Because I'm a travel writer and a published author, I'm often asked to recommend a few travel books someone should read.
Admittedly, I love books and it warms my heart when someone wants to buy them, but I usually don't like telling someone what to read because everyone's tastes are different. Some like travel memoirs while others do not and if I recommend one and you don't like it, I feel guilty.
However, I'm finally making an exception because I think there are so many good travel books out there right now! I picked five for you to start. Hopefully, after you're done with these you'll want to keep reading and, of course, keep traveling:
National Parks
I'm a big proponent of visiting the national parks and just as big a fan of reading books on the parks. One of my favorites is the National Geographic Complete National Parks of the United States by Mel White. This 544-page hardcover book is the second edition and includes 400+ parks, monuments, battlefields, historic sites, scenic trails, recreation areas and seashores.
The book also has beautiful full-color photos of the parks as well as maps. You can read a lot about the historical background of the parks and learn before you go about the best times to visit, what you can do there and more.
The Best American Travel Writing
There are so many good travel writers out there that it's hard to keep up with all of them and read all their well-written travel essays. These take us to places that some of us will never see in our lives and they bring us there in such a way we can feel and smell the air and experiences that the writer had.
The Best American Travel Writingcompilation, edited by Lauren Collins, consists of some of the best essays from around the world and is a must-read for anyone who loves to travel or those who just love a well-written essay.
BONUS: Guide Books
In this case, I have no specific recommendations. Just pick one up. Where do you dream about going? Buy the guidebook. Start reading about your dream destination and, before you know it, you'll be making plans to visit.
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