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何苦去旅行：我們出發，然後帶著故事歸來
《紐約時報》旅遊作家葛羅斯幽默作品，安東尼‧波登生前熱情推薦的一本書！
說真的，你到底為什麼旅行？
揹包客、旅遊作家如我，老愛說旅行很重要，我們會不厭其煩地介紹便宜機票和住宿，
都說旅行如何改變、豐富我們的生命，旅行是我們的宗教，我們是它的傳教士，永遠會告訴你旅行有益。
但實際上，你一定已經發現──
旅行又花錢又麻煩又不舒服，你計畫計畫再計畫，然後直到人出現在烏魯木齊，才發現必須再等四天才能買去北京的火車票。你在法蘭克福無聊死，在希臘小島病懨懨，在喬治亞染上跳蚤，你出發前說要目睹世界驚奇探索生命，歸來卻只有一手禮品而空無啟示。
何必多此一舉呢？何不度最簡單的假期，跟著旅行團去巴黎？何不乾脆參加吃喝玩樂全包的加勒比海度假村之旅？你家附近就有好吃的印度餐廳，又何必拖著行李去印度冒著拉肚子的風險？你已經忙到沒時間與家人好友好好聚聚，幹嘛還大老遠去外國交朋友？何不花錢讓旅行社搞妥一切，讓吃飽太閒的人去冒險就好？
嗯，這是我旅行一趟又一趟──包括來臺灣無數次──之後，要告訴大家的故事，是我旅途中一次又一次的掙扎與領悟──很想玩得盡興、卻又想省錢，怎辦？該仔細規畫行程，還是隨興冒險？該享受獨行，還是該多交朋友？該大膽嘗試在地美食，還是小心翼翼別拉肚子？
親愛的讀者們，希望你讀了這本書，能更清楚知道在踏上旅途後，將面對一個什麼樣的世界……
說真的，你到底為什麼旅行？
揹包客、旅遊作家如我，老愛說旅行很重要，我們會不厭其煩地介紹便宜機票和住宿，
都說旅行如何改變、豐富我們的生命，旅行是我們的宗教，我們是它的傳教士，永遠會告訴你旅行有益。
但實際上，你一定已經發現──
旅行又花錢又麻煩又不舒服，你計畫計畫再計畫，然後直到人出現在烏魯木齊，才發現必須再等四天才能買去北京的火車票。你在法蘭克福無聊死，在希臘小島病懨懨，在喬治亞染上跳蚤，你出發前說要目睹世界驚奇探索生命，歸來卻只有一手禮品而空無啟示。
何必多此一舉呢？何不度最簡單的假期，跟著旅行團去巴黎？何不乾脆參加吃喝玩樂全包的加勒比海度假村之旅？你家附近就有好吃的印度餐廳，又何必拖著行李去印度冒著拉肚子的風險？你已經忙到沒時間與家人好友好好聚聚，幹嘛還大老遠去外國交朋友？何不花錢讓旅行社搞妥一切，讓吃飽太閒的人去冒險就好？
嗯，這是我旅行一趟又一趟──包括來臺灣無數次──之後，要告訴大家的故事，是我旅途中一次又一次的掙扎與領悟──很想玩得盡興、卻又想省錢，怎辦？該仔細規畫行程，還是隨興冒險？該享受獨行，還是該多交朋友？該大膽嘗試在地美食，還是小心翼翼別拉肚子？
親愛的讀者們，希望你讀了這本書，能更清楚知道在踏上旅途後，將面對一個什麼樣的世界……
368 pages, Paperback
First published April 23, 2013
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852 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 70 reviews
September 7, 2013
Such a disappointment.
I love reading the New York Times. I love the experience of traveling and discovering other worlds. I really love memoirs. Given all of that, I thought this would be a fantastic book -- or at least a really good read.
It wasn't.
Instead of the digging into the type of self-awareness that can make for a good memoir, the author chose to deliver a fairly bland travelogue. He offered up a chronology of travel stops rather than describing to me what he saw and felt and experienced during those trips. Proof? He stated at one point that he couldn't really remember what happened during his travels because they weren't that real to him.
Seriously.
That disassociation was apparent throughout the book as he talked non-stop about how he both didn't really understand why people wanted to travel, nor really understood why they wanted to stay home either.
Why are you a travel writer again?
