Books to Spark Wanderlust and Take You Around the World
Last Updated on October 22, 2024 by Ingrid
Well, anybody who knows me knows I love reading. I’ve always loved books and how they can transport you to different places, if only briefly. I started reading early, and during my summer vacation, when all the kids were sent to the countryside with their grandparents, the only friends that stuck with me were the books to spark wanderlust.
Moving forward in life, I’ve always gone through different stages, and now and then, I have periods when I read book after book, especially when I cannot travel, but mostly when I do.
So, I’ve come up with a list of favorites to read when you’re stuck at home and want to daydream about some distant location or when you have a trip planned and want to learn something about that place.
I’m a huge fan of books that discuss culture and show us the real life of a place through the eyes of its characters. I also love reading books about a particular country or continent whenever I have an upcoming trip there or am curious about a specific historical topic.
So, without further ado, here are my top picks for a good read that will spark wanderlust and make you travel without traveling.
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Table of Contents
- Books to spark wanderlust
- Behold the dreamers by Imbolo Mbue – New York and Cameroon
- My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante – Naples, Italy
- Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert – Italy, India, Bali
- The Traveling Cat Chronicles by Hiro Arikawa – Japan
- Miss Burma by Charmaine Craig- Myanmar
- The Bastard of Istanbul by Elif Shafak – Turkey
- Vox Populi by Alex A. Zudor – A Detective Story of Ancient Rome
- In a sunburned country by Bill Bryson – Australia
- Catfish and Mandala: A Two-Wheeled Voyage Through the Landscape and Memory of Vietnam by Andrew X. Pham
- The Mango Season by Amulya Malladi – India
- Out of Africa by Isak Dinesen – Nairobi, Kenya
- Last train to Istanbul bu Ayşe Kulin- France and Turkey
- The Temporary Bride: A Memoir of Love and Food in Iran by Jennifer Klinec – Iran
- Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie – USA and Nigeria
- Marrakech Express by PeterMillar – Morocco
- Lands of Lost Borders – the Silk Road by Kate Harris
- Backyard to Backpack – by Evie Farrell
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Books to spark wanderlust
Behold the dreamers by Imbolo Mbue – New York and Cameroon
I honestly don’t remember how I found this book or who recommended it, but I am sure happy I did.
This is the story of Jende and his family, who managed to leave Cameroon behind and build a life in New York City. But will they make it? The book kept me guessing until its final page, and I wished for a great ending for this lovely, hard-working family.
I was touched by the struggle and the real problems in today’s society, even if the action took place in 2008. An immigrant’s story is torn between his love for his home country and this new amazing place called New York.
“People in this country, always worrying about how to eat, they pay someone good money to tell them: Eat this, don’t eat that. If you don’t know how to eat, what else can you know how to do in this world?”
My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante – Naples, Italy
I’ve read many reviews about the four books in the My Brilliant Friend series, but none influenced me. It’s hard for people who haven’t lived in a “dark” society like Naples was (and maybe still is in certain places) to understand how real everything is.
Turning one page after the other, I returned to the narrow streets of Naples, the shriveled buildings, the lack of optimism, poverty, and the lack of desire to change something.
I went back to the streets of Florence, to a beach south of Naples, to Ischia. I read through the pages of Elena Ferrante’s books and the stories of one long friendship. It is a difficult relationship you cannot explain and probably shouldn’t try.
I loved it and hated it at the same time. The characters made me angry, but I also understood them somehow. As always, I loved the books more than I liked the HBO TV series. But you should decide for yourself after reading the books to spark wanderlust.
“At that moment I knew what the plebs were, much more clearly than when, years earlier, she had asked me. The plebs were us. The plebs were that fight for food and wine, that quarrel over who should be served first and better, that dirty floor on which the waiters clattered back and forth, those increasingly vulgar toasts. The plebs were my mother, who had drunk wine and now was leaning against my father’s shoulder, while he, serious, laughed, his mouth gaping, at the sexual allusions of the metal dealer. They were all laughing, even Lila, with the expression of one who has a role and will play it to the utmost.”
Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert – Italy, India, Bali
It’s a classic, and I’ve written about it in the past. I read it while I was in university and before I traveled to all the places I’ve been to since then.
The book made me think it was possible to leave everything behind and travel to find yourself. The Italy part, in particular, caught my attention and may have been one of the reasons I applied for an Erasmus scholarship in Italy. It might have been the impulse I needed to change, which transformed my life forever.
“A true soul mate is probably the most important person you’ll ever meet, because they tear down your walls and smack you awake. But to live with a soul mate forever? Nah. Too painful. Soul mates, they come into your life just to reveal another layer of yourself to you, and then leave.
A soul mates purpose is to shake you up, tear apart your ego a little bit, show you your obstacles and addictions, break your heart open so new light can get in, make you so desperate and out of control that you have to transform your life, then introduce you to your spiritual master…”
If you still haven’t read it, read more here!
