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The Global Suitcase: Inspiring Stories of Adventure from 25 Intrepid Travel Writers
The Global Suitcase is a compilation of interviews with everyday people and well-known personalities who have travelled extraordinary journeys or lived unusual lives, often guided by a cause, in the name of work, or in pursuit of adventure. The author recounts in vivid and colourful detail a snapshot of each of their adventures as well as plenty of humorous anecdotes, before describing and presenting each interview. Many people within the pages have risked their lives for a cause or found a new cause through their travels. Many participants showed great strength of character during amazing and dangerous journeys, displaying courage beyond understanding. All of them have learned much about the world and share their philosophies with us. Each interview focuses on the precious and timeless memories each has of their journey. This unique celebration of travel and nostalgia includes Ardal O'Hanlon-actor from the Father Ted series; Jonathan Dimbleby-BBC; Geoff Hill-author; Simon Reeve-BBC; Chris P Baker-author; Dervla Murphy-travel author; exclusive interview Michael Palin's personal cameraman Nigel Meakin; Daniel O'Donnell- singer; Carol Drinkwater-author and actress; and adventurer Marianne Du Toit.
- GenresTravel
234 pages, Hardcover
First published June 1, 2014
About the author
Mary J. Dinan
1 book2 followersMary J Dinan has written a travel book against all odds. An ex television presenter and Jacobs Award winner for television she changed career to work with special needs students.
During the writing of this book;
She interviewed and went to Jonathan Dimbeleby's flat in London
She did an exclusive interview with Michael Palins personal BAFTA Award Winning cameraman Nigel Meakin who has travelled everywhere with him and though fearless is shy.
She had a meeting with Michael Palin in Belfast.
She found herself with a lunch invitation from Dervla Murphy adventure traveller who rarely gives interviews; nonetheless she ended up in Dervla's house.
She interviewed John Simpson BBC journalist and also Zoe Sallis who was married to John Huston movie director. Zoe told Mary of her visit to Nelson Mandela's house in South Africa.
She met and interviewed Simon Reeve BBC despite being on the flat of her back the day before with a team of Neurologists around her.
She met Geoff Hill travel adventurer.
Mary J Dinan ended up in casualty at London's Chelsea and Westminster Hospital with loss of vision in one eye during the writing of the book and had to have a brain scan. She had to be wheeled through Heathrow in a wheelchair to get home to Ireland.
She also suffered severe internal bleeding and was admitted to hospital in Dun Laoghaire while in hospital she wrote article for local paper.
She ended up having to undergo heart tests shortly after handing in the manuscript.
But she's fine now and against all odds after many rejections managed to get an international publisher for her travel book 25 per cent of which she is donating to BBC Children in Need.
It is a story of endurance and one who never gave up on her dream. It is an inspiration never to give up no matter what. All the way through she maintained a sense of humour.
You can see my website by visiting Michael Palin's website
http://www.palinstravels.co.uk/
and download a chapter of my book. 25 percent royalties to BBC Children in Need.
During the writing of this book;
She interviewed and went to Jonathan Dimbeleby's flat in London
She did an exclusive interview with Michael Palins personal BAFTA Award Winning cameraman Nigel Meakin who has travelled everywhere with him and though fearless is shy.
She had a meeting with Michael Palin in Belfast.
She found herself with a lunch invitation from Dervla Murphy adventure traveller who rarely gives interviews; nonetheless she ended up in Dervla's house.
She interviewed John Simpson BBC journalist and also Zoe Sallis who was married to John Huston movie director. Zoe told Mary of her visit to Nelson Mandela's house in South Africa.
She met and interviewed Simon Reeve BBC despite being on the flat of her back the day before with a team of Neurologists around her.
She met Geoff Hill travel adventurer.
Mary J Dinan ended up in casualty at London's Chelsea and Westminster Hospital with loss of vision in one eye during the writing of the book and had to have a brain scan. She had to be wheeled through Heathrow in a wheelchair to get home to Ireland.
She also suffered severe internal bleeding and was admitted to hospital in Dun Laoghaire while in hospital she wrote article for local paper.
She ended up having to undergo heart tests shortly after handing in the manuscript.
But she's fine now and against all odds after many rejections managed to get an international publisher for her travel book 25 per cent of which she is donating to BBC Children in Need.
It is a story of endurance and one who never gave up on her dream. It is an inspiration never to give up no matter what. All the way through she maintained a sense of humour.