He even had an opportunity to travel back and trace his family's roots in Eastern Europe where he discovered that the whole village his people were from had been wiped out by a pogrom. Only... he didn't really feel a connection to the experience because he didn't feel particularly Jewish. (Or maybe... Maybe you don't feel particularly Jewish because your whole culture and roots to your identity were wiped out in a genocide so your genealogical legacy is to wander the globe never feeling truly at home anywhere. So maybe that's something you could look into.)
Or not. Whatever.
He spent a lengthy section of the book talking about how he wasn't close to his brother because once when he was in high school, his brother told his family at the dinner table who the author had a crush on. And so 20 years later, after whole sections of the book were devoted to how annoying he found his brother during a trip to Montreal, he decided to say something about it. And of course the brother had seriously no idea what the author was even talking about.
Me either.
And worst of all -- his writing was deeply unengaging, skipped back and forth in time so awkwardly I frequently lost the thread, and was filled with the type of boasts that only someone without self-awareness of his own white, male privilege would possibly feel the need to divulge to the world. A tendency that was never more apparently than early in the book when he actually printed, word-for-word, an email his boss sent around praising the fact that the author's writing had recently gotten better.
Really. That happened.
One time someone told him that his writing wasn't as crappy as it used to be.
Once.
I love reading the New York Times. I love the experience of traveling and discovering other worlds. I really love memoirs. Given all of that, I thought this would be a fantastic book -- or at least a really good read.
It wasn't.
Instead of the digging into the type of self-awareness that can make for a good memoir, the author chose to deliver a fairly bland travelogue. He offered up a chronology of travel stops rather than describing to me what he saw and felt and experienced during those trips. Proof? He stated at one point that he couldn't really remember what happened during his travels because they weren't that real to him.
Seriously.
That disassociation was apparent throughout the book as he talked non-stop about how he both didn't really understand why people wanted to travel, nor really understood why they wanted to stay home either.
Why are you a travel writer again?
He even had an opportunity to travel back and trace his family's roots in Eastern Europe where he discovered that the whole village his people were from had been wiped out by a pogrom. Only... he didn't really feel a connection to the experience because he didn't feel particularly Jewish. (Or maybe... Maybe you don't feel particularly Jewish because your whole culture and roots to your identity were wiped out in a genocide so your genealogical legacy is to wander the globe never feeling truly at home anywhere. So maybe that's something you could look into.)
Or not. Whatever.
He spent a lengthy section of the book talking about how he wasn't close to his brother because once when he was in high school, his brother told his family at the dinner table who the author had a crush on. And so 20 years later, after whole sections of the book were devoted to how annoying he found his brother during a trip to Montreal, he decided to say something about it. And of course the brother had seriously no idea what the author was even talking about.
Me either.
And worst of all -- his writing was deeply unengaging, skipped back and forth in time so awkwardly I frequently lost the thread, and was filled with the type of boasts that only someone without self-awareness of his own white, male privilege would possibly feel the need to divulge to the world. A tendency that was never more apparently than early in the book when he actually printed, word-for-word, an email his boss sent around praising the fact that the author's writing had recently gotten better.
Really. That happened.
One time someone told him that his writing wasn't as crappy as it used to be.
Once.
February 23, 2014
Yes, Matt Gross rambles.Yes, he jumps around from trip to trip and year to year without notice. From the reviews I've seen here, some people couldn't deal with that. Fine. But Gross writes the way many (most?) of us discuss our travel histories. He connects with some of us, He doesn't connect with others. That's fine, because for those he does connect with (I count myself among them), this is a book that gets you thinking about where you've been and what you've done and why. Why do we travel? What do we want from travel? Gross's experiences resonate. For me, this book works.
August 31, 2013
Hmmm, not what I thought it was going to be. While there is certainly some travel in this memoir, it's far more the author's musings on his own philosophy of travel than it is a travel memoir. I was hoping for well-written stories from 'round the world and instead was mostly inside Matt Gross's head, and inside his head it's not particularly eloquent. Not my cup of tea, but it might be yours.
Full review found on my blog: http://asthecrowefliesandreads.blogsp...
Full review found on my blog: http://asthecrowefliesandreads.blogsp...
May 15, 2014
Most interesting when talking about travel, less so when Matt is navel-gazing.
