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New and Recently Released!
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| It's what I do: a photographer's life of love and war by Lynsey AddarioIf you've ever wondered why war photographers risk their lives for photos, this heartfelt, powerful memoir will provide some insight. Pulitzer Prize-winning photojournalist Lynsey Addario touches on her quirky childhood in Connecticut before diving into how she went from taking pictures as a hobby to shooting in conflict zones for days on end, including Afghanistan just after 9/11, Lebanon, Iraq, Sudan, Congo, and Libya (where she was kidnapped). Read this fascinating book before it becomes a movie; film rights have already been bought, and it's reported that Steven Spielberg will direct and Jennifer Lawrence will star. For a more historic look at life and war, try acclaimed WWII photographer Robert Capa's memoir, Slightly Out of Focus. |
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| The Italians by John HooperIf you love all things Italian and wish you knew more about the country and its people, The Italians makes an offer you can't refuse. This entertaining book is a "compact but comprehensive study" (Kirkus Reviews, starred review) of what makes Italians unique, and it covers a wide range of topics, from Italy's storied beginnings, ties to religion, and the roots of the mafia to its beautiful land, delicious food, and intriguing regional differences. Written by British journalist John Hooper, who's lived in Italy for years, this book may prove especially intriguing for those of Italian ancestry or fans of Luigi Barzini's 1960s classic book also called The Italians. |
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The fellowship of ghosts: travels in the land of midnight sun
by Paul Watkins
The author of Stand Before Your God recounts his recent solo journeys on foot through Norway's mountains, describing the beautiful country, with its blue snowfields and valleys bordered by thousand-foot cliffs, as well as the harsh terrain.
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The long hitch home
by Jamie Maslin
Tasmania to London. One end of the globe to the other. 800 hitchhiking rides. 18 thousand miles. Four seasons. Three continents. 19 countries. How many rides does it take to hitch from Tasmania to London? Rogue wanderer Jamie Maslin decides to find out, propelling him into a high stakes adventure of a lifetime that sees him tackle searing desert, freezing mountains, tropical jungle and barren steppes on little more than a thumb and a prayer. The Long Hitch Home is a dynamic mix of heart-thumping adventure and well-researched social, cultural, and historical commentary on the score of countries Maslin encountered during his arduous, and at times life threatening, journey home.
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Smile of a Midsummer night: a picture of Sweden
by Lars Gustafsson
Lars Gustafsson and Agneta Blomqvist have written a personal guide to their Swedish homeland. Setting off from the south, their journey leads them all the way up to Norrland, from the farms of Scania to the Laponian area, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. But it is the idyllic fjord in Bohuslan, in the Vastmanland region, as well as Lake Malar and Stockholm that they call home. Alive with their varied interests and entertaining suggestions for excursions - from journeys across the forests and moors to collect berries and mushrooms, encountering the odd elk or wolf along the way, to visits to the graves of Kurt Tucholsky and Strindberg, Smile of a Midsummer Night is knowledgeable, loving and poetic. A must-have for all fans of Sweden.
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Around the world in 50 years: my adventure to every country on Earth
by Albert Podell
In an extraordinary tale of courage, persistence, determination and the uncanny ability to extricate himself from one dangerous situation after another, the author recounts his adventures as he set two records - one for the longest automobile journey ever made around the world, and one for going to every country on Earth.
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| Wide-open world: how volunteering around the globe changed one family's... by John MarshallMaine TV producer John Marshall and his yoga-instructor wife had always wanted to travel around the world with their kids. With time running out (their son was 17 and their daughter 14), they figured out how they could afford it: voluntourism! Travelling to multiple countries in six months, the Marshalls spent time at a wildlife sanctuary in Costa Rica, at several organic farms in New Zealand, at schools in rural Thailand and the Himalayas, and at an orphanage in India. As an added bonus, Marshall briefly explores the family's reentry to regular life. Richly detailed and inspirational, Wide-Open World tallies up the spider monkey bites, depicts the family's experiences, and ends with a reconnected family. |
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If you enjoyed Cheryl Strayed's book or the movie based on it, you may be looking for similar reads. Here are a few selections for you to check out!
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| Tracks: a woman's solo trek across 1700 miles of Australian outback by Robyn DavidsonWith only four camels and a dog for company, 20-something Robyn Davidson decided to walk across 1,700 miles of the Australian outback in the 1970s. As she prepared for her trip and then actually walked the desert on her way to the Indian Ocean, she faced misogyny, developed a relationship with a visiting National Geographic photographer, nursed sick camels, studied the local aboriginal dialect, and more. If you loved Wild for its beautiful, honest writing, hike over to the library to pick up this book. Originally published in 1980, like Wild, it too has been the basis for a movie; released in 2013, the Australian adaptation stars Mia Wasikowska and Adam Driver. |
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| Eat, pray, love: one woman's search for everything across Italy, India and Indonesia by Elizabeth GilbertAfter a devastating divorce, novelist and author Elizabeth Gilbert felt lost and needed to do something drastic, so she set off on a solo journey. She travelled to Italy, where she ate and enjoyed life, to India, where she meditated and quieted herself, and to Indonesia, where she learned about love, health, and balance. This charming bestselling book about Gilbert's life-changing year abroad inspired the 2010 film of the same name starring Julia Roberts. If you want to know what happens after Gilbert returns home, don't miss her follow-up memoir, Committed: A Skeptic Makes Peace with Marriage, which deals with relationships and features travels through Southeast Asia. Wild fans who'd enjoy a more lighthearted, international journey of self-discovery should appreciate this book. |
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The Friendship Highway: two journeys in Tibet
by Charlie Carroll
Contending with Chinese bureaucracy, and sickness-inducing altitude, Charlie experienced twenty-first-century Tibet in all its beauty. Tibetan-born Lobsang fled the volatile region in 1989. An exile in Nepal, then a student in India, he was called back to Tibet by love. This book is about their encounter on the roof of the world.
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| Into the wild by Jon KrakauerBestselling author Jon Krakauer pieces together the dramatic -- and tragic -- story of Chris McCandless, a young man who embarked on a solo journey into the wilds of Alaska and whose body was discovered four months later. Why did this intelligent Emory graduate decide he wanted to be called "Alex Supertramp" and what made him travel with virtually no supplies and no map? A "wonderful page-turner written with humility, immediacy, and great style" (Kirkus Reviews), Into the Wild was originally published in 1996 and was adapted as a film in 2007 starring Emile Hirsch and directed by Sean Penn. This darker look at personal quests provides an interesting juxtaposition to Cheryl Strayed's Wild. |
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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