and transported me to places around the world. I revisited my favorite city, Rome, through Gilbert's words. I looked into life in an ashram and felt the breeze of ocean in Fiji. Reading this book was an escape at its best, and I loved it for that. Was she a whiny divorcé on the pity party of a lifetime? Sure. But, if you can do it, why not do it? We all know if we were in her shoes we would have done the same thing. We're jealous, that's all.

2. Shadow of Night by Deborah Harkness - Time travel at its finest. Or at least time travel that I would absolutely die to take part in. Victorian England? With Matthew? To see into the past in a place I loved to visit? This was the most delectable travel read I've had in years.

3. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald - Okay, hear me out on this one. Travel to me doesn't necessarily mean physical travel or time travel. With this book I've taken travel to mean getting a glimpse inside another world. And 1920's high society? Can you get 'another world' further than this? Rich white people's problems? Certainly. But I love everything to do with the Roaring 20's and Fitzgerald's look into that lifestyle was absolutely captivating to me.

4. Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card - Actually, the whole Ender's Universe that Card has created. Ender's Game just started it all. Space travel is travel, right? Well, this is my list and I'm including it. I find the world of the Battle School and the lives of the children raised there completely fascinating. I would love to venture out into space and experience zero gravity. Sadly, it seems that it will only happen in the pages of the books I read.

5. The Odyssey by Homer - Hands down the most quintessential travel book ever written. And it's amazing and wonderful no matter who you are or when you read it. Homer is a genius and the stories he tells are both fanciful and awe-inspiring. If you haven't read this one yet, you really ought to.

6. The Inferno by Dante -  I've read about half of this, and totally need to finish it soon. Maybe not the most fun and exciting "travel" but certainly one of the most imaginative and daunting. Right? Dante is a genius. I also need to make sure I put Paradiso and Purgatorio on my list as well.

7. Wild by Cheryl Strayed - I own this, it's on my list to read ASAP. As someone who is starting to really, really love hiking and the outdoorsy life, this book seems perfect for me.

8. On The Road by Jack Kerouac - The classic Kerouac that I haven't read. I'm getting there, I promise.

9. I'm A Stranger Here Myself by Bill Bryson - As someone who has lived overseas for a chunk of time, I'm pretty sure I'd really appreciate this book.

10. Wind, Sand, and Stars by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry - An amazing author. A book about travel. This seems like a recipe for a great, great book.


What about you? What are your favorite books about travel?