April 21, 2013
What made Matt Gross' columns as "The Frugal Traveler" for the New York Times so engaging was the fact that he is, first and foremost, a good writer. He tells a story -- not about the broad details of a place, but about how he experienced it. There are far too many "be sure to eat at this restaurant" guides out there today. What Matt is able to do is give his readers a reason to go out and explore.
This book continues what has worked in his past writing, blending travel stories about people and places with his own memoirs and experiences as a travel writer. This book is not a travel guide -- and other reviewers may complain about this fact, but I see it as a strength. What Matt does well in this book is tell a good story.
And, at the end of the day, what all of us want from our travels are those great stories.
This book continues what has worked in his past writing, blending travel stories about people and places with his own memoirs and experiences as a travel writer. This book is not a travel guide -- and other reviewers may complain about this fact, but I see it as a strength. What Matt does well in this book is tell a good story.
And, at the end of the day, what all of us want from our travels are those great stories.
August 17, 2014
He should have stuck to short-form journalism or blogs. Had to abandon this one after 100 pages as it was too boring and self-centered. I never made it to the Turks who loved apples, which was the title that caught my eye. :(
Read
May 17, 2023I went to high school with Matt, and it was delightful to read this book and find he is the same frank, authentic, smart, self-assured/self-conscious, competent and kind blend of a person he was then. I confess I knew nothing of the Frugal Traveler prior to this point, but what a great adventure he's had, for which I'm glad. I appreciate the human in travel writing, and this book, part-memoir, part-travelogue, all invitation to see the world through one particular, if relatively cosmopolitan, perspective and maybe, just maybe, take a trip somewhere yourself, was just what I was wanting when I was looking for an "escape" memoir/travel book, picked it up because the title caught my eye, and idly thought, "Hey, I knew a guy named Matt Gross, he was in my AP French class, skater dude, nice guy" only to find that yes, indeed, here he is. Well done, Matt!
June 18, 2021
When you hear the words "travel writers" the names: Rolf Potts, Doug Lansky, Rick Steeves and Matt Kepnes spring to mind. They are travel writers that have written about their adventures over the world, shared their highs and lows with us and inspired us to travel. Matt Gross is not in this group. A former writing for the New York Times, I very much wanted to hear from the writer that inspired me to travel on a budget. I couldn't be more disappointed with this book.
In this offering, Gross writes about his 30 years of travel around the world, but with a focus on Vietnam and Cambodia, then a sad attempt at the philosophy of "getting lost" and ending with the experience of traveling with his family. He offers no excitement in his writing, no humor, no suspense and no cohesion in his narrative. There is no description of the places he's been to, the things he's seen, the ups and downs, just him describing random events in a jumbled manner.
He will begin to describe a situation, then without a thought jump to another completely unrelated part of the world in another time and with nothing to join the former with the latter. His writing is difficult to follow, difficult to care about. When he describes the four roommates he had and the landlady who rented his apartment in Vietnam, they are nothing but a passing thought. Interestingly, he spends more time discussing his experience with a prostitute than with the friends he's met along the way. As an extra tasteless nod he includes a mild fetishizing of Asian women being attracted to his background in his book.
If this book had come from a first time traveler with no writing experience, I could have forgiven the author. I had high expectations from Gross and I'm sad to say he's failed to live up to the writings of the authors I mentioned above.
Perhaps in his next work, he will be able to call himself a travel writer.
In this offering, Gross writes about his 30 years of travel around the world, but with a focus on Vietnam and Cambodia, then a sad attempt at the philosophy of "getting lost" and ending with the experience of traveling with his family. He offers no excitement in his writing, no humor, no suspense and no cohesion in his narrative. There is no description of the places he's been to, the things he's seen, the ups and downs, just him describing random events in a jumbled manner.
He will begin to describe a situation, then without a thought jump to another completely unrelated part of the world in another time and with nothing to join the former with the latter. His writing is difficult to follow, difficult to care about. When he describes the four roommates he had and the landlady who rented his apartment in Vietnam, they are nothing but a passing thought. Interestingly, he spends more time discussing his experience with a prostitute than with the friends he's met along the way. As an extra tasteless nod he includes a mild fetishizing of Asian women being attracted to his background in his book.
If this book had come from a first time traveler with no writing experience, I could have forgiven the author. I had high expectations from Gross and I'm sad to say he's failed to live up to the writings of the authors I mentioned above.
