'Restlessly curious, insightful, and quirky, David Damrosch is the perfect guide to a round-the-world adventure in reading' Stephen Greenblatt A transporting and illuminating voyage around the globe, told through eighty classic and modern books 'It is always a pleasure to talk about books with David Damrosch, who has read all of them, and he is so eloquent and understanding about them all' Orhan Pamuk Inspired by Jules Verne's hero Phileas Fogg, David Damrosch, chair of Harvard's Department of Comparative Literature and founder of Harvard's Institute for World Literature, set out to counter a pandemic's restrictions on travel by exploring eighty exceptional books from around the globe. Following a literary itinerary from London to Venice, Tehran and points beyond, and via authors from Woolf and Dante to Nobel prizewinners Orhan Pamuk, Wole Soyinka, Mo Yan and Olga Tokarczuk, he explores how these works have shaped our idea of the world, and the ways the world bleeds into literature. To chart the expansive landscape of world literature today, Damrosch explores how writers live in two very different worlds: the world of their personal experience, and the world of books that have enabled great writers to give shape and meaning to their lives. In his literary cartography, Damrosch includes compelling contemporary works as well as perennial classics, hard-bitten crime fiction as well as haunting works of fantasy, and the formative tales that introduce us as children to the world we're entering. Taken together, these eighty titles offer us fresh perspective on perennial problems, from the social consequences of epidemics to the rising inequality that Thomas More designed Utopia to combat and the patriarchal structures within and against which many of these books' heroines have to struggle, from the work of Murasaki Shikibu a millennium ago to that of Margaret Atwood today. Around the World in 80 Books is a global invitation to look beyond ourselves and our surroundings, and to see our world and its literature in new ways.

Whether you're a regular globe-trotter or an armchair traveler, these 80 works conjure up the spirit of place for locations on every continent. Sometimes the setting of a novel is as important as the story—where would Dickens be without London, or Edith Wharton without New York? Who can read Tales of the City and not want to visit San Francisco, or enjoy Alexander McCall Smith’s No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency and not wonder whether perhaps Botswana should be on your bucket list? Covering every corner of the world, from North and South America to Europe, the Far East, Australia, Africa, and more, there are classics by famous authors, alongside works by new writers. Sometimes a native of the country is best able to convey its true nature, but then an outside observer can recreate the attraction of the unknown. Whether you have already decided on a destination and want to get a feel for the place, or you are just looking for ideas for your next getaway, Around the World in 80 Novels is full of inspirational reads that will fire your imagination and have you reaching for your suitcase.

In the autumn of 1988, Michael Palin sets out from the Reform Club to circumnavigate the world, following the route taken by Phileas Fogg 115 years earlier.

Recounts a travel writer's journey to eighteen countries for dates with eighty men in search of romance and the ideal relationship, documenting the best and the worse of her experiences.

Best Picture Books of 2019, The Christian Science Monitor A Mighty Girl's 2019 Books of the Year Kirkus Reviews' Best Indie Picture Books of 2020 The true story of two women who raced against time—and each other! In 1889, New York reporter Nellie Bly—inspired by Jules Verne's Around the World in 80 Days—began a circumnavigation she hoped to complete in less time. Her trip was sponsored by her employer, The World. Just hours after her ship set out across the Atlantic, another New York publication put writer Elizabeth Bisland on a westbound train. Bisland was headed around the world in the opposite direction, thinking she could beat Bly's time. Only one woman could win the race, but both completed their journeys in record time.

In 1872, English gentleman Phileas Fogg has many adventures as he tries to win a bet that he can travel around the world in eighty days.

Victorian Race Around the World: Two women reporters try to beat Jules Verne's record. New York City, November 14, 1889. Young newspaper reporter Nellie Bly sets sail on the Augusta Victoria for a trip around the world. She plans to beat Jules Verne's fictional record from the novel Around the World in Eighty Days. She thinks she can circumnavigate the globe in under seventy-five days, and prove that a woman can do what no man has even tried. Hours later, and unbeknownst to Nellie, another writer, Elizabeth Bisland boards a train going in the opposite direction attempting to beat Nellie back to New York. Elizabeth is a reluctant player in this high-stakes publicity stunt, but financial needs outweigh her pride. Neither woman is prepared for what will happen on this trip, or how the race will change her. This fascinating novel covers these historical topics and more: - early women reporters - travel during Victorian times - includes Nellie Bly's visit with Jules Verne, himself

Inspired Traveller’s Guides: Literary Places takes you on an enlightening journey through the key locations of literature’s best and brightest authors, movements, and moments—brought to life through comprehensively researched text and stunning hand-drawn artwork. Travel journalist Sarah Baxter provides comprehensive and atmospheric outlines of the history and culture of 25 literary places around the globe, as well as how they intersect with the lives of the authors and the works that make them significant. Full-page color illustrations instantly transport you to each location. You’ll find that these places are not just backdrops to the tales told, but characters in their own right. Travel to the sun-scorched plains of Don Quixote’s La Mancha, roam the wild Yorkshire moors with Cathy and Heathcliff, or view Central Park through the eyes of J.D. Salinger’s antihero. Explore the lush and languid backwaters of Arundhati Roy’s Kerala, the imposing precipice of Joan Lindsay’s Hanging Rock, and the labyrinthine streets and sewers of Victor Hugo’s Paris. Delve into this book to discover some of the world’s most fascinating literary places and the novels that celebrate them.