United States Travel

In the best-selling tradition of Bill Bryson and Tony Horwitz, Rinker Buck's The Oregon Trail is a major work of participatory history: an epic account of traveling the entire 2,000-mile length of the Oregon Trail the old-fashioned way, in a covered wagon with a team of mules - which hasn't been done in a century - that also tells the rich history of the trail, the people who made the migration, and its significance to the country.

After 20 years in Britain, Bryson returned to the U.S. and decided to reacquaint himself with his native country by walking the 2,100-mile Appalachian Trail, which stretches from Georgia to Maine. This is his humorous, inspiring account.

Many dream of dropping everything and just traveling around the world. It's a common dream, but few imagine embarking on that journey by bicycle. Exposed to the elements, legs burning, all your possessions strapped to you and your bicycle - it doesn't paint a relaxing picture, but this is just what Pierre-Yves Tremblay did.

RV Living Full Time will help you transition smoothly from a boring life at home to the adventure of a lifetime on the open road. At first, it may all feel overwhelming, but this audiobook will help get you properly prepared for the next big chapter in your life.

***Newly Updated in 2025*** On the border of Tennessee and North sits the most popular of the national parks, Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The park preserves not only the beautiful scenery of the southern Appalachian Mountains but the culture of the areas as well. Join 101 Travel Bits™ in celebrating the wonderful park that is Great Smoky Mountains National Park. 101 Travel Bits are not your typical guidebooks. Each collection of 101 Travel Bits consists of 101 “bits” of information about one of the great places to visit in the world. This could be a “bit” of history, a ...

***Newly Updated in 2025*** Sometimes known as “America’s Most Scenic Drive,” the Blue Ridge Parkway is a two-lane highway traveling through the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia and North Carolina. Traversing both mountain ridges and dipping into the valleys below, the Blue Ridge Parkway gets visitors close to nature and history as it winds and meanders the mountains. Join 101 Travel Bits to see how the Blue Ridge Parkway came to be known as one of the most famous and beautiful roads in the United States. 101 Travel Bits are not your typical guidebooks. Each collection of 101 Travel ...

Seven years ago, readers and listeners around the country fell in love with a singular American voice: Rinker Buck, whose infectious curiosity about history launched him across the West in a covered wagon pulled by mules and propelled his book about the trip, The Oregon Trail, to ten weeks on the New York Times bestseller list. Now, Buck returns to chronicle his latest incredible adventure: building a wooden flatboat from the bygone era of the early 1800s and journeying down the Mississippi River to New Orleans.

In this landmark work on the Anasazi tribes of the Southwest, naturalist Craig Childs dives head-on into the mysteries of this vanished people. The various tribes that made up the Anasazi people converged on Chaco Canyon (New Mexico) during the 11th century to create a civilization hailed as "the Las Vegas of its day", a flourishing cultural center that attracted pilgrims from far and wide, and a vital crossroads of the prehistoric world. By the 13th century, however, Chaco's vibrant community had disappeared without a trace.

A fantastic book! Timothy Egan describes his journeys in the Pacific Northwest through visits to salmon fisheries, redwood forests and the manicured English gardens of Vancouver. Here is a blend of history, anthropology and politics.

Does George Washington still matter? Best-selling author Nathaniel Philbrick argues for Washington’s unique contribution to the forging of America by retracing his journey as a new president through all 13 former colonies, which were now an unsure nation. Travels with George marks a new first-person voice for Philbrick, weaving history and personal reflection into a single narrative.

In Made in America, Bryson de-mythologizes his native land, explaining how a dusty hamlet with neither woods nor holly became Hollywood, how the Wild West wasn't won, why Americans say 'lootenant' and 'Toosday', how Americans were eating junk food long before the word itself was cooked up, as well as exposing the true origins of the G-string, the original $64,000 question, and Dr Kellogg of cornflakes fame.

We never know what will happen next in Florida. We know only that, any minute now, something will. Every few months, Dave Barry gets a call from some media person wanting to know, "What the hell is wrong with Florida?" Somehow, the state's acquired an image as a subtropical festival of stupid, and as a loyal Floridian, Dave begs to differ. Sure, there was the 2000 election. And people seem to take their pants off for no good reason. And it has flying insects the size of LeBron James. But it is a great state, and Dave is going to tell you why.

Egan leads us on an unconventional, freewheeling tour: from America's oldest continuously inhabited community, the Ancoma Pueblo in New Mexico, to the high kitsch of Lake Havasu City, Arizona, where London Bridge has been painstakingly rebuilt stone by stone; from the fragile beauty of Idaho's Bitterroot Range to the gross excess of Las Vegas, a city built as though in defiance of its arid environment.

Sarah Vowell exposes the glorious conundrums of American history and culture with wit, probity, and an irreverent sense of humor. With Assassination Vacation, she takes us on a road trip like no other, a journey to the pit stops of American political murder and through the myriad ways they have been used for fun and profit, for political and cultural advantage.

On the morning of July 3, 1994, a misreported forest fire on Storm King Mountain in Colorado became one of the greatest tragedies in the annals of firefighting. In this dramatic reconstruction of the disaster and its aftermath, John N. MacLean tells the heroic and cautionary story of nature at its most unforgiving.

John Waters is putting his life on the line. Armed with wit, a pencil-thin mustache, and a cardboard sign that reads "I’m Not Psycho", he hitchhikes across America from Baltimore to San Francisco, braving lonely roads and treacherous drivers. But who should we be more worried about, the delicate film director with genteel manners or the unsuspecting travelers transporting the Pope of Trash?

Get ready to experience the ultimate slice of Wisconsin life with Grillin’ in a Blizzard: Tales from Life in the Great White Cheese State, a laugh-out-loud collection of stories, tall tales, and hard truths that every true Wisconsinite knows by heart. Wayne Larson captures the spirit of America’s Dairyland in this heartwarming, hilarious book that’s as comforting as a Friday night fish fry and as genuine as a Packers fan in a cheesehead hat.

The Trail is a moving story of how nature helps us find what’s missing in our lives. The tale begins with Gil, who in the wake of his father’s death and recently fired from his job, agrees to accompany his father’s old hiking partner Syd on a month-long trek on the John Muir Trail. There’s just one problem: Gil hates camping and is woefully unprepared for the rigors of the journey. Moreover, he soon learns Syd may not survive the hike.

You’ll learn about Alaska’s history, pop culture, folklore, sports, and so much more in this interesting and informative trivia-packed book.

***Newly Updated in 2025*** Situated on the ridges of Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains is Shenandoah National Park. Traversed by the famed Skyline Drive, the park is known for its incredible views and hiking. Only a short trip from some of the most populated parts of the East Coast, Shenandoah National Park provides many with a scenic respite from a hectic world. Join 101 Travel Bits™ in celebrating the wonderful park that is Shenandoah National Park. 101 Travel Bits are not your typical guidebooks. Each collection of 101 Travel Bits consists of 101 “bits” of information about one of...