You can see my website by visiting Michael Palin's website
http://www.palinstravels.co.uk/
and download a chapter of my book. 25 percent royalties to BBC Children in Need.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
April 6, 2014
Thank you to Goodreads and New Holland publishers for providing me with a copy of this book.
I love to travel and I love to read about travel in all its forms. I love journeys into the unknown and I love exploring my own backyard. You would think this book, a collection of interviews with people who have done exactly that, would suit me perfectly. You would be wrong.
I had high hopes for this book only to be disappointed by it when I was only 20 or so pages in. I decided to stick it out but I think I knew it wouldn’t really get any better.
The author interviews some interesting people who have done interesting things – only the bland style of the interview just doesn’t do them any justice and their stories didn’t really inspire me, which is how I want to feel when I read about other people’s adventures. It just felt like bragging, ‘look at where I’ve been and what I’ve done’. Each person’s adventure was glossed over and I felt like their credentials were given more attention than deserved in a way that the book felt like one big advertisement for other works of print and film. And it didn’t really work, made me feel the opposite. I don’t feel inspired to read their full stories because I feel I’ve had more than enough shoved down my throat about how wonderful each individual person was. They didn’t seem that wonderful! One went horse riding through South America for charity but didn’t know much about riding or horses (those poor horses!), another forgot his anti-malaria pills in Africa (how smart is he!) and only one story emphasised on the money side of things, that you actually need to have money to travel unless the BBC pays you to do it. Some of the adventurers claimed what they were doing was for charity, but how? Why? Did they actually raise any money? I suppose you would say for these kind of answers I would need to read their books, but that's just advertisement and I don't care enough to pursue it that for. There was also the author who bemoaned the tourism industry, saying that there was nowhere to really escape to anymore - as if she was the only person allowed to travel the places that she did! Her and her high horse really annoyed me.
My other issue was with the format and style. The author switches from first to third person within the same sentence and the sentences seem to run on and on while the phrasing is clumsy. The inconsistencies I found just made it just unpleasant for me to read though I understand this won't bother everyone.
If you want the stories, seek out the books of those interviewed or, because that sounds like advertisement, just Google them and give this one a miss.
I love to travel and I love to read about travel in all its forms. I love journeys into the unknown and I love exploring my own backyard. You would think this book, a collection of interviews with people who have done exactly that, would suit me perfectly. You would be wrong.
I had high hopes for this book only to be disappointed by it when I was only 20 or so pages in. I decided to stick it out but I think I knew it wouldn’t really get any better.
The author interviews some interesting people who have done interesting things – only the bland style of the interview just doesn’t do them any justice and their stories didn’t really inspire me, which is how I want to feel when I read about other people’s adventures. It just felt like bragging, ‘look at where I’ve been and what I’ve done’. Each person’s adventure was glossed over and I felt like their credentials were given more attention than deserved in a way that the book felt like one big advertisement for other works of print and film. And it didn’t really work, made me feel the opposite. I don’t feel inspired to read their full stories because I feel I’ve had more than enough shoved down my throat about how wonderful each individual person was. They didn’t seem that wonderful! One went horse riding through South America for charity but didn’t know much about riding or horses (those poor horses!), another forgot his anti-malaria pills in Africa (how smart is he!) and only one story emphasised on the money side of things, that you actually need to have money to travel unless the BBC pays you to do it. Some of the adventurers claimed what they were doing was for charity, but how? Why? Did they actually raise any money? I suppose you would say for these kind of answers I would need to read their books, but that's just advertisement and I don't care enough to pursue it that for. There was also the author who bemoaned the tourism industry, saying that there was nowhere to really escape to anymore - as if she was the only person allowed to travel the places that she did! Her and her high horse really annoyed me.
My other issue was with the format and style. The author switches from first to third person within the same sentence and the sentences seem to run on and on while the phrasing is clumsy. The inconsistencies I found just made it just unpleasant for me to read though I understand this won't bother everyone.
If you want the stories, seek out the books of those interviewed or, because that sounds like advertisement, just Google them and give this one a miss.
March 27, 2014
Mary Dinan has an evident love of travel, and particularly for those people who have made it a significant part of their lives.
This book is an impressive achievement. For one it has proven how skilfully she has travelled what can be a precarious path. She has gone from being an admirer to becoming an author. (In some small part I believe her television background may have also helped I dare say. But generally, and Dinan has proved the exception, television presenters make good authors not.)
