2009 The Best American Travel Writing edited by Simon Winchester

 

This anthology of travel articles is edited by Simon Winchester famous for his own nonfiction writing.  The articles are not constrained to travel within the United States but instead the majority is about travel in other countries.  Articles focus on Cuba, Burma, Lagos, Italy, Greenland, Lebanon, Rwanda, India, Chad, Bolivia, Bulgaria and Argentina.  There are several articles unique to the United States, discussing travel on the Mississippi River and the river in the movie Deliverance, barbeque cooking in Texas and the world of Walt Disney.

International topics include the state of the revolution in Cuba, disappearing penises as a belief, a man eating tiger reserve, a war torn Middle East, the cult of having servants in poor countries, traveling across the oceans via cruise ships, the rise of female wrestlers in South America and the dream of retiring for almost nothing in other countries.  Readers will be able to visualize countries and practices that they are not familiar with.

Authors in this year's edition include Calvin Trillin, Patrick Symmes, Frank Bures, Bronwen Dickey, Andre Aciman, Chuck Klosterman, Tony Perrottet, Lynne Cox, Matthew Power, Seth Stevenson, Tom Sleigh, Jay Kirk, Kiran Desai, Caroline Alexander, Paul Salopek, Eric Weiner, Aima Guillermoprieto, Roger Cohen, Karrie Jacobs, Mark Schazker, Dimiter Kenarov, Jay Cowen, Elisabeth Eaves and Daniel Alarcon.  Each writes on a topic that reflects their interests and own travels.  This book is recommended for nonfiction readers interested in travel writing.