These are my 2021 Top Five Travelogues/Memoirs that I find inspirational and give me insight into how others see the world. I hope these books help you find a journey of discovery about yourself and others.
Bodie on the Road: Travels with a Rescue Pup in the Dogged Pursuit of Happiness by Belinda Jones
Jones relates the start of her life’s journey with her new dog Bodie, a mixed rescue pup, who had been on death row in a Los Angeles dog shelter.
Dumped by her military boyfriend she was now alone in her life once more.
Jones falls in love with Bodie the moment he plants his furry butt on her bare, flip-flopped foot.
The two embark on a 2,000-mile West Coast road trip.
This trip goes through some spectacular places such as Big Sur and the sand dunes of Oregon beaches. They even have afternoon tea at Doris Day’s dog-loving hotel in Carmel, which still is the most pet-friendliest one in America even after her passing.
Along the way, she learns about herself and she gains strength from the support of her dog Bodie.
I found this book an inspiring journey on how a dog can help change your life for the better as a woman’s best
friend.
Searching for Hassan by Terence Ward
This book is about the author’s search for a beloved friend that was a deep part of their family when he was a boy.
Terence Ward grew up in Tehran in Iran in the 1960s watched over by Hassan, the family’s cook, housekeeper, and cultural guide.
Then they left the country before the fall of the Shah of Iran in 1979 and the turmoil and changes that followed.
The next chance they had to return to Iran to see about their close family friend was thirty years later in the 1990s.
You follow his journey back to Iran, a quixotic pilgrimage with the family in search of him with only a few clues of where he might be, but with a determination to find him.
Crossing Iran Ward explores modern Iran and the county he remembers.
I learned a lot about Iran from this book. The complicated relationship it has with the outside world and the people who live there.
It is an excellent book for anybody who wants to gain a better understanding of Iran and its people and not what we’ve seen from the television and leaders.
It was a fascinating read.
Lakota Woman by Richard Erdoes and Mary Crow Dog
The book is a memoir on a Native American woman’s struggles in life and becoming an activist.
She grew up on the Rosebud Indian Reservation in South Dakota and lived in a one-room cabin without running water or electricity.
Mary had a white father, which made her a “half-breed” and she faced discrimination from both sides. She attended a missionary school where she also faced more problems and rebelled against the school.
At 18 she was pregnant and in rebellion and joined the American Indian Movement and was there at Wounded Knee where Native Americans faced off against the FBI.
Later, she married Leonard Crow Dog who is also an activist and a medicine man, and faces prison for a time. She took it upon herself to stand up against the justice system that had wrongly convicted him on charges.
It is quite the story to read and you learn a lot about the discrimination that Native Americans have endured.
If you want to learn about what it is to be a Lakota Woman in the past 50 years this book is an eye-opening experience.
She also provided the speaking voice of Disney’s Pocahontas.
The Rainbow Comes and Goes: A Mother and Son on Life, Love, and Loss by Anderson Cooper
TV journalist Anderson Cooper relates his life with his mother Gloria Vanderbilt heir to the Vanderbilt fortune.
The book is written like a conversation between them.
Gloria had an amazing childhood that was fraught with many trials.
Her father who was an heir of the Vanderbilt fortune spent much of the money on gambling and racehorses and died while she was a toddler.
She was mostly raised by her nannies since her mother was still young and not certain how to raise a child.
Sadly, her custody became a court case that made the tabloids when her mother and other relatives fought who should be her caregiver.
Gloria then went through numerous marriages and failed relationships until finally marrying Anderson’s father. Again, tragedy struck, and Anderson’s dad died young. Also, Anderson’s brother and Gloria’s son died by suicide.
Gloria even made her own fortune selling fashion and jeans. Although, again she was swindled money from this by a lawyer.
It is an amazing story and reflects how the rainbow really does come and go.
I enjoyed reading their story and how they survived tragedies and how it has affected their lives.
The Same River Twice: A Memoir of Dirtbag Backpackers, Bomb Shelters, and Bad Travel by Pam Mandel
Pam Mandel shares her chaotic life starting with her suburban life in California.
Her father encourages her to go to Israel and she stays on working at a kibbutz, which is a collective community based on agriculture.
This begins her difficult journey in figuring out her life. This all began as her divorcing parents did not know what to do with her.
First, she faces time in bomb shelters as Israel is attacked from the north.
She falls in love with an Israelis citizen, but he turns out not to be in love with her and cheats on her.
Then she decides to travel beyond Israel with an abusive relationship.
It takes her a while to figure out a way out of this bad situation. She then goes back to the US to put her life in order on her own.
Along with the trauma she also shares some of the amazing places she went to from India to Egypt and even Pakistan.
It is an interesting read as she discovers the world along with figuring who she is and how to find strength in herself.
Since I do a lot of hiking, I read a lot more hiking books now. I’ve split up the top ten lists into two top-five lists. Next, I will share my TOP 5 HIKING BOOKS!
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