The Thumbnail Book Reviews
by John Q McDonald --- 18 March 2002
edited by Rajendra S. Khadka
The Travelers' Tales Guides series fills an important niche in the preparations for almost any traveler. There is no shortage of travel "guides" out there. There are many stories written by travelers, as well. This series of books collects excerpts or full length essays by travelers to numerous cities and countries around the world. In this volume, there are 38 stories of travel in the remote kingdom of Nepal. As one might expect, the largest single group of travelers here represented are trekkers. Though, there are also pilgrims, long term residents and others. This is an outstanding collection covering a broad group of viewpoints. Authors include a trekker returning from a fun and tragic journey, to Peter Matthiessen (author of The Snow Leopard), to former President Jimmy Carter, to the editor himself. The stories touch on many levels of Nepalese life, from very private to the massively political. Each one contributes to an overall feeling of the country as seen from the outside. Each one, also, offers the reader new ground to explore on going to Nepal. Many of the stories are intensely personal and accutely observed. Others are funny or painfully tragic. One reads of the Sherpa lifestyle, Tibetan Buddhist refugees, expatriates, and people trying to do some good for the impovershed people and environment of this small and beautiful country (such as the Nepal Youth Opportunity Foundation). One feature of Travelers' Tales is regular sidebar excerpts and quotations. In other books, these have served to enhance the story. Here, though, with such an alien culture to ponder, they are more distracting. Also, the newer versions of these guides include, at the end, many pages of traditional guidebook content. While much of the very basic information included is useful, by necessity these sections are brief and more detail can be found in many traditional guides. Travelers' Tales might do best to stick to the great stories they publish. In this book, there is also less of the magnificent mountain climbing or trekking vista than can be found elsewhere, and that is refreshing. This book is more about people and the experience of the journey. Highly recommended.
See also: [Shopping for Buddhas by Jeff Greenwald] [Video Night in Kathmandu by Pico Iyer] [Travelers' Tales Guides: Tibet]