A humorous account of Mark Twain's later travels in Germany, Switzerland, and Italy mixes memory and invention, history and exaggeration.

Timothy Gandy has kept his lifetime's ambition secret for forty years. Now, suddenly (if tragically) released from the hen-pecked tedium of his ordinary existence, he is unexpectedly free to realize his dreams. He will embark on a Grand Tour of Europe, following in the footsteps of the aristocrats of the eighteenth century. He anticipates high art, culture and pleasant weather. He never expected to encounter new friendships - and possibly even love...

In 2015, as the Syrian War raged and the refugee crisis reached its peak, Rebecca Lowe set off on her bicycle across the Middle East. Driven by a desire to learn more about this troubled region and its relationship with the West, Lowe's 11,000-kilometre journey took her through Europe to Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt, Sudan, the Gulf and finally to Iran. It was an odyssey through landscapes and history that captured her heart, but also a deeply challenging...

"Paolo Rumiz traces the path that has twice cut Europe in two -- first by the Iron Curtain and then by the artificial scaffolding of the EU -- moving through vibrant cities and abandoned villages, some places still gloomy under the ghost of these imposing borders, some that have sought to erase all memory of it and jump with both feet into the West (if only the West would have them). In The Fault Line, he is a sublime and lively guide through these...

"In this passionate, deeply personal book, Adam Nicolson explains why Homer matters-- to him, to you, to the world--in a text full of twists, turns and surprises. In a spectacular journey through mythical and modern landscapes, Adam Nicholson explores the places forever haunted by their Homeric heroes. From Sicily, awash with wildflowers shadowed by Italy's largest oil refinery, to Ithaca, southern Spain, and the mountains on the edges of Andalusia...

The first collection of Jefferson's reflections on his wide-ranging travels, this book draws on his journals, personal correspondence, and other writing, using Jefferson's own words to open a window on the world in which he played so important a part. From his views on his native Virginia to his extensive tours of New England, he shows us America as it was in our earliest years as a nation. He records his extensive, sophisticated impressions of Europe,...

In 1989 the Berlin Wall fell. In that euphoric year Rory MacLean travelled from Berlin to Moscow, exploring lands that were - for most Brits and Americans - part of the forgotten half of Europe. Thirty years on, MacLean traces his original journey backwards, across countries confronting old ghosts and new fears: from revanchist Russia, through Ukraine's bloodlands, into illiberal Hungary, and then Poland, Germany and the UK. Along the way he shoulders...

The Temporary European is a collection of vivid, entertaining travel tales from across Europe.--