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• FAVORITES

Marco Polo: Ancient Trade Routes of the Mystic East

READING AND TRAVEL GUIDE

• E-MAIL
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Books for

Voyages of the Great Explorers

Item EXWLD156. Buy these 6 items as a set for $105 including shipping, 15% off the retail price.
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The Travels of Marco Polo

by Marco Polo | Ronald Lantham

• TRAVEL NARRATIVE
• 1975
• PAPER
• 380 PAGES

The memories of a 13th-century journey to China along the Silk Road, among the most famous travel accounts ever. Describing exotic plants, birds, precious gems, silks, and spices with a merchant's eye, this superb geographer recounts his 20 years of travel. (CAS05, $15.00)

A Traveller's History of Southeast Asia

by J.M. Barwise | Nicholas J. White

• HISTORY
• 2002
• PAPER
• 352 PAGES
• COMING IN MARCH

A compact history of the region, including the Khmer and the various ancient kingdoms that produced Borobudur, Angkor and other architectural marvels. (SEA36, $14.95)

In Buddha's Land

by Moe Min

• RELIGION
• 2007
• HARD COVER
• 208 PAGES

This beautiful, illustrated portrait of monuments, monasteries and rituals is both a striking visual overview of Buddhism as practiced in Burma, and a splendid introduction to the country. (BMA52, $30.00)

Malgudi Days

by R. K. Narayan

• LITERATURE
• 2006
• PAPER
• 272 PAGES
• FAVORITE

Wonderful tales about a fictional South Indian town, populated by quirky characters whose unique approaches to tradition and modernity are the stuff of great short stories. (IDA59, $15.00)

Arabian Sands

by Wilfred Thesiger

• EXPLORATION
• 2007
• PAPER
• 400 PAGES
• FAVORITE

The last of the great British traveler-explorers, Thesiger (1910-2003) journeyed among the nomadic camel-breeding peoples of Southern Arabia in the late 1940s, falling in love with the desert and ways of life of the Bedouin. This eloquent book is his tribute to them. (ARB15, $16.00)

Alexandria Illustrated

by Michael Haag

• GUIDEBOOK
• 2004
• PAPER
• 80 PAGES

A warm, richly illustrated portrait of the city, featuring 125 color photographs of the people, monuments and attractions of Alexandria alongside Michael Haag's insightful commentary. (EGY142, $22.95)

 

Also Recommended

A Peace to End All Peace

by David Fromkin

• HISTORY
• 2009
• PAPER
• 688 PAGES

Indispensable to understanding current tensions, alliances and the colonial legacy of the region, Fromkin's vivid tale of the fall of the Ottoman Empire and the making of the modern Middle East is out in a 20th anniversary edition. (ARB13, $22.00)

India

by Stanley Wolpert

• HISTORY
• 2009
• PAPER
• 281 PAGES

Reflections on India -- religion and philosophy, art, culture, and politics -- by the dean of its American historians: beautifully written, and provocative as well as evocative. (IDA04, $24.95)

Islam, A Short History

by Karen Armstrong

• RELIGION
• 2002
• PAPER
• 230 PAGES

Armstrong brings authority and experience to this vivid, clear-headed survey of the history and impact of Islam from the birth of Muhammad to present-day challenges. (ISL15, $15.95)

Luxor Illustrated, With Aswan, Abu Simbel and the Nile

by Michael Haag

• CULTURAL PORTRAIT
• 2009
• PAPER
• 96 PAGES

The ideal companion to a Nile cruise, Michael Haag introduces all the famous monuments and temples of the Upper Egypt from Luxor, Karnak, Valley of the Kings and the tomb of Tutankhamun to the marvels of Aswan and Abu Simbel in full color. (EGY277, $22.95)

Nine Parts of Desire, The Hidden World of Islamic Women

by Geraldine Brooks

• CULTURAL PORTRAIT
• 1996
• PAPER
• 256 PAGES

A highly readable overview of the role of women in Islamic society, drawn from the author's many interviews with women throughout the Arab World. (ARB06, $15.00)

