Here's a page from Longitude, the specialty bookseller for travelers. To order online, and to see the latest, most comprehensive selection of books and maps, go to http://reading.longitudebooks.com/LO10728. You may also call 800-342-2164 to order or request a catalog.

A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush  •  Eric Newby TRAVEL NARRATIVE •  2008 •  PAPER  • 255 PAGES • FAVORITE Newby wrote a string of memorable books of his adventures, often on a bicycle, but sometimes by foot or train, usually with his wife Wanda. This, one of his earliest, is a superb example of the misguided lark, an account of a comically ill-prepared jaunt in the Naristan mountains of northeastern Afghanistan. "People like it," he explained, "when things go wrong." (CAS32, $14.99)
On Foot to the Golden Horn: A Walk to Istanbul  •  Jason Goodwin TRAVEL NARRATIVE •  2003 •  PAPER  • 278 PAGES An outstanding travel writer and journalist, Goodwin interweaves history, incident and reflection in this excellent portrait of Central Europe. With chapters on Cracow, Slovakia, Budapest, Transylvania, Brasov and Bulgaria. (EUR81, $15.00)
Travels with Charley  •  John Steinbeck TRAVEL NARRATIVE •  2002 •  PAPER  • 214 PAGES On the road in a van but with a poodle, John Steinbeck -- like Jack Kerouac, William Least-Heat Moon and Bill Bryson -- sets out to discover America. This short, wonderfully written account of his journey from Maine to California is a classic. (USA32, $14.00)
West with the Night  •  Beryl Markham BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  1983 •  PAPER  • 294 PAGES • FAVORITE A direct, stylish, and engrossing story of a marvelous life well lived. Markham describes her childhood in Kenya and her experiences as a bush pilot in the 1930s, evoking the landscapes, people, and wildlife of East Africa in rich detail. (EAF10, $15.00)
The River at the Center of the World  •  Simon Winchester EXPLORATION •  2004 •  PAPER  • 410 PAGES • FAVORITE In this wide-ranging journalistic overview of the Yangtze (it's a great river of a book itself) veteran journalist Simon Winchester travels upstream into the heartland of China. He and his guide log 4,000 miles over many months, interviewing peasants and politicians throughout the region. It's a remarkable, wonderfully written portrait: an excellent introduction to the great river that is at the symbolic and literal heart of China. Long based in Hong Kong and a frequent commentator on things Asian, Winchester writes about the character of the river itself, and the people and places along its banks, with an easy grace. First published in 1996. (CHN31, $16.00)
Down the Nile, Alone in a Fisherman's Skiff  •  Rosemary Mahoney TRAVEL NARRATIVE •  2008 •  PAPER  • 273 PAGES Mahoney weaves the tale of her quest to row the Nile with deft portraits of the people she meets, particularly Amr, the sailor who takes her underwing, and astute comments on contemporary Egypt. She conjures too Herodotus, Gustave Flaubert, Florence Nightingale, Amelia Edwards and other famous travelers who have preceded her on the Nile. (EGY207, $14.99)
Riding the Iron Rooster, By Train Through China  •  Paul Theroux TRAVEL NARRATIVE •  2006 •  PAPER  • 528 PAGES An account of utterly exhausting, exasperating travels mostly by rail throughout China for an entire year. Not surprisingly, this is one of Mr. Theroux's testier books. He does, however, travel to every corner of the huge country, including memorable passages on Mongolia, Xinjiang, Manchuria and Tibet (where he ended his journey). Theroux combines offhand observation, telling detail, interviews and snatches of history. Once you get past the lack of heat and hygiene, seedy hotels and Theroux's grumbling, this book is a finely detailed portrait of the diversity of Chinese landscapes and people. (CHN133, $15.95)
Cross Country  •  Robert Sullivan TRAVEL NARRATIVE •  2007 •  PAPER  • 416 PAGES • NEW Sullivan's marvelously digressive chronicle of a cross-country road trip, the history of the Interstate system, fast-food, variety of to-go coffee cup lids, the marvels of the roadside attraction and many, many other subjects. (USA135, $14.95)