Perhaps in his next work, he will be able to call himself a travel writer.
April 29, 2013
Another disappointment. This book looked so interesting to begin with and I read a couple of pages and liked the style. It wasn't until I got into it that I realized that he not only lost his way around the world (see title), he lost his way in his narrative.
It's a bit like listening to a garrulous story teller saying, "Now where was I?" and "That reminds me off the time I left my underwear in Cambodia yuk yuk, now what made me think of that". It's so random and he's so self-satisfied. Even his criticism of himself and his sorta self-analysis come off smug.
There's no theme to this book, no unifying idea, no analysis, no real insight. The chapters are arbitrary divisions and he wanders around like a lost soul, trying to be interesting. Actually, a lost soul would be more interesting.
The best thing about this book is the title.
It's a bit like listening to a garrulous story teller saying, "Now where was I?" and "That reminds me off the time I left my underwear in Cambodia yuk yuk, now what made me think of that". It's so random and he's so self-satisfied. Even his criticism of himself and his sorta self-analysis come off smug.
There's no theme to this book, no unifying idea, no analysis, no real insight. The chapters are arbitrary divisions and he wanders around like a lost soul, trying to be interesting. Actually, a lost soul would be more interesting.
The best thing about this book is the title.
May 30, 2013
I wanted so badly to like this book by the former Frugal Travel columnist at The New York Times but it's a weak and wasted effort. The best parts are quick glimpses of exotic lands where Gross felt truly challenged, but the volume is marred by overly self-conscious internal dialogues such as the hoary discussion over whether after all this time the author considered himself a "traveler" or a "tourist." For Chrissakes, the author was a neither -- rather Gross was a well compensated travel writer working for one of the most prominent newspapers on the planet. Too bad the experience didn't teach Gross how to tell a story spanning more than 1,500 words. Goes to show not every blogger (or reporter) can write a book worth reading.
June 23, 2013
The premise of this book interested me because I love to travel. However soon after starting this book I realized Matt Gross and I would not make great travel companions. I found him a little condescending and self-righteous. He likes immersing himself in a culture rather than seeing the sights but it is unrealistic for him to expect that of anybody who spends less than a year in one spot... Even he himself can tell tales from each country but he never became a part of that culture. So trying to achieve this is futile in my eyes. I didn't learn much from this book about parts of the world I want to travel to, not because he didn't go there, but because he approached his travels in such a different way than I would.
January 19, 2014
Usually I love short stories and travel stories but Matt Gross, while having interesting adventures, just can't seem to tell us a story all the way through. The reading is very choppy because each chapter seems to start out telling us an adventure and then suddenly we veer off on random tangents. But we never seem to come back and finish the original story! I would wonder while reading, "Umm, are we going to come back to the crazy guy pulled over by the cop? Does this somehow relate to the crazy guy? When is the crazy guy coming back? What happened to the crazy guy?!!!" It becomes very distracting. The stories were interesting. Gross has a nice way with words, but the format drove me crazy.
February 27, 2019
Halfway through and will not waste my time any further. To put it simply, this is the most unreflected travelogue (if you can call it that, since it‘s more of a completely discombobulated exercise in navel-gazing) I have ever had the misfortune to read. Especially the South Asia parts differ none at all from the typical “White Western guy goes to SE Asia to live on the cheap, gets drunk, eats food, reduces SE Asian women to stereotypes“ narrative. So disappointed.
I bought a used copy of this book and the note I found inside (from a mother to her daughter) frankly conveyed more emotional depth than this book.
I bought a used copy of this book and the note I found inside (from a mother to her daughter) frankly conveyed more emotional depth than this book.
October 8, 2013
What a waste of time. Surprising since I enjoyed his Frugal Traveler column in the NYT. Self-indulgent, shallow and silly, it taxed my long standing rule of finishing every book I start. His arm must ache from constantly patting himself on the back. If there was a prize for pettiness, he'd win it annually.
I will say I enjoyed the two or three pages mid book where he describes his time with the title character. Too bad there wasn't more of that and less of Thai prostitutes, condoms, his brother Steve and his wife's thong panties.
I will say I enjoyed the two or three pages mid book where he describes his time with the title character. Too bad there wasn't more of that and less of Thai prostitutes, condoms, his brother Steve and his wife's thong panties.