Petra

by Maria G. A. Guzzo | E. Equini Schneider

• CULTURAL PORTRAIT
• 2002
• HARD COVER
• 197 PAGES
• OUT OF PRINT

An illustrated overview of the history and culture of the Nabateans and guide to the city of Petra, its art and architecture by two Italian archaeologists. With 97 color plates, archival drawings and maps. (MDE68, $48.00)

The Great Cities in History

by John Julius Norwich

• HISTORY
• 2009
• HARD COVER
• 304 PAGES

Each city magnificently illustrated in color and with an essay by diverse dignitaries, including Jan Morris (New York), Colin Thubron (Samarkand), Simon Schama (Amsterdam) and Michael Coe (Angkor). this inspired book depicts the rise and fall of cities from Mesopotamia through ancient trading centers to Medieval Europe and today. (WLD171, $45.00)

The Seventy Great Journeys in History

by Robin Hanbury-Tenison

• HISTORY
• 2006
• HARD COVER
• 304 PAGES

A celebration of adventurers in human history from Alexander the Great and Attila the Hun to Marco Polo, Columbus, Charles Darwin and Neil Armstrong. With full-color photos, illustrations and maps. (TVL119, $40.00)

The Spice Route, A History

by John Keay

• HISTORY
• 2007
• PAPER
• 288 PAGES

John Keay draws on ancient logs, traveler's accounts and maps for this rousing history of trade in cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, pepper, gums, resins and other costly goods from antiquity to the 17th century. (ASA52, $24.95)

The Voice of Hope

by Aung San Suu Kyi

• CULTURAL PORTRAIT
• 2008
• PAPER
• 304 PAGES

Leader of Burma's struggle for democracy, Aung San Suu Kyi speaks her mind with wisdom and humor on personal, religious and political topics in this new edition of conversations with Alan Clements. The dialogues are especially enlightening on the notion of politically engaged Buddhism. (BMA09, $18.95)

Understanding Arabs, A Guide for Modern Times

by Margaret K. Nydell

• HISTORY
• 2006
• PAPER
• 264 PAGES

The fourth edition of Nydell's classic, concise and readable introduction to Arab society and culture, including chapters on attitudes toward America and fundamentalism. (ARB67, $21.95)

Empty Quarter

by George Steinmetz

• ART & ARCHITECTURE
• 2009
• HARD COVER
• 208 PAGES

In an amazing feat of politics and derring-do, photographer George Steinmetz crossed the Arabian Peninsula in a motorized paraglider, capturing the drama and allure of the remarkable Rub'al-Khali, largest and hottest desert in the world, in glorious color. With maps, essays and a tribute to Wilfred Thesiger and the explorers who have come before. (ARB122, $40.00)

Petra, Splendors of the Nabataean Civilization

by Francesca Arianna Ossorio | Barbara A. Porter

• ARCHAEOLOGY
• 2009
• HARD COVER
• 303 PAGES

With color photographs of the temples, tombs and elaborate buildings, along with archival photographs and accompanying text. (JRD34, $60.00)

The Complete Valley of the Kings

by Nicholas Reeves | Richard Wilkinson

• ARCHAEOLOGY
• 2008
• PAPER
• 224 PAGES

A thorough and intriguing look at the burial place of the New Kingdom pharaohs, this book brings together the art, architecture and history of the valley; contains profiles of archaeologists, diagrams and detailed site descriptions. (EGY14, $26.95)

World Heritage Sites

by UNESCO Publishing

• ARCHAEOLOGY
• 2011
• PAPER
• 856 PAGES
• NEW

How many have you visited? This beautifully illustrated compendium includes color photographs, a map and succinct description of each of the 911 archaeological sites, monuments, cities or parks inscribed by UNESCO from 1978 to 1911. (CON53, $29.95)

Marco Polo, From Venice to Xanadu

by Laurence Bergreen

• BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR
• 2008
• PAPER
• 432 PAGES

Bergreen brings to life ancient traders, despots, conquerors and, especially, the fabled lands of the Silk Road in this vivid tale, weaving his own adventures from Venice to Mongolia and on to China with those of the 13th-century Venetian merchant. (EXP49, $18.00)

