Armchair Travel
February 2022
Recent Releases
Around the World in 80 Books
by David Damrosch

What it is: A fascinating look at traveling via the written word.

What happened: With COVID-19 raging, Harvard comparative literature scholar David Damrosch took illuminating journeys through a wide variety of books, exploring their connections with each another and the world.

Also available in eBook on CloudLibrary
Lost in the Valley of Death: A Story of Obsession and Danger in the Himalayas
by Harley Rustad

What it's about: The life and unsolved disappearance of 35-year-old American backpacker and Instagrammer Justin Alexander Shetler, who'd traveled the world and ended up on a spiritual quest in India's remote Parvati Valley, where dozens of tourists have gone missing in recent decades.

 
Every Day the River Changes: Four Weeks Down the Magdalena
by Jordan Salama

What it is: The engaging debut of Jordan Salama, who, as part of his college thesis, traveled the 950-mile Magdalena River in Colombia in 2018 and explored the river and the lives of its residents, including a canoe builder, fishermen, a traveling librarian and his donkeys, and biologists studying invasive hippopotamuses.

Also available in eBook on Libby
Books You May Have Missed
Bicycling with Butterflies: My 10,201-Mile Journey Following the Monarch Migration
by Sara Dykman

What happened: Outdoor educator and researcher Sara Dykman took a solo bicycle journey (on a bike made from old and recycled parts), from Central Mexico, through the U.S., into Canada, and back to Mexico, following the monarch butterflies on their amazing annual migration.

For fans of: Butterflies; cycling; adventuresome travelogues that cover nature and science topics.

Also available in eBook & eAudiobook on Hoopla
Icebound: Shipwrecked at the Edge of the World
by Andrea Pitzer

The quest: In the 1590s, Dutch explorer Williams Barents attempted to find a northern route to China by sailing into uncharted Arctic waters.

The problem: The first two attempts didn't go well and the third was worse, leaving Barents and his crew icebound for months while fighting off scurvy, hunger, and polar bears.
 
The Last Nomad: Coming of Age in the Somali Desert
by Shugri Said Salh

What it is: The evocative memoir of Shugri Said Salh, who was sent to live with her nomadic grandmother in the Somali desert for several years as a child, and who, after civil war broke out in her country, fled to Kenya as a refugee, before settling in Canada and later California. 

Also available in eBook & eAudiobook on Hoopla
How the Word Is Passed: A Reckoning with the History of Slavery Across America
by Clint Smith

What it is: An acclaimed, thoughtful travelogue detailing author Clint Smith's visits to places connected to slavery in the U.S. that includes discussions with tour guides and visitors as well as eye-opening history.

Locations include: Louisiana's Angola State Prison (including its gift shop), which is located on the site of a former plantation; Thomas Jefferson's Monticello in Virginia; Galveston, Texas, where Juneteenth began; various sites in New York City; the House of Slaves in Senegal.

Also available in eAudiobook on Libby
Also available in eAudiobook on CloudLibrary
Contact your librarian for more great books!