Dinan has successfully persuaded 25 inspiring (and fortunate) individuals to sit down with her. They have all travelled extensively, and appealingly not all in the most orthodox ways. It is hard not to notice that the BBC firmament is represented, but sensibly Dinan hasn't allowed them to dominate the line up. (The BBC publicity department is big and bad enough to look after its own.)
There is rigour and balance evident in the background research conducted concerning the travel lives of each interviewee. This comes across in Dinan's short introductions that appear before each interview.
My only gripe concerns a common omission that publishers perhaps anguish over. Here I refer to not having an index. I believe not including one has done the quality of her interviews a disservice.
Impressions so far are otherwise favourable.
A longer review to come on completion of the book.
Finally, I wish to acknowledge that I was grateful to receive a complimentary copy of Mary Dinan's book yesterday from her publicist. Thank you to the thoughtful decision makers behind this gift.
This book is an impressive achievement. For one it has proven how skilfully she has travelled what can be a precarious path. She has gone from being an admirer to becoming an author. (In some small part I believe her television background may have also helped I dare say. But generally, and Dinan has proved the exception, television presenters make good authors not.)
Dinan has successfully persuaded 25 inspiring (and fortunate) individuals to sit down with her. They have all travelled extensively, and appealingly not all in the most orthodox ways. It is hard not to notice that the BBC firmament is represented, but sensibly Dinan hasn't allowed them to dominate the line up. (The BBC publicity department is big and bad enough to look after its own.)
There is rigour and balance evident in the background research conducted concerning the travel lives of each interviewee. This comes across in Dinan's short introductions that appear before each interview.
My only gripe concerns a common omission that publishers perhaps anguish over. Here I refer to not having an index. I believe not including one has done the quality of her interviews a disservice.
Impressions so far are otherwise favourable.
A longer review to come on completion of the book.
Finally, I wish to acknowledge that I was grateful to receive a complimentary copy of Mary Dinan's book yesterday from her publicist. Thank you to the thoughtful decision makers behind this gift.
April 20, 2014
The Global Suitcase by Mary J Dinan is a fantastic collection of inspirational tales from many of the world's renowned travellers as well as favourite celebrities. From the BBC presenter Simon Reeve to Carol Drinkwater and from comedy favourite Ardal O'Hanlon to Northern Irish journalist and adventurer Geoff Hill, the stories will take you on a celebratory journey through lesser travelled regions.
Credit must go to the author Mary Dinan for her painstaking work in collecting these tales of adventure. Each traveller paints a vivid portrait of his or her favourite journey, whether it's soul searching or simply an opportunity to sample another culture. Mary has got into the very heart of each interviewee and the end result is a myriad of truly memorable tales.
Also featured in the colourful collection are travel writer Dervla Murphy, cameraman Nigel Meakin, Jonathan Dimbleby and John Simpson, many of whom have risked life and limb.
The Global Suitcase is a wonderfully exciting book, totally unputdownable and its thrilling stories are a must for any reader or traveller.
Credit must go to the author Mary Dinan for her painstaking work in collecting these tales of adventure. Each traveller paints a vivid portrait of his or her favourite journey, whether it's soul searching or simply an opportunity to sample another culture. Mary has got into the very heart of each interviewee and the end result is a myriad of truly memorable tales.
Also featured in the colourful collection are travel writer Dervla Murphy, cameraman Nigel Meakin, Jonathan Dimbleby and John Simpson, many of whom have risked life and limb.
The Global Suitcase is a wonderfully exciting book, totally unputdownable and its thrilling stories are a must for any reader or traveller.
April 4, 2015
Written in an "interview" style, it served as an update on what some of my favorite travel writers are doing lately.
The stop-action, Q/A format made the book snackable. I jumped around, based on name recognition and matching up the photos with who I wanted to read about. Also learned about travel writers I vaguely knew from bookstore shelves.
I took it along on our spring break Caribbean cruise. It was just right for poolside at the Solarium on Celebrity Eclipse.
The stop-action, Q/A format made the book snackable. I jumped around, based on name recognition and matching up the photos with who I wanted to read about. Also learned about travel writers I vaguely knew from bookstore shelves.
I took it along on our spring break Caribbean cruise. It was just right for poolside at the Solarium on Celebrity Eclipse.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews