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Reading on Location: Great Books Set in Top Travel Destinations by Moncada, Luisa, Quin, Scala (2011) Paperback
From the charming city of Bath, featured in Jane Austen's Persuasion, to the Amazon of Mario Vargas Llosa's La Casa Verde, this unique travel guide brings you to the places you've only read about. Whether you want to learn more about a destination or follow in the footsteps of a favorite character, Reading on Location helps you make the most of your trip.
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First published January 1, 2009
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January 15, 2016
Neither part of the subtitle of this book is strictly accurate. Not all of the books included are great books—some are chosen as fairly ordinary genre efforts, and some are chosen because they fit the authors’ love of deviant sexuality and a tendency to glorify the corrupt aspects of contemporary and historical societies. Nor are all the locations chosen top travel locations—few people would consider Angola or Albania to be particularly top travel locations, and the authors manage to not include any books, fiction or nonfiction, about Oregon despite including books about almost every other state and most of the countries of the world, even half a dozen books about Greenland. To be sure, this is an interesting book about books [1] that is designed for readers who enjoy travel, have broad-ranging tastes that include the genres of mystery, romance, travel writing, as well as classical literature in all sense of the word, ranging from the epic national poems like the Illiad, Odessey, Anneid, among others, to the writings of Waugh, Austen, Greene, Tolstoy, and many others who are considered part of the Great Books canon, along with many works that are not, but that are pleasant reads. The authors even include a couple of plays, although they feel the need to explain those choices, since few people apparently enjoy reading plays [2].
In terms of its contents, the authors take a geographical and topical approach, dividing the world into several continental or subcontinental areas: Africa, The Americas, Asia, Australasia, Europe, and the Middle East, then dividing up those regions into most of their countries (or, in the case of the Pacific Islands, groups of small countries together), and then regions like Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom are divided into smaller provinces or metropolitan areas, and then within these books are divided by being fictional or nonfictional in nature. Those writers that are considered to be especially noteworthy and important, like Anne Frank or Jane Austen or Charles Dickens, or more obscure choices like Halldor Laxness (a noted Icelandic author) are given feature boxes. Beneath the books references to other similar books or film or television adaptations of the material are included. The authors are continually making comments comparing some obscure writer as the next Le Carre or the natural son of Le Carre which makes this sort of book a self-referential type of book that is probably best for people who read a lot and who care both about genre fiction as well as about Booker and Nobel prizes.
When reading a book like this, it is important to appreciate the obvious love of books and reading that these authors have, as well as the fact that it represents their own personal and highly biased opinion. Within fairly broad confines, this book has several consistent sorts of books that the authors tend to like the most. They appreciate classic works of obvious and lasting value. They appreciate the sorts of books that aspire to classic status that are often made requiring reading in high school or college, many of which I happened to read as required readings in my own schooling, like Kate Chopin’s Awakening or Allende’s House Of The Spirits, to give two examples included here. In addition to that, the authors have a special fondness for spy novels, detective novels, mysteries, as well as novels about sexuality, and novels that are in general controversial in some fashion, whether for offending moral or political sensibilities. There are some books that any well-read person are likely to be familiar with [3], some that they may want to become better familiar with, and some that they will have no interest reading. Fortunately, at only about 260 pages of material itself, this is a book about books that opens up new vistas and makes the reader familiar with many other books, whether or not one chooses to take up the invitation and read the books mentioned here, which would take years and years, even at my pace, or even travel to some of these places on tours, which would be costly and time-consuming as well, but also likely entertaining and worthwhile.
[1] See, for example:
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[2] See, for example:
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https://edgeinducedcohesion.wordpress...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.wordpress...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.wordpress...
[3] See, for example:
https://edgeinducedcohesion.wordpress...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.wordpress...
In terms of its contents, the authors take a geographical and topical approach, dividing the world into several continental or subcontinental areas: Africa, The Americas, Asia, Australasia, Europe, and the Middle East, then dividing up those regions into most of their countries (or, in the case of the Pacific Islands, groups of small countries together), and then regions like Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom are divided into smaller provinces or metropolitan areas, and then within these books are divided by being fictional or nonfictional in nature. Those writers that are considered to be especially noteworthy and important, like Anne Frank or Jane Austen or Charles Dickens, or more obscure choices like Halldor Laxness (a noted Icelandic author) are given feature boxes. Beneath the books references to other similar books or film or television adaptations of the material are included. The authors are continually making comments comparing some obscure writer as the next Le Carre or the natural son of Le Carre which makes this sort of book a self-referential type of book that is probably best for people who read a lot and who care both about genre fiction as well as about Booker and Nobel prizes.
