What to Read - Dreaming of Travel
With most travel across the world postponed indefinitely due to the Coronavirus pandemic, books can provide an escape while people stay at home
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Editor’s Note: As Californians continue to stay at home during the Coronavirus crisis, CapRadio Reads has had to postpone some of its live author interviews. Like the rest of the world, we're unsure when those events will return, but in the meantime, we know that books can provide an escape or comfort in trying times. Join Host Donna Apidone as she talks with authors and others about the books that keep us going.
We’ve been asked to stay at home, and I want to travel more than ever. I’m using a few good books as my escape.
When news first broke about coronavirus in Italy, a lot of the towns and cities were places I’d visited. I checked maps and looked for photos as I recalled better times in favorite town squares. I remembered what I’d read in John Keahey’s books about Italy.
Keahey’s career in journalism is evident in his accounts of people, architecture and landscapes. He calls himself a “writer who travels”, rather than a travel writer. His books are not travel guides. They are accounts of a lifestyle. Keahey doesn’t have a camera crew and producer. He often travels alone, meeting up with friends of friends for explanations of local customs and events. The results are unique and fun to read.
The two Keahey books that first caught my attention were “Sicilian Splendors” and “Seeking Sicily,” which I read in preparation for a trip to the island. I wish I had known about two other books – “Hidden Tuscany” and “Venice Against the Sea” – prior to my travels in the North.
Another writer experienced a much different Venice around the time of World War II. Jan Morris wrote about her time spent in Venice and Trieste in the 1940s. Decades later, on retirement, she described life in her country home in Wales. She is also known for her extensive history of the British Empire in her “Pax Britannica Trilogy.” Look for titles from Jan Morris and James Morris. She has written under both names.
Let me know your favorite travel authors or books: [email protected]
The Authors
The Books
- John Keahey: Hidden Tuscany
- John Keahey: Venice Against the Sea John Keahey: Seeking Sicily
- John Keahey: Sicilian Splendors
- Jan Morris: Venice Jan Morris: A Writer’s House in Wales
- Jan Morris: Trieste and the Meaning of Nowhere
- Jan Morris: The Pax Britannica Trilogy: Heaven’s Command; The Climax of Empire; Farewell the Trumpets: An Imperial Retreat
