Kingdoms in the Air: Dispatches from the Far Away (Books That Changed the World)

By: Bob Shacochis

Sign Up Now! Already a Member? Log In
You must be logged into Bookshare to access this title. Learn about membership options, or view our freely available titles.

Synopsis: This &“exuberant travel and cultural anthology&” by the National Book Award–winning author &“brings each setting to life with a perceptive eye&” (Booklist, starred review). Best known for his sweeping political novels, including the Pulitzer Prize finalist, The Woman Who Lost Her Soul, Bob Shacochis began his career as a journalist and contributing editor for Outside magazine and Harper&’s. Kingdoms in the Air brings together the very best of Shacochis&’s culture and travel essays in a collection that spans his global adventures and passions; from Kathmandu to Mozambique, from his love of surfing to his obsession with the South American dorado. In the titular essay &“Kingdoms,&” the longest work in the collection, Shacochis ventures to Nepal with his friend, the photographer Thomas Laird, who was the first foreigner to live in Nepal&’s Kingdom of Mustang as the forbidden Shangri-La prepared to open its borders to trekkers and trade. Replete with Shacochis&’s swagger, humor, and wisdom, Kingdoms in the Air is an essential collection of travel writing by an author who &“has extended his knowledge and imagination into places most of us have never ventured&” (Washington Post).