When reading a book like this, it is important to appreciate the obvious love of books and reading that these authors have, as well as the fact that it represents their own personal and highly biased opinion. Within fairly broad confines, this book has several consistent sorts of books that the authors tend to like the most. They appreciate classic works of obvious and lasting value. They appreciate the sorts of books that aspire to classic status that are often made requiring reading in high school or college, many of which I happened to read as required readings in my own schooling, like Kate Chopin’s Awakening or Allende’s House Of The Spirits, to give two examples included here. In addition to that, the authors have a special fondness for spy novels, detective novels, mysteries, as well as novels about sexuality, and novels that are in general controversial in some fashion, whether for offending moral or political sensibilities. There are some books that any well-read person are likely to be familiar with [3], some that they may want to become better familiar with, and some that they will have no interest reading. Fortunately, at only about 260 pages of material itself, this is a book about books that opens up new vistas and makes the reader familiar with many other books, whether or not one chooses to take up the invitation and read the books mentioned here, which would take years and years, even at my pace, or even travel to some of these places on tours, which would be costly and time-consuming as well, but also likely entertaining and worthwhile.
[1] See, for example:
https://edgeinducedcohesion.wordpress...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.wordpress...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.wordpress...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.wordpress...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.wordpress...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.wordpress...
[2] See, for example:
https://edgeinducedcohesion.wordpress...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.wordpress...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.wordpress...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.wordpress...
[3] See, for example:
https://edgeinducedcohesion.wordpress...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.wordpress...
January 23, 2013
Muy interesante... ya tengo apuntadas próximas lecturas :P
September 20, 2023
Heavy on the British Commonwealth, in particular the Antipodes, but this regional attention--as in India as much as England, say, reminds readers of the variety. Way too many mysteries/ crime novels for my tastes (which don't lean there), a good amount of predictably well-intentioned "diverse" voices from the natives alongside the visitors--who tend to be British...Some baffling choices, inevitably, that crowd out more deserving works--for instance, Halldor Laxness' superb Independent People from Iceland, or Robert Hughes' magisterial Barcelona about Catalonia. Still, for example, seeing the overlooked JG Farrell's Singapore Grip and The Siege of Krishnapur for their respective takes on the Empire in the East is welcome. And, not everyone may want an intellectual treatment of the place, but a light entertainment, as the cover illustration stereotypically reiterates.
Box features allow room for writers such as Joyce, Dickens, or the Brontes whose works span a life's work regarding their immersions in a particular region. Some of the descriptions are potted plot summaries rather than overviews, but you get enough sense of a particular entry's merits--in the eyes of the compilers--to indicate whether to check it out. Helpful are the mentions of film adaptations, for after all, this is how many of us hear of often less promoted titles from more off-beat climes, and more overlooked languages. Now and then. cross-links to the writer's related work in a different locale, or suggestions of a similarly minded selection by a congenial choice, pop up.
Out of the total, I jotted down eight to track down, and eight more to recommend to my wife. (Update: only half of mine made "want to read," and none of them may totally reward the effort, judging from wise Goodreaders. And all those I think my wife might like I've heard of a ways back.)
That may give fellow bookworms an idea of how many worthwhile discoveries may await for a diligent and eclectic audience such as many of you noticing my own critique, out of the hundreds listed in this compendium. However, as in Goodreads, weighing merits and demerits in brief blurbs can frustrate. Scanning choices jogs one's memory as to what one's enjoyed--or not--already. Therefore, a helpful companion to Goodreads itself. For a broader integration of literature, the "Cultural Guides" issued by Oxford UP a few years back may be apt for delving deeper, or the now-slightly-dated "Traveler's Companion" like-minded guides by Passport Books from the early 90s.
3.5 stars, but rounded down rather than up due to the reliance on too many middlebrow genres, whose contributions may not stand the test of "shelf life"--unless they get adapted for Netflix?
