Tag Archives: Books

4 Inspiring titles to add to your spring reading list

Inspired’s Jenny Trigg offers her suggestions for a spring reading list…

Spring has finally rolled around and everyone here at Inspired HQ is beginning to enjoy longer nights and sunnier weekends. Whilst I consider spring to be the best season of the year, I can’t help but get a little lost with how to fill in all of my new found freedom.

To ease this, each spring I challenge myself to read a list of books – not magazines, audiobooks or watch Netflix. Real books! Here are the books I’m planning on reading this spring and I challenge you to do that same.

The Turk Who Loved Apples And Other Tales of Losing My Way Around the World - Matt Gross

The Turk who loved apples - Goodreads.com

Having followed Matt’s column ‘The Frugal Traveller’ in the New York times for years, I couldn’t hold in my excitement when I heard about his first book.

The Turk Who Loved Apples is based on a collection of anecdotes that Matt has collected in 60 countries over his 30 years of travel.

Matt doesn’t shy away from sharing the low points of traveling solo on a budget – getting lost, sick, and feeling lonely, scared, poor, unprepared and naive. However, Matt manages to face these challenges face on and comes out smiling!

What others are saying:

“A vicariously entertaining whirlwind of scrapbook memories from an author who can’t sit still.” – Kirkus Reviews

“The Turk Who Loved Apples is exactly the travel book you should read while traveling. Filled with the kind of moments of absurdity, sadness, madness, wisdom, beauty, realization, and Weltschmerz familiar to the chronic, lifelong traveler.” – Anthony Bourdai

Matt is no longer the author of the NY Times column, but it’s still a great read.

Unlikely destinations - The Lonely Planet Story

Unlikely Destinations - Goodreads.com

Having grown up with a lonely planet guide always by my side, I’m excited to read about Lonely Planet’s origins story.

It all begins Maureen and Tony Wheeler (the creators of The Lonely Planet) arriving back to Australia after an epic adventure across Europe and Asia that left them with 27 cents to their names.

Post-adventure, Maureen and Tony were thrown continuous questions about their travels: How much, where did you go, what to avoid. This inspired them to create their first guide book ‘Across Asia on the Cheap’.

From this humble beginning, they’ve managed to build a empire and inspire travelers across the world.

What others are saying:

“[The creators live] the kind of life most people dream of living. And I found their story truly inspiring.” – Renee Estey

“The Lonely Planet Story is a unique mix of autobiography, business history and travel book.”

In a Sunburned Country - Bill Bryson

Sunburned Country - Goodreads.com

It’s always confronting to view your country and culture through someone else’s eyes and that is exactly what Bill Bryson is challenging Australians to do in this novel. ‘In a Sunburned Country’ is based on what Bryson observed in his three visits to Australia and countless mishaps along the way.

If Bryson’s other work is anything to go on, this read will be an insightful, funny and eye-opening journey of Australia through a traveler’s eyes.

Don’t get disheartened by the size of his books –  Bryson is a wordsmith like no other and they are always worth every page.

What people are saying:

“Every time Bill Bryson walks out the door, memorable travel literature threatens to break out”

“From the clean and congenial cities, to the rugged coastal regions and the largely uninhabited outback, Bryson takes us with him and we never, ever look back. It’s a delight to be included on any one of Bill Bryson’s journeys” – Sienna Powers, The January Magazine

The Alchemist - Paulo Coelho

The Alchemist - Goodreads.com

This story has taken the world by storm, with close to 27 million copies sold worldwide,  and is currently available in 56 different languages. The story follows a young shepherd who begins a pilgrimage across the Mediterranean and the Sahara to discover the meaning of a recurring dream. Along the way, the boy meets a range of characters who shape and define the young boy’s journey.

This book is perfect for two types of people:

  • Those who are wanting to take a pilgrimage
  • Those who don’t understand why anyone would want to

What others are saying about it:

“Every few decades a book comes along that changes the lives of it’s readers forever”

“For anyone who reads not only to escape reality but also to understand reality, The Alchemist can offer the best of both worlds” – The Guardian

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Amazing Books That Will Inspire You to Travel

It’s no secret Team Inspired love to travel and take on epic adventures. But where did that love come from? For some of us, a good (nay – really good) book did the trick. From stories of walking across the harsh Arabian desert, to evocative descriptions of the beautiful country we call home, to the arduous but self-changing journey that comes with hiking over 1,770 km along the Pacific Crest Trail, the world is a truly incredible place, made even more enticing by the stunning prose of some of our favourite authors. So whether you’re seeking some travel inspiration or just want to escape in a sea of exquisite words, check out 10 amazing books that will inspire you to travel.

Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail by Cheryl Strayed

Wild is a 2012 memoir by American author Cheryl Strayed, detailing her 1,100-mile (1,770 km) hike on the Pacific Crest Trail in 1995. It’s a tale of perseverance, inner-strength and getting back to what’s truly important in life. Also, if you need some motivation to tackle a big hike or trek – this will definitely give it to you!

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City of Djinns: A Year in Delhi by William Darymple

City of Djinns reveals the layers of Delhi’s centuries-old history, highlighting an amazing collection of characters along the way – from eunuchs to descendants of great Moguls. Our CEO, Justine, had this to say about the book:

“This book had a profound effect on me, peeling back the layers of Delhi it made me realise there is so much more to a place than what meets the eye. Dalrymple has turned what can often be seen as a chaotic, polluted, squalid city into a destination bursting with the richest stories going back in time leaving you to marvel at the relics left and their great history.”

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Questions of Travel by Michelle de Kretser

What is travel? Why do we travel? Is it ethical? How does it impact people, nature … the world? Michelle de Kretser seeks an answer to all these questions in her book Questions of Travel. It’s imaginative, transformative and highly moving.

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The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

Simple but full of so much wisdom, The Alchemist is a story of self-discovery, questioning how far you need to travel in order to discover yourself. This story is a true testament to the transformative power of our dreams and the importance of listening to our hearts.

Island Home by Tim Winton

Island Home is a compelling investigation into the way our country makes us who we are. Inspired’s Operations Manager, Rachael, had this to say:

“Tim Winton’s Australian landscape memoir has got me itching to explore this vast island we call home. A rich, descriptive and evocative book about the significance of place across time and how important country is to First Nation’s people, white Australians and migrants alike.”

On the Road by Jack Kerouac

On the Road details Jack Kerouac’s years traveling the North American continent with his friend Neal Cassady. It’s a story of the trials and tribulations, joys and transformations that travel can bring to a person. This novel is a true inspiration, remaining a classic since it was published in 1976.

Vagabonding: An Uncommon Guide to the Art of Long-Term World Travel by Rolf Potts

 Who hasn’t dreamed of quitting their 9-5 job for a life on the road? Vagabonding is just about that, chronicling how anyone armed with a carefree and independent spirit truly can achieve the dream of lengthy overseas travel. It features handy tips like how to finance your travel, choosing a destination, adjusting to life on the road, volunteering and working overseas and how to reassimilate into ordinary life when you go home … if you choose to go home!

The Great Railway Bazaar by Paul Theroux

Strange, unique, but highly entertaining, The Great Railway Bazaar is a modern classic of travel literature. The Direct-Orient Express, the Khyber Pass Local, the Delhi Mail from Jaipur, the Golden Arrow to Kuala Lumpur and the Trans-Siberian Express create Theroux’s ambitious journey by rail through India and Asia. His travels cause him to come into contact with an array of places and people, food, faiths and cultures. Featuring plenty of humour and sardonic observations, this novel is the perfect read for the passionate explorer and the armchair traveller.

Wild Coast: Travels on South America’s Untamed Edge by John Gimlette

Between the Orinoco and the Amazon hides a beautiful forested land that man has barely touched. Much of Guiana never witnesses sunlight, and new species are often tumbling out of the dark. Award-winning author, John Gimlette, sets off on an adventurer to discover this coast, writing up its amazing story. His journey takes him into the deep jungle, from the hideouts of runaway slaves to penal colonies, bizarre fortresses, remote Amerindian villages, a ‘Little Paris’ and a space port. He comes face to face with rebels, outlaws and sorcerers and follows the trail of a brutal Georgian revolt. Outlandish but written in beautiful prose, this story will have you hooked from the beginning.

Arabian Sands by Wilfred Thesiger

Arabian Sands chronicles Thesiger’s amazing adventure through the dry “Empty Quarter” of Arabia. Thesiger truly disliked the rigidity of Western life, “the machines, the calling cards, the meticulously aligned streets.” To escape the humdrum of his life, he set off to explore the deserts of Arabia, traveling among peoples who had never seen a European. This classic novel remains and invaluable tool to understanding the modern Middle East.

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