City Travel Guides > Books > Middle East

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.On Foot to the Golden Horn: A Walk to Istanbul
City Travel Guides > Books > Middle East
by: Jason Goodwin

January 01, 2003
Jason Goodwin has produced a wonderfully inventive travel book, one in which Istanbul is the ultimate goal. Wanting to have some sort of experience of what was it was like to visit such a distant goal in the past, as well as to tour Central Europe, he and two friends walk there! They journey on foot (only very rarely accepting short rides) from the northern Polish port city of Gdansk all the way through the rest of Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, and Bulgaria into Turkey. An incredible journey, he describes it vividly, with worries about bandits, wolves, bears, the weather, hostile customs officials, dogs, and most of all finding food and a place to sleep at night. They meet an interesting and diverse group of people along the road, many ... Read More:
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.Knopf Guide to The Holy Land
City Travel Guides > Books > Middle East
by: Knopf Guides

November 21, 1995
This guide is beautiful, complete, and truly in-depth. For example, there is a fold out section showing the route Jesus followed carrying his cross. It notes all of the details including where he fell, where certain icons are -- everything you could want to know. The Knopf Guide also will make a great souvenir of your trip.

Contrary to what another writer has said here, this book certainly recognizes Israel. As the Lonely Planet guide points out, there is much in dispute about this area, and it's easy to offend one group or the other. Any attempt to present a balanced view of history and of the three religions which center their faith here must tread carefully with names and facts. The Knopf Guide excels in this area.

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.So Many Enemies, So Little Time: An American Woman in All the Wrong Places
City Travel Guides > Books > Middle East
by: Elinor Burkett

March 29, 2005
Elinor Burkett's account of her travels in Central Asia is vibrant, quirky, and fascinating. I especially admire her courage in traveling to a region not well known to most Americans, her observational powers, her attention to detail, and her ability to place her adventures in a global context. I also admire her integrity in sticking to her principles as a professor of journalism at Bishkek, Kyrgystan, and her sincere desire to inject the spirit of journalistic objectivity into her students' psyches.
As I read over the other reviews of this book, I found it hard to believe that anyone who had not acted with the same bravery in traveling to the truly exotic locations in this book would dare to express a negative opinion of two who dared do so. I believe that Elinor ... Read More:
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.Zaatar Days, Henna Nights: Adventures, Dreams, and Destinations Across the Middle East
City Travel Guides > Books > Middle East
by: Maliha Masood

December 29, 2006
I was looking for a good read that might take me back to my own life changing travels in Egypt and across the world and this book was channel for that reliving. This book takes the ordinary experiences and shows them diffused through a prism of a spiritual self expiriment on her own muslim belief system. She takes a good look at the hidden sides of the clash between old muslim culture and modern liberations. I wouldn't use this book as a travel guide for the middle east; but I wouldn't use Kerouac's - On The Road as a guide for the USA either. The writing is often metaphoric, sometimes overly, but the filter of a young woman on a mythical adventure of self discovery shines in the descriptions of the people she meets and the sense of alchemy in the coincidences of her journey.

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.Dreaming of East: Western Women and the Exotic Allure of the Orient
City Travel Guides > Books > Middle East
by: Barbara Hodgson

July 29, 2006
For generations of Western women, Eastern travel has signified freedom. Yet in the more `liberal' West this does not compute. How can the cloistered East be a place of emancipation? Through a series of portraits of 18th to 20th century women who traveled to the eastern Ottoman empire - Egypt, Palestine, Syria, Iraq and Turkey - Hodgson demonstrates the calculus. Among Eastern liberties counted by women like Isabel Burton, the wife of adventurer Richard Burton: `the inconsequence of time' and the loose clothing. The Canadian author is a book designer, and the engravings, paintings, sketches and photographs make this book a jewel to behold.
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.The State of the Middle East: An Atlas of Conflict and Resolution
City Travel Guides > Books > Middle East
by: Dan Smith

October 11, 2006
FIRST: A very important note! As I file this review today, I see 2 other reviews on Amazon, both written in 2007. Those comments -- one praise and one criticism -- are NOT referring to this new edition released in late 2008.

With this new edition in print, I say:

Bravo to Dan Smith and the atlas gurus at the University of California Press. As a journalist specializing in covering religion and culture for leading U.S. newspapers for more than 30 years, I can tell you: It's volumes like this one that people should keep on their personal quick-reference shelves. That's especially true for preachers, teachers, small-group leaders, students -- and, really, anyone who cares about accurately understanding our turbulent world.

One sign of how much Smith and the University ... Read More:
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.Lonely Planet Jordan
City Travel Guides > Books > Middle East
by: Anthony Ham, Paul Greenway

2003-04
Much more informative than LP's "Jordan & Syria" edition. There are a couple of beautiful pictures of Wadi Rum in here, and some decent background info on archeological sites around Jordan. Border crossing politics are made clear, and how to get around is succint. There is quite a bit of information packed into this book, covering everything from little-known facts about Bedouin life to opening/closing times at Karak Castle. The maps in this book are more useful than some other guides I've seen and I would have given this book 5 stars, but I know of another book superior to this one.... It's Matthew Teller's "Jordan-The Rough Guide"....
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.In the Land of the Ayatollahs Tupac Shakur Is King: Reflections from Iran and the Arab World
City Travel Guides > Books > Middle East
by: Shahzad Aziz

October 01, 2007
This was a great start on a comparative study of the West vs. the East. The fact that both worlds are interlinked in some way. I liked how the author walked the readers through his journey and painted such a detailed picture. Look forward to more journeys in the future.
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.Reflections in the Nile
City Travel Guides > Books > Middle East
by: J. Suzanne Frank

July 01, 1998
I love all types of Egypt books--good and good-bad. This one was a disappointment. Like the last reviewer, I was turned off by the Judeo-Christian element. This is a book about Egypt after all! Aside from Hatshesut being a bit of a nymphomaniac, the story was predictable, and not nearly enough detail was given in the "rescue" scenes--seemed like all of a sudden Chloe was safe again, and you don't know exactly how she got that way. Read Diana Gabaldon's books---same idea done with way more detail, excitement, and historical interest.
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.Top 10 Cyprus (EYEWITNESS TOP 10 TRAVEL GUIDE)
City Travel Guides > Books > Middle East
by: DK Publishing

May 31, 2004
Probably no independent traveler would want to have DK Top 10 as their only guidebook when traveling to Cyprus, but it is an excellent complement to a more thoroughly written guidebook like Rough Guide or Lonely Planet. The compact size, innumerable photos, and excellent organization make it a joy to carry, and provide many ideas for photographers who seek the best vantage points for their shots. DK Top 10 Cyprus is a fun book to peruse, simple to read, and very reasonably priced. Highly recommended for anyone going to Cyprus; just don't forget to bring another guidebook like Rough Guide if you plan to do any independent traveling.
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