March 28, 2014
I like the Frugal Traveler column in the New York Times and have been a follower for some time. This book, from the column author, was a jumble of personal thoughts, experiences and inner monologues on the authors life and travels. It did not sustain my interest or provide any insights on travel.
November 29, 2020
This made me desperate for travel, in a year when I've gone nowhere because of Covid restrictions. I can't praise this book enough, and I almost teared up a couple times just for the memories of my previous trips, and the longing for more.
April 24, 2013
Amazing and inspiring! Must read and the best lesson....go get lost to find yourself!
July 18, 2015
The best line of this book is, "Seen one Taj, seen Mahal."
August 14, 2017
A really good account of the authors life as the writer of the NYT Frugal Traveller column. I found his story most interesting and well written.
June 12, 2025
I picked this up, because I'm also a long-term traveler and thought it would be fun to relate. And I did. I've gone through a couple of his travel mindset changes myself. I enjoyed his writing style--first time reader--and found it interesting how some of his experiences have been very different from mine simply by being a white male in certain parts of the world. One thing I found confusing and off-putting was including stories about prostitutes. Short of doing so to reaffirm that travelers should never exploit the locals, it's a bad look. Unfortunately, he exploited a local prostitute, wrote about why it was bad to do so, then confirmed that he would do it again if he could rewind time. Not a good look and really shaded how I read the rest of the book. I'm certain he has loads of stories to choose from, and I would have preferred a shorter book or a different story. That aside, it's a good example of the ups and downs of long-term travel, good for someone who has never done it to learn or for someone who has, to relate.
June 6, 2017
For once I get to read a travel writer who is a lot like me: neurotic and an over thinker. It seems like many of Matt Gross's anxieties about traveling and fitting in and doing the right thing are my anxieties, too. For that reason, this book was very engaging for me-- for once there's somebody out there who is both comfortable and uncomfortable in the world and own skin.
Gross, who once wrote as the NY Times "Frugal Traveler", recounts his experiences and reflections on traveling and being a travel writer. He covers everything from making friends with a variety of people, becoming enemies with your bowels, coping with the poverty and mores of third world countries, traveling with family, and, ultimately, the complexity of coming home. If you are a novice traveler or a seasoned one, this book provides many insights on what it means to see the world.
Gross, who once wrote as the NY Times "Frugal Traveler", recounts his experiences and reflections on traveling and being a travel writer. He covers everything from making friends with a variety of people, becoming enemies with your bowels, coping with the poverty and mores of third world countries, traveling with family, and, ultimately, the complexity of coming home. If you are a novice traveler or a seasoned one, this book provides many insights on what it means to see the world.
December 23, 2021
它正是此刻的我所需要的書，渴望逃離、厭惡一成不變，卻又無法放下一切。有人能代替我實現這個旅程，那麼我只需要坐著好好讀完就行。這就是書的作用之一，低成本的角色扮演，你可以在任何時刻輕鬆地變成書中的主角，身入其境體驗他們花數年經歷而淬煉成的心血結晶。
