Anyone recommend any good books?

Cycle-touring, Expeditions, Adventures, Major cycle routes NOT LeJoG (see other special board)
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chris3vic
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Anyone recommend any good books?

Post by chris3vic »

As above,

Looking for interesting books about touring in general.

Anything like travel writing about particular epic trips (round the world, transamerica etc) would be particularly good.

There's obviously a myriad of options on amazon etc, often self published by the cyclists themselves, but with no reviews, so it's your recommendations I'm looking for to narrow it down!
andymiller
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Re: Anyone recommend any good books?

Post by andymiller »

Alistair Humphreys has written two books - normally I avoid travelogues' like the plague but these are pretty good (shame I can't remember the titles but someone with a better memory than me will be along shortly no doubt).

Then there's the women a who used to be a headmistress, who sounds like her books might be worth a punt (sorry can't remember her name either).

David Byrne's (ie him of Talking Heads fame) Bicycle Diaries is a worthwhile read.

And then there's the novel about the guy who sets off on his bike one day and just keeps going (set in America obviously). can't remember who wrote that or what it's called.
DaleFTW
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Re: Anyone recommend any good books?

Post by DaleFTW »

Alastairs wrote a few - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Alastair-Humphr ... sr=8-2-ent

Mark Beaumont obvs - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Mark-Beaumont/e ... sr=1-2-ent

You could try reading Emily Chappells blog - http://thatemilychappell.com/page/14/

There's loads, but can't remember off the top of my head.
DaleFTW
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Re: Anyone recommend any good books?

Post by DaleFTW »

andymiller wrote:Then there's the women a who used to be a headmistress, who sounds like her books might be worth a punt (sorry can't remember her name either).


http://www.amazon.co.uk/Lone-Traveller- ... +traveller

I've got that somewhere but never read it.
chris3vic
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Re: Anyone recommend any good books?

Post by chris3vic »

Thanks guys - a few good ideas to look into here

I love travelogues to be fair. Easy and interesting holiday reads. I don't really "do" novels. Prefer travel stuff and short story collections.
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shane
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Re: Anyone recommend any good books?

Post by shane »

byegad
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Re: Anyone recommend any good books?

Post by byegad »

Almost any Josie Dew book for inspiration.
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chris3vic
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Re: Anyone recommend any good books?

Post by chris3vic »

shane wrote:
Or just read one of the thousands of free cycling blogs out there :)


I do like to peruse the blogs. These are more for holiday reads and stuff I can shove on my kindle.

Thanks again. Will pay amazon a visit later.
newislander
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Re: Anyone recommend any good books?

Post by newislander »

David Byrne's (ie him of Talking Heads fame) Bicycle Diaries is a worthwhile read.


I disagree with this. I have read a couple of chapters and its obvious and boring. A really uninspired book if what i've read so far is anything to go on. Don't buy it. Its totally not what i expected which is one thing but its worse. Its just bad.

I tried to read one of Josie Dew's books ones. Unreadable. Every second word is a triple barrelled adjective. That was the book where she starts in Japan and heads to China.

Anne Mustoe is the headmistress who cycled around the world - A Bike Ride. She's got a fairly dry and understated style but the book works. Its reassuring (which is helpful for many a first time cycle tourist) rather than over-hyped like Josie Dews writing. I tried reading a second book by Anne Mustoe but found it rather disappointing. And others have said the same thing to me.

There was an australian guy's book i enjoyed it was called from Bombay to Beijing. It wasn't a great book but certainly enjoyable, enlightening and well written. He is a journalist but i can't remember his name.

I always love reading Dervla Murphy though of course her stories are out of date now so you may not learn too much about what its like to travel in this place or that place but for a role model - a courageous, intelligent traveller, you probably can't find better.

I know someone who read Alistair Humphreys book and, inspired by his example, treated him as a role model. It seemed to work. It got him a fair way across the world.
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Vantage
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Re: Anyone recommend any good books?

Post by Vantage »

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B005 ... UTF8&psc=1 This one had me in hysterics many a time.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B004 ... UTF8&psc=1 I rather enjoyed this one too.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1849 ... UTF8&psc=1 Absolutely loved this one. Read it twice now and plan on another go soon :)
Bill


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Squeezebox
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Re: Anyone recommend any good books?

