Books to Give You Wanderlust
For those bookworms among you, here we have some suggestions that could inspire you to get your head out of those books and on the road or into the wilderness. These stories offer some escapism for the restless soul, and they might even get you planning your own excursion into the great outdoors, with wanderlust stirring in your belly. On the way, you could even visit some of the landmarks mentioned in the books.
On the Road – Jack Kerouac
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“Something, someone, some spirit was pursuing all of us across the desert of life and was bound to catch us before we reached heaven.”
This, the quintessential travel novel, explores the counterculture of the post war generation. The carefree, nomadic characters in On the Road explore North America with a penchant for adventure. The vivid tales and richly described scenes will inspire your own fantasies of living out the ‘American Dream’.
The Beach – Alex Garland
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“Tourists went on holidays while travellers did something else. They travelled.”
This famous story of backpackers looking for something new, something apart from the everyday, begins with a mysterious map given to the protagonist. The consequent adventure is spurred on by a desire to find paradise – something that proves elusive. It might, however, prompt you to go in search of your own slice of paradise, perhaps in Thailand where the film version was set.
Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail – Cheryl Strayed
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“The experience was powerful and fundamental. It seemed to me that it had always felt like this to be a human in the wild, and as long as the wild existed it would always feel this way.”
Cheryl Strayed tackled one of the toughest trails in the world, the Pacific Crest Trail, after losing her mother. This journey of self-discovery and healing takes you from baking deserts to frozen mountain peaks. Not only is your imagination fed with a brilliant visualisation of the trail, but you’re also led along an emotional journey that demonstrates how travelling and exploring the powerful natural world can change your very perspective on life. This is the very goal towards which wanderlust drives us.
Tales of a Female Nomad: Living at Large in the World – Rita Golden Gelman
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“I have buried my fears, abandoned self-consciousness, and allowed myself to slide into sensation. I like the person I have become.”
This is a story of a woman who hasn’t had the opportunity to travel until later in her life. Realising she isn’t happy and is missing something, she goes off to immerse herself in other cultures around the world. Rita Golden Gelman recounts her experiences in Mexico, Nicaragua, Guatemala, Indonesia and the Galapagos Islands, leaving you with a strong desire to explore foreign lands.
Into the Wild – John Krakauer
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“The trip was to be an odyssey in the fullest sense of the word, an epic journey that would change everything.”
Inspired by books such as Henry Thoreau’s Walden, Christopher McCandless set out to escape his past and find refuge in the Alaskan wilderness. After a road trip that lasted almost two years, he reaches this inhospitable destination and lives out his dream – for a time, at least. All does not end well. But then, you’re left to wonder whether the destination is not so important as the journey. This is as much a story about inward discovery as it is about outward exploration.
