Not in terms of picking books about travel, but books about where you are traveling to. I definitely took books with me on this vacation because of their Hawaiian/Pacific settings: Moloka'i and The Bungalow. There's something fun and a little meta about reading fiction set in the place you're currently in (or similar to the place). Reading can be wonderful escapism, but sometimes you'd rather immerse yourself in your new, temporary environment rather than visualize places far away or familiar.
Here's the Goodreads copy for Moloka'i:
This richly imagined novel, set in Hawai'i
more than a century ago, is an extraordinary epic of a little-known time
and place---and a deeply moving testament to the resiliency of the
human spirit.Rachel Kalama, a spirited seven-year-old Hawaiian girl, dreams of visiting far-off lands like her father, a merchant seaman. Then one day a rose-colored mark appears on her skin, and those dreams are stolen from her. Taken from her home and family, Rachel is sent to Kalaupapa, the quarantined leprosy settlement on the island of Moloka'i. Here her life is supposed to end---but instead she discovers it is only just beginning.
With a vibrant cast of vividly realized characters, Moloka'i is the true-to-life chronicle of a people who embraced life in the face of death. Such is the warmth, humor, and compassion of this novel that "few readers will remain unchanged by Rachel's story" (mostlyfiction.com).
I read it while I was on Maui and had a view of Moloka'i from the beach and my hotel. It was cool to get to glance up at the sea cliffs while turning the pages, and the fantastic historic detail in the book made me feel a deeper connection to where I was. If I hadn't been reading Moloka'i, I wouldn't have known about its history and nor would I have been compelled to do a little research about what it's like today. If I ever go back to Hawaii, visiting Moloka'i is now high on my must-do list.
The Bungalow wasn't set in Hawaii but in Bora Bora, and the South Pacific is very different from the north. It was really fun, though, to fall into the story in a similar setting. (In fact, I'm not sure I would have been a huge fan of The Bungalow without it being themed reading for this trip--I wished it had gone further into the historical details and I wanted a little more depth from the romance. Which is not to say that I didn't enjoy reading it or that it wasn't well-written; just not my cup of tea.)
When I feel the need to travel back, I'll consider rereading these--or starting Roughing It in the Sandwich Islands. Mark Twain + Travel = good reading
1 comment:
This book Moloka'i sounds amazing! I have to add it to my TBR :D I usually don't read based on the scenery but if I did go to Hawaii, maybe I would :P
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