{"id":52328,"date":"2024-06-17T06:00:03","date_gmt":"2024-06-17T11:00:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.davenportlibrary.com\/reference\/?p=52328"},"modified":"2024-05-20T17:16:44","modified_gmt":"2024-05-20T22:16:44","slug":"travel-with-a-good-book","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.davenportlibrary.com\/reference\/travel-with-a-good-book\/","title":{"rendered":"TRAVEL WITH A GOOD BOOK"},"content":{"rendered":"

What is travel fiction? It’s a book in which a place is as important to the narrative as a main character. The characters themselves may be traveling, but it can also be a book in which the reader is taken on a journey to the real (or fantastical) place described vividly on each page. It’s a book that shapes the way we see a certain place or whose events and characters could be in no other setting. Or, when written by an author about their own homeland, and so informed by the writer’s culture, that it’s impossible to read it without uncovering the author\u2019s life.<\/p>\n

Travel fiction has the ability to transport you to places you\u2019ve never been and may never go. Through the power of storytelling, you can wander ancient streets in bustling cities, traverse untouched rugged landscapes, and immerse yourself in cultures rich with history and tradition. From the comfort of your armchair, you can discover that the world is vast and boundless, and that the greatest journeys are often those undertaken within the pages of a beloved book. If you don\u2019t have grand travel plans this summer, let a book be your passport to adventure. I\u2019ve selected three fictional books for you to consider for your reading travels.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>The first book, My Brilliant Friend<\/em><\/a><\/strong>\u00a0by Elena Ferrante<\/strong>, is set in a very poor and isolated part of Naples, Italy in the mid-20th<\/sup> century. While the plot follows a lifelong friendship and unravels divergent fates due to economic and cultural circumstances, there are many vivid depictions of place and culture that will draw you in, including: immersion in shopping districts, dazzling views of the Mediterranean Sea and the Amalfi Coast, and revealing the heart of cities like Florence and Milan.<\/p>\n

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\"\"<\/a>In\u00a0Hula : a novel<\/em><\/a> by Jasmin ‘Iolani Hakes<\/strong>, you\u2019ll meet three generations of native Hawaiian women whose lives are closely tied to the art and culture of Hula, including a famous hula teacher, her daughter, Laka, a Miss Aloha Hula contest winner, and Laka\u2019s daughter. This novel explores the tight-knit Hula community within Hilo, Hawaii. It also delves into the history of Hawaii (a now forgotten kingdom that still lives in the heart of her people) and the complicated relationships between family and between the Hawaiian people and Hawaii itself.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

To stretch your imagination a bit further, I\u2019ve included Tokyo Ueno Station<\/strong><\/em><\/a> by Miri Yu\u0304<\/strong> about a homeless ghost, Kazu, who haunts one of Tokyo’s busiest train stations and its nearby park. Kazu\u2019s life in the city began in the park when he arrived as a laborer in the preparation for the 1964 Tokyo Olympics. His life also sadly ended there in the homeless village in the park, a place erected after the 2011 tsunami devastation. We see daily life in Tokyo through Kazu\u2019s eyes as we learn details of his own story that have been shaped at every turn by modern Japanese history.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

It is said that a library card is the best passport you could ever have. Hopefully one of these fictional stories will inspire you to \u201ctravel\u201d somewhere interesting this summer. But, I didn\u2019t forget about those of you who prefer non-fiction\u2026 Check out this book: Around the world in 50 years : my adventure to every country on ea<\/em><\/strong>rth<\/em><\/strong><\/a> by Albert Podell<\/strong>. In his book, Podell describes unusual and exotic places – not just the well-known tourist destinations around the world.\u00a0 Perhaps it will inspire your next travel fiction book selection \u2013 or to an actual travel adventure of your own.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

What is travel fiction? It’s a book in which a place is as important to the narrative as a main character. The characters themselves may be traveling, but it can also be a book in which the reader is taken on a journey to the real (or fantastical) place described[Read more]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":37,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[10,4827],"tags":[8506,1088,121,77,1752,1379],"class_list":["post-52328","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-books","category-travel-talk","tag-fiction-travel-books","tag-hawaii","tag-italy","tag-japan","tag-travel-fiction","tag-world-travel"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pd0CXx-dC0","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.davenportlibrary.com\/reference\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52328","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.davenportlibrary.com\/reference\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.davenportlibrary.com\/reference\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.davenportlibrary.com\/reference\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/37"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.davenportlibrary.com\/reference\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=52328"}],"version-history":[{"count":20,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.davenportlibrary.com\/reference\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52328\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":52349,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.davenportlibrary.com\/reference\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52328\/revisions\/52349"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.davenportlibrary.com\/reference\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=52328"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.davenportlibrary.com\/reference\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=52328"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.davenportlibrary.com\/reference\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=52328"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}