Want to escape from your couch and dream of your next adventure? From India to Alaska to Bali, we suggest you take a trip around the world without leaving your home. Discover our selection of the best travel books… Enough to keep you waiting (and make your mouth water!) before your next departure.
1. “A Short Treatise on the Immensity of the World” by Sylvain Tesson
A great adventurer, Sylvain Tesson travels the world by boat, on horseback, on foot or by bike from Tibet to Paris via the Mongolian steppes. “Small treatise on the immensity of the world” is an invitation to embrace the earth and dare to be nomadic. The philosophical influences and romanticism of the story make it a true hymn to joyful wandering.
2. “The Beach” by Alex Garland
When three young travelers go in search of a legendary beach hidden on an island in Thailand, the result is “The Beach”, a book that was staged a few years ago in the film of the same name, with Leonardo DiCaprio, Virginie Ledoyen, and Guillaume Canet. The book perfectly describes the beauty of the place, the perfection of the beach, and the wild aspect of the region. In the film adaptation, the famous beach is that of Koh Phi Phi. The novel immerses us in a New Age community and aims to question us about our model of society.
3. “Old Brother” by Ophélie Vanesse
“Vieux Frère” by Ophélie Vanessa takes us to Thailand alongside the Papillon siblings. This initiatory journey, both geographical and emotional, allows the six brothers and sisters to renew strained ties while facing their inner demons. The author delicately depicts the exotic landscapes and Thai culture, in an immersive and deeply touching story. Without a doubt, a story to have in your library!
4. “Africa Trek” by Alexandre and Sonia Poussin
Africa Trek tells the story of the two authors’ adventures during their 14,000-kilometer trek on foot across Africa. Throughout the story, the reader follows, breathlessly, the many adventures and misfortunes encountered by the adventurous couple. Alone, using only the strength of their feet, Sonia and Alexandre cross the bush, the jungle, and the desert and discover a people of extraordinary generosity.
4. “In the Forests of Siberia” by Sylvain Tesson
Another novel by Sylvain Tesson that may make you want to buy a plane ticket to Siberia. The author recounts his adventures and thoughts as he sets off to settle down, for a few months, alone in a cabin lost in the heart of the Siberian forests. Accompanied by two dogs, he discovers the beauty of the place and learns to tame the time he has. An autobiographical story that makes you want to escape and discover the Lake Baikal region.
5: “Latitude Zero” by Mike Horn
Lovers of great literature, move on, because “Latitude Zero” is a raw and exciting travel story written not by a writer but by one of the greatest adventurers of the century. And even if the literary style can be annoying at the very beginning of the book, we quickly get caught up in the adventure of the South African, then about thirty years old. All alone, on foot, by bike, in a canoe, or under sail, Mike Horn left for a year and a half to travel around the world following the equator. His adventures take us into deep jungles, into the desert, through storms or under a blazing sun.
6. “Around the World in Eighty Days” by Jules Verne
This great classic of travel literature has not aged a day since its publication in 1873. Accompany Phileas Fogg and his French servant, Jean Passepartout, during their exciting adventure to the four corners of the world and follow their adventures from London to the United States via Asia. You will have the opportunity to walk with them the streets of New York, San Francisco, Hong Kong and Calcutta. A journey full of humor and twists !
7. “On the Road” by Jack Kerouac
When Sal Paradise meets Dean Moriarty, the two young men’s entire worldview changes. Dean, a seducer and a little crazy, quickly introduces Sal to the pleasures of the road and encourages him to travel to the United States. Jack Kerouac tells us here the story of disjointed, incoherent journeys, with no stated goal other than friendship. “On the Road” is often considered a tribute to the simple life, far from madness and poverty.
8. “In Patagonia” by Bruce Chatwin
Another great classic of travel literature, the novel “En Patagonie” tells the adventures of the young Bruce Chatwin, who went to Argentine and Chilean Patagonia in search of one of his ancestors. We discover the exceptional landscapes of Patagonia, we meet the locals, who allow him to better understand the legends surrounding the territory… All this while following with interest the adventures and the journey of Chatwin through La Plata, Punta Arenas, or even Cape Horn.
9. “Shantaram” by Gregory David Roberts
Having escaped from an Australian prison, Lin lands under a false identity in Bombay, where he intends to disappear from the eyes of the world. As he explores the city, he discovers all its secrets and paradoxes, between its religious women and its prostitutes, its beggars, its thugs… After joining the Indian mafia, Lin once again experiences prison, torture, and betrayal. A delicious immersion in a complex and teeming India.
10. “Into The Wild” by Jon Krakauer
Named “Journey to the End of Solitude”, this book released as a film a few years ago is based on a true story, that of a young American, Mc Candless, who decides to travel to Alaska just after graduating. He then gives all his savings to charity and gets rid of all material comforts to better commune with nature. We will not reveal the end of this superb story for those who have not yet read it, but “Journey to the End of Solitude” is considered a true hymn to freedom. And for those who prefer illustrated stories, Sean Penn adapted the story to the cinema in 2007 under the title “Into The Wild”.