Post by Squeezebox »

My reading list would be:

Josie Dew - I personally think she is great! Ive read all she has written and her writing has been instrumental in getting me back on the saddle. The "slow coast home" just puts into context the nature of cycling in this country compared to the experiences she has had before. I also enjoyed her amazing character studies of the folk she shared a boat with on "Saddled at Sea", the book written about her journey on a container ship. Having read all her stuff over many years now, I noticed that she was doing a talk last June. Having had bad experience of meeting and seeing "live" some of the previous people who Ive read about, or are known in their various fields, it was with some trepidation that I went to see her. She was just fab....she was a real version of how she was in her books, not like others I will could mention. Really lovely lass, great humour and gentle down to earth person. It was great to see her pics for real and hear her describe the things I had read. So I recomend all her stuff, but maybe if you havnt read any, then read it in order and thus in context to her life and travels. She is still cycling with two lovely children and by now quite likely a third one as she was heavily pregnant when we met her in June. Josie is my heroine :D

However I got into cycle touring with Tom Vernon, "Fat man on a bike" and "Roman Road", I love these loads too.

Anne Mustoe is a little dry for my liking, but hey thats not stopped me ordering the whole lot and its a lot of books to get through so thats my winter reading and Im looking forward to it.

I have to admit I didnt finish Mark Beaumont "the man who cycled around the world". Just too much target meeting, not my style of cycling so I guess not my type of reading.....hence I would rather read Josie Dew going over a bridge and turning around and going back over it again.....I guess thats more me.

I have to admit the books by Edward Enfield just dont do much for me personally.

Not on touring at all, but I do find inspiration in "Einstein and the Art of Mindful Cycling" by Ben Irvine, thats a great book on cycling philosophy, I do recomend that too.

Finally "two wheels - thoughts from the bike lane" by Mattt Seaton is a collection of his Guardian writings and a good set of short thought provoking ideas.
Last edited by Squeezebox on 4 Aug 2013, 10:04pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Sweep
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Re: Anyone recommend any good books?

Post by Sweep »

One Man and His Bike by Mike Carter.

A solo trip around Britain.

Obviously he comes across a fair amount of stuff that concerns him/worries him but it has a really nice non judgemental and humane tone - somewhat refreshing when a rather more modern type of travelogue is to perhaps make easy jokes at the expense of people and places.


^^^ very odd and oversensitive anti obscenity prog this forum has , I originally typred "take the p=== out of folk and the offending p word was replaced by, er "micturate"


and just looked it up - the word actually exists - the things you learn - can't wait to use it in conversation,
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Sooper8
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Re: Anyone recommend any good books?

Post by Sooper8 »

I didn't like the David Bryne book either. (or Einstein and the Art of Mindful Cycling)

The Race by Tim Krabbe is great, the best in m my opinion.

All About The Bike is very good.

Eddie Merckx The Cannibal is good, and just today bought The Man Who Cycled The World from a car boot (weel, in fact it was free when I bought something else for a £1) No idea if it's any good...


Edit- so sorry, just realised it was touring books in partic you were looking for. Mine aren't really in that category.
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Tigger
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Re: Anyone recommend any good books?

Post by Tigger »

+1 for Dervla Murphy tho I've only read her first book, "Full Tilt: from Ireland to India on a Bicycle" Disappointing only in two respects; because she starts abroad (can't remember where!) and then the book finishes very abruptly! She's barking mad but writes a fascinating account of her travels.

Should Mike Carter (above) be Mike Carden? I'm reading and enjoying "A Bit Scott-ish" atm, an account of half a JOGLE, the other half being another book. Easy and amusing read, with more 'how not to' than how to do a jogle! And he likes cake (the subtitle is 'Pedalling through Scotland in search of Adventure, Nature and Lemon Drizzle Cake') so he's my kinda guy!

"Obsessive Compulsive Cycling Disorder" by Dave Barter - lots of (clearly addicted) amusing articles previously published in various magazines etc.

"Full Cycle" by Stuart Craig - island hopping in the Western Isles. He makes me laugh but this book is not nearly as good as "Away with the Ferries".

"The Fragile Islands" by Bettina Selby - mad as a hatter (same ilk as Dervla Murphy!) but interesting/ philosophical account of her travels through the Outer Hebrides.
Squeezebox
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Re: Anyone recommend any good books?

Post by Squeezebox »

Portland wrote:One Man and His Bike by Mike Carter.

A solo trip around Britain.

Obviously he comes across a fair amount of stuff that concerns him/worries him but it has a really nice non judgemental and humane tone - somewhat refreshing when a rather more modern type of travelogue is to perhaps make easy jokes at the expense of people and places.


^^^ very odd and oversensitive anti obscenity prog this forum has , I originally typred "take the p=== out of folk and the offending p word was replaced by, er "micturate"


and just looked it up - the word actually exists - the things you learn - can't wait to use it in conversation,


Micturate - Thanks for that ! Ive now gone and looked it up too..... :lol:
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