Mirrors of the Unseen, Journeys in Iran

by Jason Elliot

• TRAVEL NARRATIVE
• 2011
• PAPER
• 415 PAGES

In this rich portrait of life in modern Iran, Elliot enlivens his adventures with anecdotes, sketches of the people he encounters, casually delivered doses of history and literature, along with a mild dash of politics. (IRN49, $16.00)

Running in the Family

by Michael Ondaatje

• BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR
• 1993
• PAPER
• 207 PAGES

Award-winning author Ondaatje returns to his native Sri Lanka in this hypnotic travelogue. His lovingly traced family memoirs are interspersed with poetry and ruminations on the island's post-colonial history. (SRL04, $15.00)

Sultan in Oman

by Jan Morris

• TRAVEL NARRATIVE
• 2004
• PAPER
• 166 PAGES

Morris richly evokes the culture, people and rhythms of Oman before the discovery of oil and modernization by Sultan Qaboos in this insightful portrait, originally published in 1957. (ARB73, $32.95)

The Naked Tourist, In Search of Adventure and Beauty in the Age of the Airport Mall

by Lawrence Osborne

• TRAVEL NARRATIVE
• 2007
• PAPER
• 256 PAGES

Osborne is not just interested in travel, but also in the reasons why we travel, layering his own entertaining adventures on the road from Dubai to India, Bangkok, Bali and beyond with ruminations on Shangri-La, The Grand Tour and our conceptions of the exotic and primitive. (SEA50, $20.00)

Burmese Days

by George Orwell

• LITERATURE
• 1989
• PAPER
• 287 PAGES

Orwell, a veteran of the Colonial police force in Rangoon, writes with irony and insight in this sharp novel of politics, folly and the British. (BMA03, $14.00)

Collected Short Stories, Volume 4

by W. Somerset Maugham

• LITERATURE
• 1995
• PAPER
• 464 PAGES

Maugham can evoke turn-of-the-century colonial Asia like no other. This collection of stories features many set in Malaysia. Borneo and other southeast Asian locales, including the well-known tale "The Letter." (SEA01, $18.00)

King Rat

by James Clavell

• LITERATURE
• 1962
• PAPER
• 479 PAGES

The first in Clavell's acclaimed Asia series, this book describes the life of a POW in Japanese-occupied Singapore during World War II, richly evocative of its setting (ASA03, $8.99)

The Moor's Last Sigh

by Salman Rushdie

• LITERATURE
• 1997
• PAPER
• 435 PAGES

A sweeping family epic that tackles many of the most complex aspects about Indian culture. In his characteristically rich prose, Rushdie tells the history of India, set among the spice traders of Cochin. (IDA89, $16.00)

Travelers' Tales India

by James O'Reilly | Larry Habegger

• ANTHOLOGY
• 2004
• PAPER
• 496 PAGES

A collection of 45 descriptive and thought-provoking short excerpts on Indian life and culture, including contributions from Rushdie, Naipaul and Dalrymple, plus some valuable excerpts from books long out of print. (IDA05, $19.95)

The Snorkeller's Guide to the Coral Reef, From the Red Sea to the Pacific Ocean

by Paddy Ryan

• NATURAL HISTORY
• 1994
• PAPER
• 184 PAGES

The best-selling, take-along guide to coral reefs, coral-reef fishes, invertebrates and plants of the Indo-Pacific. With 200 color photographs. (DIV18, $21.99)

Birds of India

by Richard Grimmett | Carol Inskipp | Tim Inskipp

• FIELD GUIDE
• 2012
• PAPER
• 384 PAGES

Thoroughly revised, with 73 new plates and many others updated or repainted, the second edition of the masterful Birds of India now features all maps and text opposite the plates for quicker and easier reference. (FG43, $39.50)

Fishwatcher's Field Guide Indian Ocean

by Idaz Greenberg

• FIELD GUIDE
• PLASTIC CARD

A double-sided card illustrating 70 fishes of Seychelles, Maldives and neighboring islands. (FG17, $7.50)

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