Travel's Collection

Travel literature has a rich history which dates at least back to Ancient Greece. In this mode an author shares his or her insights of different climes and cultures with the reading public, and it can be either non-fiction or made up. Jules Verne’s Around the World in 80 Days is a great example of fictional travel literature. As is Call of the Wild by Jack London, and Portrait of a Lady by Henry James. A great piece of fictional literature for kids is Rudyard Kipling’s The Jungle Book.

As far as real travel narratives go, Edith Wharton’s In Morocco is an account of North Africa in the early 20th Century. Mark Twain’s The Innocent’s Abroad is a famous retelling of the author’s travels through Europe. For some harrowing travel, there’s South: the story of Shackleton's 1914-1917 Expedition by Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton. Or there’s Across China on Foot, by a man named Dingle. And one of the best travelogues is Sir Richard Burton’s Personal Narrative of a Pilgrimage to Al-Medina and Meccah, in which he poses as a pilgrim to gain access to these holiest of cities.