This 304 page coffee table book takes a look at 26 of America’s great authors and the places that inspired them. Unique to this book of literary biography is the element of the photograph. With over 140 photographs throughout, the images add mood and dimension to the writing – and they are often shockingly close to what the featured authors described in their own words. Lushly illustrated, and beautifully designed, the book is as much of a pleasure to look at as it is to read. Written by Thomas R. Hummel with photography by Tamra L. Dempsey.

Reading Recommendations for Travelers, Vagabonds, and Dreamers

For the new breed of vacationer who craves meaningful trips and unusual locales, the combination of reading and travel can be a heady mix—especially if you happen to be checking into Hemingway’s favorite hotel in Sun Valley, or strolling about Bath’s Royal Crescent while entertaining fantasies of Lizzie Bennett and her Mr. Darcy! Cue National Geographic’s Novel Destinations—a guide for bibliophiles to more than 500 literary sites across the United States and Europe.

Flannery O’Connor, Peter Taylor, Thomas Wolfe. The South has long revered its literary luminaries. Their talent for evoking a sense of place in their settings and in their characters reflects an elemental connection to their home soil. William Faulkner and Yoknapatawpha County, Eudora Welty and the Delta, Pat Conroy and the Low Country. Renowned author and photographer team Hugh Howard and Roger Straus III set out to examine the imaginative link between Southern authors and their geography and the impact on their writings. The result is an intimate, engaging, and poignant look at twenty-two of the South’s most important contributors to the pantheon of great American literature. We learn, for example, that three generations of writers, Faulkner, Shelby Foote, and Ann Patchett, share the same dreamscape: the battlefield at Shiloh. The compelling tension in Carl Hiaasen’s life is the ruthless development around him in the fragile Florida Keys. And when asked who influenced them, most of the living writers profiled came up with the same three names: William Faulkner, Eudora Welty, and Flannery O’Connor. Through vibrant, evocative, and intimate photographs and a mix of prized storytelling and interviews, Writers of the American South offers an exhilarating opportunity to visit with Southern literary royalty and deserves a permanent place on the bookshelves of every American literature library.

Readers and travelers are guided to more than 200 homes and historic sites of America’s greatest writers—from the Jack London Ranch in northern California to William Faulkner’s home in Oxford, Mississippi. Clear driving directions and visitor instructions are combined with unique tidbits about each site and author, such as the story of Jack London’s custom-made furniture and the roll top desk and Dictaphone on display in his study. Literary enthusiasts are guided to the site of Thoreau’s bean field, where they can poke around an exact replica of his cabin. They can drop in on Margaret Mitchell’s recently restored Atlanta apartment or visit John Steinbeck’s haunts in the cozy California seaside town of Pacific Grove. This family-oriented, user-friendly guide teaches literary folk about writers’ work, their philosophies, and the forces that compelled them to write. All 50 states are represented, and the literary sites are divided by geographic regions.

This is not a book about writers, or about houses, or about America. It is a book about where and why and how American writers made a home for themselves—a place to live, yes, but above all a place to work—in a restless, rugged country. . .
— from J.D. McClatchy’s Introduction

The New York City homes and haunts of world-famous writers– from Poe to Mailer, from Millay to Kerouac, from Langston Hughes to Arthur Miller– are vividly described in this richly anecdotal literary Baedeker. Illustrated with archival photos from the Museum of the City of New York and author Mill Morgan, Literary Landmarks will delight bibliophiles with its celebration of notable wordsmiths who toiled, thrived, and survived in New York City.

In their imaginations, children travel the world when they read such books as Madeline, A Bear Called Paddington, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, and Little House on the Prairie. Make these imaginary journeys a reality for your children with visits to the actual settings of these and dozens more of the best-loved tales in children’s literature. Storybook Travels is the ultimate guide for book-loving parents in search of vacations the whole family will enjoy. Let Storybook Travels be your family’s companion on unforgettable excursions.

Here is a travel book with a difference! For the armchair traveler, there are fascinating descriptions, sketches, and quotes from the authors. For the more adventurous, there are maps, directions, and information on how to ger there and the features of each place. And there are over 50 places included, each associated with one of America’s greatest writers. Clearly and logically presented, this is a beautiful book that is fun to read as well as a practical guide to America.