為了微薄的稿費把自己丟到全然陌生的環境，成為一個旅行作家，忍受文明世界無法想像得到的艱辛路程，甚至還不一定能有所「體悟」，看來不是一個「正常」的台灣人會做的事，正因如此，他（即便是外國人）的故事使我著迷。描述旅行的故事一直以來都深受我的喜愛，即便這不是典型的旅遊書，而是想要刻意尋找什麼，到頭來卻可能苦無發現，甚至嘲笑自己的愚蠢的，由挫敗所組成的雜記。
書的前半段越南遭遇（他在那邊當英文老師以及英文校稿）不太符合繁體「何苦去旅行」的書名，只有接近書本尾聲，他才在自己的反思之中詢問自己是不是生性熱愛漂泊，無法停留在一個地方，後來有女兒之後反而漸漸可以適應有「家」的存在。
與弟弟修補關係那一段也很精彩，焦點不再是有多少值得體驗的餐廳、料理或劇場表演，而是作者的心境轉折，始終無法放下和他聰明、博學且擅於取得陌生人喜愛比較的心態也到最後化開（即便不完美，而且兩兄弟的喜好各有不同）
還有一段印象深刻的立陶宛尋根之旅（因為自己的姓氏在美國即便是猶太人也不常見），我對他的冷漠無感也不是很訝異，因為作者的個性有點自命不凡XD 但換作是我，親眼看到先賢所生活的地方應該也不會有任何感覺吧，因為我的故鄉並不是他方。
為了微薄的稿費把自己丟到全然陌生的環境，成為一個旅行作家，忍受文明世界無法想像得到的艱辛路程，甚至還不一定能有所「體悟」，看來不是一個「正常」的台灣人會做的事，正因如此，他（即便是外國人）的故事使我著迷。描述旅行的故事一直以來都深受我的喜愛，即便這不是典型的旅遊書，而是想要刻意尋找什麼，到頭來卻可能苦無發現，甚至嘲笑自己的愚蠢的，由挫敗所組成的雜記。
書的前半段越南遭遇（他在那邊當英文老師以及英文校稿）不太符合繁體「何苦去旅行」的書名，只有接近書本尾聲，他才在自己的反思之中詢問自己是不是生性熱愛漂泊，無法停留在一個地方，後來有女兒之後反而漸漸可以適應有「家」的存在。
與弟弟修補關係那一段也很精彩，焦點不再是有多少值得體驗的餐廳、料理或劇場表演，而是作者的心境轉折，始終無法放下和他聰明、博學且擅於取得陌生人喜愛比較的心態也到最後化開（即便不完美，而且兩兄弟的喜好各有不同）
還有一段印象深刻的立陶宛尋根之旅（因為自己的姓氏在美國即便是猶太人也不常見），我對他的冷漠無感也不是很訝異，因為作者的個性有點自命不凡XD 但換作是我，親眼看到先賢所生活的地方應該也不會有任何感覺吧，因為我的故鄉並不是他方。
August 25, 2018
Some really great stories, and a few interesting perspectives from a well seasoned traveler, though Gross can ramble a bit, which can be distracting. Overall good read, particularly if you enjoy his style of writing.
May 11, 2017
The stories jump around way too much
August 14, 2019
這是一本非常主觀的書，整本書都是在抱怨與流水帳內容，我認為作者為了旅行而旅行，聲稱自己帶了故事歸來，我並不覺得形容事件叫做故事，旅行中心靈上的滋養在書中幾乎看不見，作者並不是以一個開放的心態來旅行，前言作者寫道：「旅行既麻煩又不舒服。」讀完此書，我還真的會覺得旅行真是糟透了，令人失望的書。
October 14, 2020
This book moved very slow and jumped around in time during stories. I struggled to read this for over a year and recently finished it on vacation, it was a waste of packing space.
November 2, 2024
Matt is a good writer, and obviously a foodie and an alcoholic. I enjoyed the travels. The detailed and repetitious analysis, not so much.
February 15, 2019
Gross' "The Turk Who Loved Apples" is an engrossing read (no pun intended). It helps that I could identify quite a bit with some of Gross' characteristics, like his fear of death, interest in tracing his roots, and general interest in how we travel. But even if that doesn't sound like you, Gross does a terrific job putting the reader in the scene. He even breaks down the formula he uses to put readers in the scene, which is surely particularly helpful to aspiring travel writers.
April 16, 2013
Recently I had the chance to read The Turk who Loved Apples as I was provided an advance copy (book hits Amazon.com on April 23rd, 2013) to review.
Many of you know I am an avid traveler. Often with my husband at my side, frequently with my friends along for the journey as well, and occasionally all on my own I set out for weekend adventures near and far across the globe. I generally log at least 120,000 miles on Delta Airlines each year flying to and from various destinations. With a love of travel and a love of reading I'm naturally drawn to the travel writing genre. And there are some stars (I'm looking at you Anthony Bourdain, Peter Mayle and Bill Bryson)and some fantastic articles, stories, collections, and novels that come out of this genre. Sadly, Matt's latest book is not one of them.
Overall, Matt Gross is a credible travel author and guide. He presents an experienced voice in his work for the New York Times and is highly respected in the genre. In The Turk who Loved Apples, Mr. Gross explains that much of his travel writing has been on spec and conforms to his buyers' formatting, structure, and content requirements yet there is a whole world of experiences and observations he's collected on his travels that have value for others and thus he has in mind to share them.
