Many insightful things have been written about the horrific impact of COVID-19 on travel, and many predictions have been made around when travel will return. Here at A5 Travel Books, it is now time to look forward. It will be possible to travel again, and our prediction is that 2021 will bring a renewed appreciation for the tremendous impact travel can have on our lives. As such, now is the perfect time to inspire others with the gift of travel books. Here are our recommendations for some inspiring and affordable holiday presents this year. Our top holiday gift travel book recommendation is Humans, the new book by Brandon Stanton. Most people know Stanton from his enormously popular blog Humans of New York, a series of short interviews with real-life people all over New York City. Stanton has a gift for empathetically capturing the true worries, hopes and dreams of regular people. With Humans, Stanton took his approach overseas, traveling to over 40 countries across the world and providing an intimate view into humanity that wonderfully illustrates how we all are so very alike. It is an uplifting book at a time when the world needs uplifting, and an excellent present. Travel writing collections are always a good option for those who love travel. Our two recommendations this year are The Best American Travel Writing (2020 edition) and the Best Women’s Travel Writing (vol 12), both which were just recently released in November. Each series has consistently delivered a new handpicked selection of the best short travel stories from the previous year. We also recommend buying past editions; the writing doesn’t go out of date and it can be interesting to see how life has changed over the years. 2021 will be a year to celebrate travel, and there may be no bigger travel enthusiast than Don George. Don is well known in the travel writing community for his literary skills and for his experience as a travel editor at Lonely Planet Publications and National Geographic Traveler. We highly recommend The Way of Wanderlust: The Best Travel Writing of Don George. Coffee table books are almost always a good present. Our first recommendation is Lonely Planet's Ultimate Travel List 2: The Best Places on the Planet. The famous travel guide company’s second edition was published in October 2020, providing this year’s ranking of the 500 greatest travel destinations on earth. For those who might want something more obscure, we recommend Atlas Obscura, the bestselling collection of curious and unique destinations, including both architectural wonders and bizarre events. Be sure to get the second edition, published in late 2019. In 2020, travel writing lost one of the genre’s more interesting figures, the renowned Jan Morris who died at the age of 94. Travel writing devotees might enjoy The World: Travels 1950-2000, a compilation of her best selections from her many books and from her many years as a global correspondent. Highlights include historic eyewitness accounts of Edmund Hilary’s successful ascent of Mt. Everest, the fall of the Berlin Wall, and the handover of Hong Kong from the United Kingdom to return control to China. And finally, why not go with an old-fashioned travel magazine subscription as the perfect present for a traveler? National Geographic remains our favorite, with a year’s subscription available for just $39. National Geographic is of course the iconic magazine from the National Geographic Society covering culture, science, geography and nature, famous both for stunning photography and high-quality writing. We here at A5 Travel Books sincerely wish you and yours health and happiness over the holiday season and of course for a return to travel in 2021. All the best - Alan
Thomas Fregenheim
12/13/2020 01:04:07 pm
Thank you for all these wonderful recommendations! So many of us are looking to 2021 to bring relief. And some of us have been planning our get away’s since SIP began. These books will help my motivation!
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12/20/2020 11:25:17 am
I love travel books! In fact, every evening I read a few pages from a travel memoir to feel the atmosphere of adventure and travel before I go to bed. I think you stirred my curiosity and I will try Jan Morris next. Thanks for the suggestions.
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12/21/2020 02:35:21 am
Travel books always make the best presents at Christmas, I still have so many to read from last Christmas. And I have read some of Jan Morris material, she is legend in my eyes. Cant wait to hit the road again next year and read some books whilst on the planes and trains during journeys.
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12/21/2020 09:44:18 am
Ooh! I love the Humans of NY Instagram, but stories from all over the world sounds so inspiring. I need to add that book to my wish list as we can all use a bit of travel for the mind while finding inspiration through others. Thanks for the recommendation!
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12/21/2020 12:41:36 pm
Thank you for these recommendations, they will make great gifts for my travel-loving friends in the coming year. I have followed Humans of New York for the past couple of years and love the voices he gives ordinary people. I didn't know he had come out with an overseas edition as well, I might have to pick it up.
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12/22/2020 01:33:33 am
Lots of great reading ideas here. Atlas Obscura sounds good because I love checking out off the beaten track destinations.
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12/22/2020 02:41:34 am
I have read a lot of Stanton's blog on Humans of New York so I believe Humans would be a nice read for me. I do agree that he has a unique way of capturing people's emotions and their 'commonness' yet uniqueness. I'm not much of a book reader though, I prefer short excerpts or articles more. National Geographic would be a good magazine as well!
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What better gifts can we get currently than the travel books. Since we are unable to go anywhere, I think the best way to enjoy travel is by reading about it or by watching the videos. I collect books from Lonely Planet and I have books of all the countries and continents. I just love reading them even if I am not going anywhere.
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12/23/2020 11:21:45 am
I used to work in a bookstore but now not anymore. So, unfortunately I've become a little out of touch with what's new and what's trending on the shelf. Thank you for these suggestions. I already see some that I'm going to buy for myself. Or maybe I should start hinting to my friends ;-)
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the A5 TRAVEL BOOKS blogAlan Josephs is the founder of A5 Travel Books and a huge fan of all things travel. We occasionally will invite other travel writers to guest post. |
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12/13/2020
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