City Travel Guides > Books > South America

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.In Patagonia (Penguin Classics)
City Travel Guides > Books > South America
by: Bruce Chatwin

March 25, 2003
Bruce Chatwin in 1974 was an unknown British journalist with no books to his name. Seeking the life of a nomad he flew to the southern part of South America and severed ties with his newspaper and former life with a single-sentence telegram: "Have gone to Patagonia." For the next 6 months he walked and hitchhiked around this remote region keeping a diary which became the basis for the book. According to the The Cambridge Companion to Travel Writing (2002) it is one of three most important travel books of its era: "[its] laconic and elliptical style, in its ninety-seven short sections averaging little more than a couple of page each, seemed to finally bring modernist aesthetics to a fundamentally nineteenth-century genre..[it was] a landmark ... Read More:
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.In Trouble Again: A Journey Between Orinoco and the Amazon
City Travel Guides > Books > South America
by: Redmond O'Hanlon

April 14, 1990
It's an engrossing read, in spite of the author's snobbery coming through concerning the Amazonian Indians, and a narrow view of women that was, at times, irritating. (Not a reflective sort of narrative, so don't hold out for that; instead, be satisfied with his camera-ready eye). Speaking of cameras, an oddity: he mentions taking numerous photos, making some sketches, and having maps in his possession, but the book has no photos, no illustrations, no maps, no sketches--nothing but text, which for a travel book of any kind would be an obvious omission, and for one such as this, really bizarre.

Flaws aside, Mr. O'Hanlon takes the reader into a world of animals one sees out on display in a world-famous zoo, such as the one here where ... Read More:
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.Chile & Argentina, 5th: The Bradt Trekking Guide
City Travel Guides > Books > South America
by: Tim Burford

October 01, 2001
It's an engrossing read, in spite of the author's snobbery coming through concerning the Amazonian Indians, and a narrow view of women that was, at times, irritating. (Not a reflective sort of narrative, so don't hold out for that; instead, be satisfied with his camera-ready eye). Speaking of cameras, an oddity: he mentions taking numerous photos, making some sketches, and having maps in his possession, but the book has no photos, no illustrations, no maps, no sketches--nothing but text, which for a travel book of any kind would be an obvious omission, and for one such as this, really bizarre.

Flaws aside, Mr. O'Hanlon takes the reader into a world of animals one sees out on display in a world-famous zoo, such as the one here where ... Read More:
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.Full Circle: A South American Journey (Lonely Planet Journeys)
City Travel Guides > Books > South America
by: Luis Sepulveda

1996-10
a very honest and coolly written book. While the narrative appears disjointed at first, one realizes that if the author were to write all the details in chrono sequence, given that he has been travelling for years, it would have been several fat volumes. This is not srictly a travelogue in the sense of day 1 we did tis, day 2 that happened.. rather, its a collection of incidents and events that took place in the couirse of the author's travels, that illuminate life in the various places he has been.
I feel like hitting the road again, with no fixed destination in mind, no final goal, timeless...
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.Travels in a Thin Country: A Journey Through Chile (Modern Library)
City Travel Guides > Books > South America
by: Sara Wheeler

March 16, 1999
Since I did a similar trip to the one in this book a few years ago, I was curious to see whether Sara and I also had the same experience. We didn't.

Whereas I just left home, Sara apparently first spent much time learning Spanish and gathering a network of contacts in Chile, including a number of official tourist offices that gave her free or cheap accommodation and transportation, very briefly mentioned here and there. Her contacts in Santiago, some at the British Embassy and some filthy rich families, Chile's de facto aristocracy, gives her access to interesting people and a level of luxury that "normal" travellers seldom encounter.

So reading the book is not the best way to figure out what you can expect to see and do on ... Read More:
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.In Patagonia
City Travel Guides > Books > South America
by: Bruce Chatwin

June 07, 1988
When a book lacks tension and features extensive quoting, it's bound to be boring. This book is boring, and the main reason is that it lacks a narrative thread, other than "been there, saw somebody, told me a long and winding story about somebody who was here some day". All trips are inner trips, but in this case I would say Chatwin looked inside himself, found not a lot, and decided instead to cut and paste from old stories from down south.
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.Brazilian Adventure (Marlboro Travel)
City Travel Guides > Books > South America
by: Peter Fleming

October 25, 1999
This is certainly not an adventure book in the classical sense. The style of writing does not allow for it. Buy it for its British humor and charm, not for adventures which don't take place.
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.Antisuyo: The Search for the Lost Cities of the Amazon
City Travel Guides > Books > South America
by: Gene Savoy

1970-01
I grew up dreaming of discovering lost cities. I was somewhat able to live out this dream by reading Antisuyo. It is a great account of the hardships and rewards that come as being an explorer and an adventurer. Antisuyo is hard to find, but if you can find it, buy it.
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.My Father's Island: A Galapagos Quest
City Travel Guides > Books > South America
by: Johanna Angemeyer

January 19, 1990
What a rare and wonderful talent. A story so moving, told with love and an incredible witt. I eagerly await the next Angermeyer story. Do yourself a favor and get lost in a tale of determination and mastery at it's finest in reading My Father's Island: A Galapagos Quest. You will not be disappointed.
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.The Travelers' Guide to Latin American Customs and Manners
City Travel Guides > Books > South America
by: Elizabeth Devine, Nancy L. Braganti

November 22, 2000
It's good for what it DOES--business and social manners in the countries that it covers. But the two countries I had wished to investigate--the Dominican Republic and Honduras--are not covered at all. Quite a disappointment. I suppose because these are the two most impoverished countries in the hemisphere, one might think that Americans aren't that interested in traveling there. Quite the contrary. Many American churches send mission groups there, and we need desperately to be aware and sensitive to the customs and manners of the other Christians we desire to fellowship with and serve. It would have been very nice to have a resource that included these two countries. I guess we'll have to look elsewhere.
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