The Best British Travel Writing of the 21st Century: A Celebration of Outstanding Travel Storytelling from Around the World

by Jessica Vincent

Travel writing matters

Explore the world through this beautiful collection of the finest travel writing published in British media in the 21st century – as judged by some of the most respected travel writers in the Levison Wood, Monisha Rajesh, Jessica Vincent and Simon Willmore

The world has changed, but our desire to explore new places remains as strong as ever. The Best British Travel Writing of the 21st Century includes 30 outstanding travel stories published in British media over the last two decades, as chosen by some of the top names in travel writing today. Through travel’s most talented storytellers, you’ll face adversity along the Congo’s raging River Lulua, make new friends aboard Iraq’s night train, and embark on life-changing pilgrimages from India to Saudi Arabia.

This book is an ode to travel and all that it offers, but it’s also a celebration of a genre that brings the world closer to us. At its best, travel writing encourages empathy and inspires change. Join our award-winning writers in marvelling at the power and beauty of travel, and let them inspire you to fall in love with the world all over again.

Genres: Travel, Nonfiction, Essays

283 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 9, 2023

Reviews

[Jo_Scho_Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderful collection of moments and musings, from acclaimed travel writers from the last two decades. Astonish in the dramatic beauty of Antarctica. Play chess in a sleepy forest village in Kerala. Dine in Manhattan’s finest restaurants. Amaze at a church built on a cliff face in Ethiopia.

I could go on, but it’s better you read for yourself. This is for anyone with an interest in exploring the world. Magnificent and mesmerising.

Thank you Summersdale Publishers for my ARC. All views my own.

[Sheila · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received an ARC of, The Best British Travel Writing of the 21st Century by, Jessica Vincent. This book has the best of the British travel writers, the places they go, the stories they tell, a really good book.

[Jason · Rating 4 out of 5]

It says on the back of this book in big capitals “TRAVEL WRITING MATTERS”, this has never felt more true since the lockdowns started in 2020, with people unable to travel they needed some way of escaping the monotony of home schooling/working from home and becoming an armchair travel was one method of escape. The editors of this book have been travelling the world for many years and being trapped at home inspired them to look into what other writers had experienced and put together this collection of short travel pieces.

I always think that the first piece in a book like this is always the most important as it sets the standard of what to come, this fell to Leon McCarron with The Night Train. Travelling across Iraq by train at night, not much you can write about the view…due to the sun being AWOL…so the focus is on those using the train, a fascinating insight into the people on the train and a great start to the book. There are some very good pieces here and they cover a lot of places and events I know very little about and in many of the pieces the pandemic is ever present.

Favourites here include visiting well known Safari park during the lockdown, without the many many tourists the animals seem very content, relaxing in the peace and quiet. A father’s ashes being taken to the Ganges as a sort of pilgrimage and somebody taking part in the Hajj pilgrimage were probably the best in the book, I knew nothing about the Hajj and Tharik Hussain shares their experience and explains why they go and the fear they experience before getting the euphoric feeling that they achieved what they set up to do.

One of the most impressive things about this book is each writer is considered British and such a large number of different cultures are represented, it’s wonderful see how varied we are. Each piece of writing here has featured in a magazine or journal of some sort and that restricts the word length, using this book as a way to scope out the talent works well, there are many writers here that I would happily read again.

Blog review: https://felcherman.wordpress.com/2022...

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

Those of us who read travel writing, have a familiar canon to choose from the British set, Thubron, Raban, Thesiger, Young and Leigh Fermor. These guys and they were almost always guys in those days have written some really good books that still need to be read by those wanting to discover the world from their armchairs.

But the world was changing and since the Covid pandemic, it has changed immeasurably again. The writers that are making waves, following footpaths and rediscovering this dynamic world are bringing different voices and perspectives to the body of literature. For this collection, four editors, Levison Wood, Monisha Rajesh, Simon Willmore and Jessica Vincent, have chosen articles and short essays by a whole variety of authors.

I thought that it was a great introduction to the latest crop of writers that are making the travel writing genre their own now. I thought that the editors had pulled together an interesting variety of subjects and most importantly a diverse crop of authors for this book. I have read some of these writers before, but there are others in here that I have not come across until now.

I had a couple of minor issues with the collection though. I felt it would have been nice to have a little more of an introduction to the authors and the selected piece just before you went on to read it. I would have also liked to have seen some newly commissioned items in amongst the previously published work or extracts taken from books from authors like Gail Simmonds, Lara Prior-Palmer and Isambard Wilkinson, for example. I would recommend this if you want to discover new travel writing and I have another batch of writers to discover more from too.

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Travelling forces us to ask questions of other cultures and of ourselves. And it begins the uncomfortable work of chipping away at our own preconceived notions about people, places and practices.”

I love this quote and it really does capture the essence of travelling and geography as a whole.

A great book with some engaging, epic, unbelievable stories - lots of which I would never dare to embark on (!!), thus, more than happy to read about other people’s experiences! These stories covered numerous means of transport, food highlights, religious pilgrimages and wildlife wonders, simply to name a few.

A wonderfully educational yet enjoyable read, broadening my travelling horizons and drawing my attention to places outside of the typical tourist realm.

[Andreia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Is this the best book to read on a plane/train? Probably!
I loved this selection of stories - every single one so different from the previous one, every single one so fascinating in its own way. It may feel a bit jarring - going from Ecuador to the UK, from Kenya to Italy, in the space of a few pages - but if you're used to reading travel magazines, it's pretty much the same experience but without the ads (and photos, which I'd actually love to see). I think this book could be much longer - there are many brilliant writers out there who have written outstanding accounts of their travels (this century) who are not included here but this is a great selection nonetheless. If you love travel writing as much as I do, you'll love this book. If you're just in need to get away from your routine, whatever it may be, this book will also provide you with enough inspiration to never return to it again.

Thank you @ Summersdale for sending me a copy to review!

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is just the type of book you can read for 10 minutes and come back to again and again. A compilation of many short travel articles/stories and some excellent photos. The real life experiences of travelling was so interesting and varied. Could have easily read more by each author, who were all travel writers. My favourite was The Land of No Hay by JR Patterson, although many close seconds. There was a bio of each author at the end of the book and references to their work. Perfect little travel companion. Thank you #NetGalley for the e-book to review.

[Jack M · Rating 2 out of 5]

By now I ought to know what to make of things advertised as THE BEST.  A rather weak collection, reminiscent of stories you'd read from the magazine found in the back of an airplane seat, just to kill the time.  And like those, these are largely forgettable, actually I already forgot nearly all of them.  Part of the problem is that a lot of them are too short, by the time I figured out where the traveler was, the story was over (editor note:  the geographical location should be stated at the beginning of each chapter). The sole exceptions were the one or two stories, containing a magical ingredient:  FOOD.  I'd previously read some food centered travel anthologies, and those were excellent.  If you're going to tell me about how you traversed a jungle river in a canoe, well, I can tell you I already get that fix from the YouTube algorithm, and that's just fine.

[Patrick Fernandes · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have spent a lot of time daydreaming about embarking on a glorious worldwide adventure where I see new sights and participate in cultural events, making lots of friends along the way.  However thus far, I have yet to work up the courage to actually do this and so this daydreams still remains a dream. Reading this book was an attempt to satisfy my thirst for adventure and also to test the waters and see if I actually enjoy reading travel literature (and whether it would be worth adding travel adventures as a genre to my reading list).

All in all this book was a mixed bag ranging from the fascinating (“Bulls and Scars”, “Eagles, Edges and Edifices”, “The Land of No Hay”) to the not particularly engaging stories (“Footprints”). One thing this book excels in is its rich exploration of various cultures and I felt I was gaining new knowledge and perspectives of the various cultures around the world. For instance, I learnt about the existence and cultural significance of Mount Ararat to its local people, what muslims friends actually do when they go missing on those mysterious “Hajj” trips, and the Ethiopian mountain chapels made by ancient christians that litter the landscape. It's been a while since I've learnt anything at all about foreign cultures so I am very much grateful for these tidbits of knowledge.

Whilst I enjoyed reading a lot of these articles, the way I plan on consuming travel content in the future will likely be through the video medium. But for those looking for that initial spark to enhance their world knowledge, experience some travel stories and aren't afraid to push through some boring stories this may be the book for you.

[Jill · Rating 5 out of 5]

I took so long to read this because I didn’t want it to end. It was so lovely to be transported to all sorts of different places and countries and see them through different perspectives. I re read a lot of the stories because they were so beautiful and moving or in some cases downright scary!!! Another book I will continue to revisit and just pick up every now and again

[Arlene · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an interesting collection of travel stories. I really liked that it gave equal billing to writing about walking from Fleetwood to Liverpool as it did to writing about getting the night train in Iraq - some travel is more accessible than others, and all exploring and taking pleasure in discovery of your surroundings is worthwhile.

[Rick Eichstaedt · Rating 3 out of 5]

A collection of 30 very short travel essays. Many of these seem like they are heavily edited versions of the longer original pieces. Regardless, I wanted few short piece and more longer, in-depth pieces.

[Annarella · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was like traveling all over the world and visit some new and some well known places seeing them through the eyes of these interesting writers.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

[Robert Honour · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting and varied collection of travel stories from across the world. My only criticism is that many of the pieces had been cut far too short. They cut off just as they were getting interesting!

[Mrs Karen Bull · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great brilliant book, well written. Enjoyed every moment. Worth reading
Must read for everyone.
Definitely buy

[Craig Hall · Rating 3 out of 5]

Could and should have been better.

[Susie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great book, easy to read and swap between other books.

Thank you NetGalley for my complimentary copy in return for my honest review.

[Fabrizio Ori · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful anthology, 30 short stories, very easy to read, some with poignant thoughts, I hope they will publish a vol. 2, 3, 4...

[Chiara · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this collection of essays, it was so refreshing to read each single one of them. Of course I do have my favourite pieces but overall it’s a strong introduction to the travel writing world.

[Samantha Elizabeth · Rating 1 out of 5]

And another DNF of 2024. Not my scene.

[Eileen Sinclair · Rating 5 out of 5]

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[Sheila · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very readable, 30 essays from magazines etc on world travel, selected by a panel.

[Carole Allen-Morley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read while travelling to Colorado and Moldova.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love travel. I really liked the diversity of this book and learning about different places and experiences, it made me feel lucky that I get to travel as much as I do (reading it on a plane probably helped with that too).