The Traveling Cat Chronicles by Hiro Arikawa – Japan
It is a beautiful story of friendship between a man and his cat. They travel together through Japan and live stories of good and bad things, friendships and jealousy, family and heartbreak.
It’s a book anyone should read.
“My story will be over soon. But it’s not something to be sad about. Remembering those who went ahead. Remembering those who will follow after. And someday, we will meet all those people again, out beyond the horizon”
Miss Burma by Charmaine Craig- Myanmar
It is a novel of love and war, colonialism, and ethnicity set during the most violent period of world history.
You’ll be transported to Southeast Asia, live alongside Benny and Khin, and learn a lot about the country’s recent past through their eyes.
“Their crime was their existence, Louisa had obliquely understood, and she had heeded Mama’s plea that they must not make a noise, taking each blow soundlessly, keeping her tears on the inside, until the lake of her grief had become so wide it had seemed almost inviting, a thing into which she could escape.”
The Bastard of Istanbul by Elif Shafak – Turkey
I emerged in a hectic Istanbul right from the first page, and once we got inside, I almost smelled the spices in the Turkish kitchen.
Turkish cuisine is one of my favorites, and the fact that the characters know the names of the ingredients won me over and gave the book a special flavor.
However, the novel is not breezy and discusses complex topics such as the Armenian genocide or Turkey’s current regime. I’ve read all of Shafak’s books and have always loved how she tells charming stories, creates her characters, and hooks you with the local culture.
“Because time is a drop in the ocean, and you cannot measure off one drop against another to see which one is bigger, which one is smaller.”
Vox Populi by Alex A. Zudor – A Detective Story of Ancient Rome
You’ll step through the streets of Ulpia Traiana Sarmizegetusa, and you won’t let this book down until you find out if the Roman Emperor is guilty of murder.
“It’s election time in the ancient Roman metropolis of Ulpia Traiana Sarmizegetusa! However, the whole electoral process risks getting out of hand when Cominius Pontius Poplicola, the popular candidate for one of the chief executive positions, dies under suspicious circumstances.
Was his death an accident, or was he murdered for championing the cause of the citizenry against the interests of the Emperor himself?
Join Lucius Lucretius Strabo, a former legionary and war veteran, in his quest to solve the mystery and prevent another Empire-wide civil war.”
I am not entirely objective since my husband wrote the book. But judging by what other readers have said, I believe it is a story worth reading for all those Rome lovers out there.
In a sunburned country by Bill Bryson – Australia
Bill Bryson takes the reader through an unbeaten path towards discovering Australia. Home to many things and creatures that might kill you, he explores it and loves it every step of the way.
“As the saying goes, it takes all kinds to make the world go around, though perhaps some shouldn’t go quite so far around it as others.”
See why and read the book by ordering it here!
Catfish and Mandala: A Two-Wheeled Voyage Through the Landscape and Memory of Vietnam by Andrew X. Pham
The story of a Vietnamese-American man who sets off on a bicycle initiatory trip to pursue his adoptive homeland and his motherland in the search for cultural identity.
A man who sells everything and sets to find himself and his origins, only not to feel part of any of the two.
“Nobody gives way to anybody. Everyone just angles, points, dives directly toward his destination, pretending it is an all-or-nothing gamble. People glare at one another and fight for maneuvering space. All parties are equally determined to get the right-of-way–insist on it. They swerve away at the last possible moment, giving scant inches to spare. The victor goes forwards, no time for a victory grin, already engaging in another contest of will. Saigon traffic is Vietnamese life, a continuous charade of posturing, bluffing, fast moves, tenacity and surrenders.”
The Mango Season by Amulya Malladi – India
I read this book while vacationing in Asia for the first time in my life.
It is all about passion and controversy, cultural differences, and traditions that are still stuck in modern Indian society.
An Indian girl from the upper cast studying in the US travels home during the mango season to inform her family about her desire to marry an American.
Out of Africa by Isak Dinesen – Nairobi, Kenya
Isak Dinesen’s memoir is about her years spent in Africa on a coffee plantation in the hills near Nairobi, Kenya. If the title sounds familiar, it might be because a movie starring Merryl Streep was made based on the novel.
“Perhaps he knew, as I did not, that the Earth was made round so that we would not see too far down the road.”
Last train to Istanbul bu Ayşe Kulin- France and Turkey
From Ankara to Paris, Cairo, and Berlin, Last Train to Istanbul is an uplifting tale of love and adventure during tumultuous times when the Nazis invade Paris.
“After all is said and done, what is life anyway? Aren’t we all going to die in the end? I believe life is only worth living if, while we are on this earth, we can do honorable things.”