I've not read many of Matt's short form pieces but his long form as presented in this book suffers from a style that doesn't deliver suspense, a sense of intrigue, or strong characters to draw in the readers' emotions. When I read travel writing, I want adventure or deep emotional outpourings that I can identify with and Matt's text falls short. In the beginning of the book he details his start in travel writing and recounts his time in Asia & I found myself waiting for the story to pull me in. Disappointment set in as with each page my hopes were dashed a bit further that the material would ever become truly engaging. Finally (finally!), I reached a chapter within which Mr. Gross wrote eloquently about his relationship with his roommates, reflecting on the emotional connections between them and pulling me in to root for him (for him to succeed, for him to love and be loved, for him to enjoy his travels)for the first time. I perked up, satisfied that my patience in grinding through the earlier lackluster sections was now producing rewards.
And then Matt detailed his experience with a hooker and his feelings about the situation- both in the moment and afterward and here he lost me again and forever. Do you know how many travel books I've read in the past year where white, educated men from America have seen fit to detail their sex encounters with prostitutes overseas? Three. It's disgusting and shameful. I don't want to read about your post sex-trade enlightenment! I don't want to know about your crisis of consciousness (or lack thereof) and the good and the bad of what you did when confronted with the offer of cheap sex from a woman who thinks so little of herself or has so little to lose that she is selling her body. And I hate the idea that someone who writes about this is going to make revenue from selling his story. You buy a woman's dignity cheap and wholesale, then turn around and repackage it in a voyeuristic story for your audience, selling it to them for profit. If you've paid for sex, confess your sin to God, not your book audience.
I never did read about this Turk - the one who loved apples - because I couldn't make it past the wistful story of "that time I caved and bought sex".
Many of you know I am an avid traveler. Often with my husband at my side, frequently with my friends along for the journey as well, and occasionally all on my own I set out for weekend adventures near and far across the globe. I generally log at least 120,000 miles on Delta Airlines each year flying to and from various destinations. With a love of travel and a love of reading I'm naturally drawn to the travel writing genre. And there are some stars (I'm looking at you Anthony Bourdain, Peter Mayle and Bill Bryson)and some fantastic articles, stories, collections, and novels that come out of this genre. Sadly, Matt's latest book is not one of them.
Overall, Matt Gross is a credible travel author and guide. He presents an experienced voice in his work for the New York Times and is highly respected in the genre. In The Turk who Loved Apples, Mr. Gross explains that much of his travel writing has been on spec and conforms to his buyers' formatting, structure, and content requirements yet there is a whole world of experiences and observations he's collected on his travels that have value for others and thus he has in mind to share them.
I've not read many of Matt's short form pieces but his long form as presented in this book suffers from a style that doesn't deliver suspense, a sense of intrigue, or strong characters to draw in the readers' emotions. When I read travel writing, I want adventure or deep emotional outpourings that I can identify with and Matt's text falls short. In the beginning of the book he details his start in travel writing and recounts his time in Asia & I found myself waiting for the story to pull me in. Disappointment set in as with each page my hopes were dashed a bit further that the material would ever become truly engaging. Finally (finally!), I reached a chapter within which Mr. Gross wrote eloquently about his relationship with his roommates, reflecting on the emotional connections between them and pulling me in to root for him (for him to succeed, for him to love and be loved, for him to enjoy his travels)for the first time. I perked up, satisfied that my patience in grinding through the earlier lackluster sections was now producing rewards.
And then Matt detailed his experience with a hooker and his feelings about the situation- both in the moment and afterward and here he lost me again and forever. Do you know how many travel books I've read in the past year where white, educated men from America have seen fit to detail their sex encounters with prostitutes overseas? Three. It's disgusting and shameful. I don't want to read about your post sex-trade enlightenment! I don't want to know about your crisis of consciousness (or lack thereof) and the good and the bad of what you did when confronted with the offer of cheap sex from a woman who thinks so little of herself or has so little to lose that she is selling her body. And I hate the idea that someone who writes about this is going to make revenue from selling his story. You buy a woman's dignity cheap and wholesale, then turn around and repackage it in a voyeuristic story for your audience, selling it to them for profit. If you've paid for sex, confess your sin to God, not your book audience.
I never did read about this Turk - the one who loved apples - because I couldn't make it past the wistful story of "that time I caved and bought sex".
February 3, 2024
The kindest I can be is that he needed a more judicious editor. The more I read I wonder at people with greater talents in both writing and travel not holding the position that the author had with the New York Times. Sounds like they got what they paid for with that gig.
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