Box features allow room for writers such as Joyce, Dickens, or the Brontes whose works span a life's work regarding their immersions in a particular region. Some of the descriptions are potted plot summaries rather than overviews, but you get enough sense of a particular entry's merits--in the eyes of the compilers--to indicate whether to check it out. Helpful are the mentions of film adaptations, for after all, this is how many of us hear of often less promoted titles from more off-beat climes, and more overlooked languages. Now and then. cross-links to the writer's related work in a different locale, or suggestions of a similarly minded selection by a congenial choice, pop up.
Out of the total, I jotted down eight to track down, and eight more to recommend to my wife. (Update: only half of mine made "want to read," and none of them may totally reward the effort, judging from wise Goodreaders. And all those I think my wife might like I've heard of a ways back.)
That may give fellow bookworms an idea of how many worthwhile discoveries may await for a diligent and eclectic audience such as many of you noticing my own critique, out of the hundreds listed in this compendium. However, as in Goodreads, weighing merits and demerits in brief blurbs can frustrate. Scanning choices jogs one's memory as to what one's enjoyed--or not--already. Therefore, a helpful companion to Goodreads itself. For a broader integration of literature, the "Cultural Guides" issued by Oxford UP a few years back may be apt for delving deeper, or the now-slightly-dated "Traveler's Companion" like-minded guides by Passport Books from the early 90s.
3.5 stars, but rounded down rather than up due to the reliance on too many middlebrow genres, whose contributions may not stand the test of "shelf life"--unless they get adapted for Netflix?
September 29, 2021
Got a few good ideas for books to read. I also liked how the book listed movies that were adapted from the books. There were some I wasn’t interested in reading, but thought I would watch.
February 11, 2015
'Reading on Location: Great Books set in top travel destinations' provides a useful, if limited, introduction to books set in various countries across the world. Chapters are presented under continental headings; Africa, The Americas, Australasia etc, and then after that, the countries are presented in an alphabetical format; Algeria through to Zimbabwe. It is not a complete selection under those headings as certain countries are omitted.
Certain entries have further information appended to the end of them - these can range from film references or cross references to other titles in the book. Every now and then there is a small text box which covers some specific topic in depth. These range from 'Hardy's Wessex' through to 'The Rutshire Chronicles'. It's worth noting that these call out boxes aren't indexed which is a shame.
In some instances, certain entries have URLs attached to the bottom of them (a complicated affair in any book - I reproduce one here exactly as written: "http://www.worldheritagesite.org/foru..."). Whilst these links may provide useful information (and the one selected here, now redirects) it's always problematic to link to such unstable URLs and also to provide links of such immense length (I bless the books who use URL shorterners).
As my research is mainly around the United Kingdom at present, I focused on this chapter. It's a chapter which is split down into county specific headings, an idea which occurs at regular occasions in the book - USA is split into states, India into the North, East, key cities and so on. The idea of grouping titles according to their representation of county is something fascinating to me, and I maintain a list of children's literature titles in the UK here which adopts a similar principle in its organisation.
Moncada and Quinn reference several children's titles in their discussion of the UK: Philip Pullman's 'Northern Lights' series, 'Coram Boy' by Jamila Gavin, 'Wind in the Willows' by Kenneth Grahame, 'The Tailor of Gloucester' by Beatrix Potter, 'Swallows and Amazons' by Arthur Ransome and 'The Secret Garden' by Frances Hodgson Burnett. 'Beatrix Potter Land' features in a separate call out box of its own and provides a brief introduction to the author.
Children's books feature sporadically elsewhere in the book - I noticed 'Tintin Under Tibet' under the entry for Tibet and very brief mentions for the Moomin books. Whilst acknowledging the inevitable bias that comes with books of this nature, there felt to be a slight leaning towards books of a certain classical canonical nature and certain authors make reappearances throughout. Whilst this is inevitably influenced by the ability and particular circumstances of these authors to travel and experience these different locales, I would have welcomed some sort of exercise in limiting the selections from these authors.
It's a difficulty, as ever, with books of these nature to reconcile expectations with reality. 'Reading on Location' offers brief moments of what it could have been with witty and insightful commentary on the selection of the relevant texts but unfortunately these moments are all too brief and intermittent. As a whole, 'Reading on Location' descends into an annotated bibliography when it had the opportunity to be something quite special.
Certain entries have further information appended to the end of them - these can range from film references or cross references to other titles in the book. Every now and then there is a small text box which covers some specific topic in depth. These range from 'Hardy's Wessex' through to 'The Rutshire Chronicles'. It's worth noting that these call out boxes aren't indexed which is a shame.
In some instances, certain entries have URLs attached to the bottom of them (a complicated affair in any book - I reproduce one here exactly as written: "http://www.worldheritagesite.org/foru..."). Whilst these links may provide useful information (and the one selected here, now redirects) it's always problematic to link to such unstable URLs and also to provide links of such immense length (I bless the books who use URL shorterners).
As my research is mainly around the United Kingdom at present, I focused on this chapter. It's a chapter which is split down into county specific headings, an idea which occurs at regular occasions in the book - USA is split into states, India into the North, East, key cities and so on. The idea of grouping titles according to their representation of county is something fascinating to me, and I maintain a list of children's literature titles in the UK here which adopts a similar principle in its organisation.
Moncada and Quinn reference several children's titles in their discussion of the UK: Philip Pullman's 'Northern Lights' series, 'Coram Boy' by Jamila Gavin, 'Wind in the Willows' by Kenneth Grahame, 'The Tailor of Gloucester' by Beatrix Potter, 'Swallows and Amazons' by Arthur Ransome and 'The Secret Garden' by Frances Hodgson Burnett. 'Beatrix Potter Land' features in a separate call out box of its own and provides a brief introduction to the author.
Children's books feature sporadically elsewhere in the book - I noticed 'Tintin Under Tibet' under the entry for Tibet and very brief mentions for the Moomin books. Whilst acknowledging the inevitable bias that comes with books of this nature, there felt to be a slight leaning towards books of a certain classical canonical nature and certain authors make reappearances throughout. Whilst this is inevitably influenced by the ability and particular circumstances of these authors to travel and experience these different locales, I would have welcomed some sort of exercise in limiting the selections from these authors.
It's a difficulty, as ever, with books of these nature to reconcile expectations with reality. 'Reading on Location' offers brief moments of what it could have been with witty and insightful commentary on the selection of the relevant texts but unfortunately these moments are all too brief and intermittent. As a whole, 'Reading on Location' descends into an annotated bibliography when it had the opportunity to be something quite special.
February 11, 2012
First of all, I'm such a sucker for books about books. But I rarely come across an anthology worth recommending. The biggest mistake most
anthologies make is trying to be current. An anthology is always at least a year behind the world of publishing. I feel this title did okay at that. There's a wide range of publishing years.
But. The cover with a woman sirtting with her feet up in a rough wood chair win an American western plaid shirt and rolled up jeans is way misleading. I guess maybe she's in the Australian outback since this is put out by a British/ Australian publishing house. So I'm wondering why my local American library bothered to purchase this. Any purchasing librarian should know that a) titles change across borders and b) some books never get published in the states for various reasons. so good luck Americans at figuring out some of these.
The cover is also misleading (and possibly the book's premise) for visually suggesting vacation reading. How many of you ladies have read The Magus on vacation?
Now, if you're like me and interested in reading the world
you'll undoubtedly find a few books of interest. There are of course questionable additions and ommisions. For example I would have liked to have seen a Pete Hamill book under New York and where's Peter Mathiessen?
anthologies make is trying to be current. An anthology is always at least a year behind the world of publishing. I feel this title did okay at that. There's a wide range of publishing years.
But. The cover with a woman sirtting with her feet up in a rough wood chair win an American western plaid shirt and rolled up jeans is way misleading. I guess maybe she's in the Australian outback since this is put out by a British/ Australian publishing house. So I'm wondering why my local American library bothered to purchase this. Any purchasing librarian should know that a) titles change across borders and b) some books never get published in the states for various reasons. so good luck Americans at figuring out some of these.
The cover is also misleading (and possibly the book's premise) for visually suggesting vacation reading. How many of you ladies have read The Magus on vacation?
Now, if you're like me and interested in reading the world
you'll undoubtedly find a few books of interest. There are of course questionable additions and ommisions. For example I would have liked to have seen a Pete Hamill book under New York and where's Peter Mathiessen?
July 30, 2011
I especially liked the section on Africa, because I always feel a bit lost looking for African literature, and the selections looked intriguing. The European section is the longest and most detailed, and had an especially diverse mix of genres. I thought the choices for the U.S. were often strange, but none more so than for the single selection for Utah. (Really? A Zane Grey pulp western about a woman hounded by the Mormon Church for her land? Let's get Wallace Stegner in there.) The book in general does show a certain predilection for books about war and mysteries, though there are generous sprinklings of classics and humor, some romances and a poem and a play or two. I don't know if this is characteristic of literature in general, but novels dealing with sex with minors seemed to crop up more than usual, which I found disquieting.
A lot of great selections and books I probably wouldn't have found otherwise to put on my list of books to read, and probably a book I'll turn to again, but I don't think I'd buy this one. Book selection is so personal, and I guess I'm still looking for a better match. Impressive research, though, and I loved the small keys for additional information on the book that were helpful, but not distracting.
A lot of great selections and books I probably wouldn't have found otherwise to put on my list of books to read, and probably a book I'll turn to again, but I don't think I'd buy this one. Book selection is so personal, and I guess I'm still looking for a better match. Impressive research, though, and I loved the small keys for additional information on the book that were helpful, but not distracting.
May 28, 2011
Good resource if you need to find a book set in a particular country or region. It's arranged by continent then by country or region/city within a country and includes some non-fic in addition to the fiction. Each little blurb includes pub date but not number of pages. There are also icons that indicate any films/TV programs, tourist sites or websites related to some of the titles listed. There weren't an awful lot that I have read - to me they leaned a little too far toward literary & contemporary fiction but there were also a number of "classics" and more popular works in there, too. Some more extensive 'feature boxes' went into more detail about a particularly prominent author, work or historical personage/event. Index listed authors, titles and locations. Titles used seem to have been British versions as I spotted at least three that differed from the US title I was familiar with. So, a useful book, especially if you're doing a challenge or discussion group that is selecting by country.
December 29, 2012
The book lists the novels, short stories or non-fiction titles according to their location or the place where the story is set. For example, if you are in Venice, it would be excited to know (at least for me) that there's a short story written by Thomas Mann called "Death in Venice" or while in Delft, Netherlands you may want to associate "The Girl with the Pearl Earring" by
Tracy Chevalier with this town.
The book is arranged according to geography, with some gist of the particular book associated with the place. A good book for a literary travel.
Tracy Chevalier with this town.
The book is arranged according to geography, with some gist of the particular book associated with the place. A good book for a literary travel.
November 18, 2012
Great resource. Obviously, they couldn't list every book ever written in different locations around the world but it's a good survey. It's broken down by geographical regions, for instance Africa, the Americas, Europe, etc. Then within each region are countries and, in certain cases, cities (Los Angeles, Paris, New York, etc.). It isn't a book which reviews other books but rather a resource. It also includes information on whether the book has been made into a film, if there's a website, etc. Great for giving yourself a chance to dream from your armchair....
January 5, 2015
Got this for 2 bucks in the library sell off. Great resource. I found it useful for finding something different and interesting to turn to next.
I tend to read tons of similar books in a row and realised a service like goodreads, fun as it is, only encourages that pattern because recommendations are made on the basis of what is similar to what you have been reading (not rocket science really ..... But it took an alarmingly long time for me to figure this out).
Does exactly what it says on the cover.
I tend to read tons of similar books in a row and realised a service like goodreads, fun as it is, only encourages that pattern because recommendations are made on the basis of what is similar to what you have been reading (not rocket science really ..... But it took an alarmingly long time for me to figure this out).
Does exactly what it says on the cover.
August 22, 2014
I was given this and was told it was a really fun read. Boy was I disappointed. This book just tells you about where books were written so you can go there and read that book there. I had thought it was some kind of story of how an author wrote in different locations or something. Oh well.
October 8, 2011
Good resource to find books set in a specific country. This definitely added to my to read list.
March 8, 2013
A great starting point for finding destination specific books... though I felt it was a little outdated in some respects.
November 8, 2017
For a book written by two editors, who were their editors? The Book Lust Travel Bk is far superior.
November 7, 2014
Great book recommendations for armchair travel.
June 23, 2016
Great collection of books set all over the world. Good resource if you are looking for specific settings. Good mix of newer and older releases.
Want to read
April 1, 2011Latest addition to the to-be-read pile.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews