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My reading list

August 2nd, 2008 · 5 Comments · Travel

The books I have with me

The three books in my bag

The question of what to read while traveling is an important one. Since traveling necessarily involves a lot of time spent sitting and waiting for or on trains, buses, planes; you will probably want to have books that are interesting to read. Further, since you will likely be reading these books in public, it’s important to choose books that you would like to be seen reading.

Before leaving on this trip, I had several ideas about what sorts of books I should take. Some of the reading lists I considered:

a) Topical books appropriate to my project: Wiliam Gibson, Neil Stephenson, any of the O’Reilly books. Personal interest level: high-to-moderate; public social value: low.

b) “Great works of Western Civilization” reading list: Plato’s Republic, Euclid’s Elements, Machiavelli’s The Prince, etc. (i.e. all those books you were supposed to read in school but skimmed for the exam instead). Personal interest level: low (let’s face it, these are heavy books not well-suited to start-and-stop travel reading); public social value: moderate (you look smart, but also like a pretentious smartass).

c) Travel books list: On the Road, Travels with Charlie, The Places in Between. Personal interest level: high; public social value: moderate.

In the end, as a result of my hasty packing, the books I wound up with were simply the books I happened to have in my bag already rather than part of a purposely selected list. I suppose Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintence would fit well into a travel list. Actually, it fits too well. I have already met two other people reading it, and it’s obviously an incredibly cliched thing to be reading. The only consolation is that my dog-eared 1975 paperback copy suggests (falsely) that I’m paging through an old favorite rather than having rushed out to buy it for my trip. My plan is to finish ZATAOMM as soon as possible and abandon it at the hostel in exchange for one of the other books here.

I feel better about the Feynman book. It has very low but highly specific social value. Richard Feynman is about as close to an intellectual hero as I have, so anyone who recognizes the book is likely to be a super-awesome person.

The procrastination book is a self-help book, but from what I’ve read of it so far (I keep meaning to finish it, I swear!) it’s on-target and probably useful. Self-help books are the lowest of the low on the social capital scale, they basically scream “I’m pathetic and I have issues!”. On the plus side, procrastination isn’t a terrible vice, and once I’m out of countries where English is widely spoken, nobody will be able to tell what the book is anyway.

If anyone is interested in advising me on my next reading choice, the list of books in the hostel library that could be exchanged for my ‘Zen’ are:

The Brightest Flame by Sonya Birmingham (this has an open-shirted man [a pirate?] on the cover being embraced by a woman wearing opera gloves)
The Redemption of Athalus by David & Leigh Eddings
Vrouwenkliniek by Kathe Lambert (this one is in German, or maybe Dutch, so not a good choice unless for some reason being observed pretending to read it will cause women to fall in love with me and men to give me money)
Piombo Rosso by Giorgio Galli (in Italian, same provisions as above)
The Tenth Circle by Jodi Picoult
The Wild Palms by William Faulkner (a leading candidate right now)
Kryzys Psychoanalizy by Erich Fromm (psychology text in Dutch, that’s a passer)
Understanding Media Theory by Arjen Mulder (the inside cover of this book has “Enjoy your education…I didn’t <3 Aussie” written in it)
Serenade by James M. Cain
Het Gouden Ei by Tim Krabbé (also in Dutch)
A Mother’s Sin by Lynda Page (this looks like the sort of book that a Lifetime Movie is made out of)
Immortal Wife by Irving Stone (Pros: looks old and fancy; Cons: hardcover, heavier to carry).

So which should it be?

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5 Comments so far ↓

  • David P.

    The book on media theory would be an ironic choice given the nature of your trip. Glad things seem to be going well for you so far. Anyway, an unrelated article about a tech-related journey that’s pretty cool:
    http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/4.12/ffglass_pr.html

  • Brian Mc

    Give Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance a chance. It has some things to say you won’t find elsewhere. There’s a reason other people are reading it. When you’re done and leave it at a hostel, the next person to pick it up will touch a live wire to 1975.

  • Nick

    Go for The Brightest Flame. It has a brightly-colored cover.

  • Ashling

    Um, I think the Jodi Picoult, “The Tenth Circle” is actually a lifetime movie. (:
    Don’t take my word for it though.

  • Ramy

    When I was staying at my hostel in Amsterdam, I remember exchanging a book I had bought called “This Book will Save Your Life” for “Memoirs of a Geisha” with one of my hostel-mates. Also, when I got to France, I gave a Brandeis student suffering from bronchial congestion a package of Zithromax, and I shared rolling tobacco with a Greek IT consultant. Little things like this make traveling ultimately worthwhile. I still haven’t read “Memoirs” but I liked the idea of barter with a fellow traveler.

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