AWOL: absent without leave; absent from one’s post or duty without official permission but without intending to desert.Originally a military term, it gradually entered the vernacular for when someone goes missing unexpectedly. Jennifer Barclay and Amy Logan thought it fit well with the kind of travel pieces they wanted to publish--irreverent but thoughtful, emotionally honest and opinionated, bold and provocative.For those who dream of having no fi...

From an emerging master of short fiction and one of Canada's most distinctive voices, a collection of stories as heartbreaking as those of Lorrie Moore and as hilariously off-kilter as something out of McSweeney's.In Better Living through Plastic Explosives, Zsuzsi Gartner delivers a powerful second dose of the lacerating satire that marked her acclaimed debut, All the Anxious Girls on Earth, but with even greater depth and darker humour. Whether she casts her eye...

“There are those who think that Paul Theroux is the finest travel writer working in English. This collection can only enhance that reputation.”—The New York Times Book ReviewAuthor and travel writer Paul Theroux does what no one else can: he travels to the isolated, unusual, and fascinating spots of the world, and creates an elegy to them that makes readers feel they are traveling with him. Evocative, breathtaking, intriguing, here is the armchair traveler...

Michael Palin's terrific account of his journey through 18 countries bordering the Pacific Ocean, published by Phoenix for the first time.For almost a year, Michael Palin travelled through 18 countries on the perimeter of the world's largest ocean, in a spectacular journey of contrasts, drama and beauty.From head-hunters in Borneo to a meal of maggots in Mexico, his route takes him to some of the most politically volatile and physically demanding places on ...

Mordantly funny, thought-provoking travel essays, from the acclaimed author of Out of Sheer Rage and “one of our most original writers” (New York Magazine).This isn’t a self-help book; it’s a book about how Geoff Dyer could do with a little help. In these genre-defying tales, he travels from Amsterdam to Cambodia, Rome to Indonesia, Libya to Burning Man in the Black Rock Desert, floundering in a sea of grievances, with fleeting moments of transcendental calm his o...

Robbie Marshall had it all - love, children and a successful business. So why did he trade it all in for the saddle of a Triumph Trophy and an out-of-date world atlas? Robbie knew that if he did not indulge his desire to explore, he would regret it for the rest of his life. After shipping his Triumph motorbike to the United States, Robbie kick-started his life on a journey that would take him across five continents and around the globe. Despite witnessing a gangland execution, sleeping rou...

Since publishing A Woman’s World in 1995, Travelers’ Tales has been the recognized leader in women’s travel literature, and with the launch of the annual series The Best Travel Writing in 2004, the obvious next step was an annual collection of the best women’s travel writing of the year. This title is the seventh in an annual series-The Best Women’s Travel Writing-that presents inspiring and uplifting adventures from women who have traveled to the ends of the earth to dis...

Thunder and Sunshine is the sequel to the best-selling Moods of Future Joys.At the age of 24, Alastair Humphreys left England in August 2001 to cycle round the world. By the time he arrived back home, four years later, he had ridden 46,000 miles across in just over 1500 days, through five continents and 60 countries on a tiny budget of just £7,000.His journey, as well as a quest for adventure, helped to raise the profile of the charity

There is nothing quite like hitting the road by yourself to awaken your senses, sharpen your mind, and build your confidence. In twenty-three beautifully crafted essays, women recount the thrills of traveling solo.Despite threat-assessment levels and airport-security hassles, women of all generations are traveling more freely and independently than ever before. In that go-for-it spirit, Go Your Own Way spans the globe: adventure diva Holly Morris finds herself lost in the ...

Motorcycle Messengers is a collection of travel stories from some of the leading writers in the genre ... plus a few people you've never heard of. Consider it a sample pack of authors. Read a story by the fire and discover your new favourite motorcycle travel writer.Lois Pryce exploits her dead grandmother and an imaginary husband to access the Congo.Neil Peart finds his rhythm through the curves of North Carolina.Paddy Tyson numbs his fear of crocodiles with a few ...

Author Heather McElhatton introduced the "Do-Over Novel" with her wonderfully imaginative bestseller Pretty Little Mistakes. With her follow-up, Million Little Mistakes, she takes readers on a wild and addictive ride that can alternately lead to happiness, riches, love, loss, death, and many more endings...the choice is totally yours!

The Best Travel Writing 2011 is the eighth volume in the annual Travelers' Tales series launched in 2004 to celebrate the world's best travel writing - from Nobel Prize winners to emerging new writers. The points of view and perspectives are global, and themes encompass high adventure, spiritual growth, romance, hilarity and misadventure, service to humanity, and encounters with exotic cuisine. Sweat, suffer, and fall in love in Guyana, meet a traveler who conducts his ow...