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As you read this, I’ll probably be sitting in the sun at a cafe in Prague (unless it decides to pour heavily!). Yes, I’m on a short though long needed break from Madrid and my computer!
A friend asked me what book I’ll be taking for the flight; I’ve just started reading Jack Keroauc’s On The Road (no, I haven’t read it before so shoot me), that’s what I plan to have in my bag if I haven’t finished it before — which is possible — I started it yesterday and have been hooked.
Otherwise, I’ve stopped taking books for trips. I used to buy easy reads just for flights and lazy days; but lately all my trips have been so short and my brain has been overloaded pre-departure, so for the last year or so I’ve been resorting to Time Magazine, the Economist or even OK! magazine (yes, yikes!) for my in-flight entertainment. I find the short snippets they write easy to read and the variety helps me stay alert for longer periods of time when in the air.
The last few books I read on flights were: Lonely Planet’s “Tales From Nowhere“, Traveler’s Tales “Hyenas Laughed At Me And Now I Know Why” and Jhumpa Lahiri’s Interpreter Of Maladies.
That’s it for me: short stories or magazines. What do you read on flights?
April 28th, 2008 at 6:27 pm
I usually bring a novel or non-fiction book related to my destination to help get me in the spirit of the trip.
Debbie
April 28th, 2008 at 7:39 pm
The past few flights I always take printouts of New York Times articles about the places we’re headed, which we read on the way and again repeatedly once we arrive. It helps me get excited about where we’re going and pinpoint planning for daytrips, etc.
I always take books I plan to leave behind (although somehow I always find good books on my travels that I end up taking back!)
Interestingly, I find now that I like to take a book with me ABOUT home. In Provence I read Travels with Charley, that gave me needed fresh perspectives of home.
April 28th, 2008 at 7:59 pm
Vonnegut!
April 28th, 2008 at 11:18 pm
what a coincidence! i’m reading kerouac too! just started yesterday and i’m pretty sure i’ll be done by this evening, as my only plan for today is lounging around in a cafe… (i’m in ubud, bali at the moment, although prague would be lovely.)
normally on planes, i like to read a guidebook or a novel about my destination… it gets me excited about things to do and see, and i get a chance to catch up on some of the culture or historical aspects of wherever i’m headed. =)
April 29th, 2008 at 12:51 pm
I agree with your Traveler’s Tales action. They make great stuff, don’t they? Tim Cahill is very funny, of course, but they are highly selective and a lot of their stuff is equally good.
April 30th, 2008 at 11:43 am
Any book in the Aubrey/Maturin novels by Patrick O’Brian, set during the heyday of the British Navy in the Napoleonic Wars. Easily the greatest sustained narrative in literature concerned with travel and exploration.