The Temporary Bride: A Memoir of Love and Food in Iran by Jennifer Klinec – Iran
The writer leaves her corporate job to open a cooking school in her apartment. Her quest for original recipes takes her to Iran, where she wants to learn about the Persian kitchen from a local woman.
It ends with a love story that will fight cultural differences and the harsh Iranian laws.
“Herbs carried in special baskets, bread wrapped in knotted, muslin cloths, thick stews soured with unripe grape juice, carrots boiled with sugar and rosewater, yoghurt hung from dripping bags, its whey dried in sheets on trays in the sun.”
Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie – USA and Nigeria
The book that started my passion for Chimamanda’s writing. Ever since I read about “Americanah” in an in-flight magazine, I’ve devoured every book I could find written by the Nigerian writer.
A Nigerian immigrant story about feeling like an outsider in the US, but also back home in Lagos once she returns. Characters talk about race, nationality, and many other hot topics.
“The only reason you say that race was not an issue is because you wish it was not. We all wish it was not. But it’s a lie. I came from a country where race was not an issue; I did not think of myself as black and I only became black when I came to America. When you are black in America and you fall in love with a white person, race doesn’t matter when you’re alone together because it’s just you and your love. But the minute you step outside, race matters. But we don’t talk about it.”
Marrakech Express by PeterMillar – Morocco
It is a remarkable memoir based on a train journey back in 1969 in Morocco.
“Nothing in the world is quite like Morocco. Research for Marrakech Express took a year and covered everywhere from the Algerian border to magical Fez, cosmopolitan Rabat, and crazy Casablanca, not to mention Eid el Adha in Larache” (Peter Millar on TripFiction Facebook).
Lands of Lost Borders – the Silk Road by Kate Harris
Kate sets off to explore the Silk Road on her bicycle together with a childhood friend.
“Beyond avenging my childhood ideals of explorers, and figuring out how to be one myself, I wanted to bike the Silk Road as a practical extension of my thesis at Oxford: to study how borders make and break what is wild in the world, from mountain ranges to people’s minds, and how science, or more specifically wilderness conservation, might bridge those divides. So there I was, rich in unemployable university degrees, poor in cash, with few possessions to my name beyond a tent, a bicycle, and some books. I felt great about my life decisions until I felt terrified.”
Backyard to Backpack – by Evie Farrell
What if you followed your heart to a life that made you truly happy? Evie Farrell did.
When her daughter Emmie was six, she left her career, sold or donated almost everything she owned, rented out her house, and began an epic two-and-a-half-year backpacking adventure that changed her life forever.
They camped on the Great Wall of China, hung in train doorways in Sri Lanka, swam with mantas in Indonesia, donated much-needed blood in Cambodia, spotted wild orangutans and pygmy elephants in Malaysian Borneo, prayed in Buddhist temples in Taiwan, and were chased by monkeys everywhere.
During their journey toward happiness, self-acceptance, and stepping off the path of expectation, they learned more about each other and the world than they ever expected.
Backyard to Backpack is an inspirational true story that will have you wondering what might happen if you took a chance and started your own adventure. It is definitely one of the books that will spark wanderlust!
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This is just what I needed to get me through theses covid-19 times, thank you! Haven’t read a single one (nope not even Eat Pray Love, crazy right?), so I will click home one or two asap – or maybe get them on my kindle if they don’t ship <3 Hang in there!
Oooh, I thought everyone has read “Eat, Pray, Love” :)) You should take a trip with some of these books, I really love how they have the power to transport you in a nother world.
Love your recommendations. Adding some of these to my good reads.
Great! I really hope you will love them and travel with your mind and the characters to new places!
These all sound fab – I’ve somehow not heard of a few of them so definitely adding them to my list for these times when I’m going to be doing a lot of reading!
Glad to bring something new to the table! Hope you’ll like them
I have always read books when I couldn’t travel, or even to supplement my travel. As a child I voraciously read everything, these days I have a long list of “to read” books but I love adding to that list!
That’s so me! I have a huge to-read list and I always add and add to it. I then have weeks when I read one book after the other, and I also do that when I’m on vacation by the sea somewhere. I simply love reading!
Ooo, thanks for putting these together! I’m definitely trying to get more reading in these days–I added most of these to my to-read list!
I really hope you will enjoy reading them! And they will help you out a bit to travel and discover new places without leaving your house.
It’s always a good idea to keep a to-read list, whenever traveling or not! I’m definitely interested in that book based on Naples!
Exactly, I always have a book with me and some saved on my phone. You will love the Naples books, or you can also check out the Netflix series.
If I wasn’t suffering from wanderlust, I am now! I found this post on Pinterest. I’m grateful for the trip around the world you’ve taken me on!
Thanks! I’m glad you liked my suggestions. I’ve always loved reading books from far away places, especially when I was a kid or teenager and didn’t have the means to travel.