Venice, Italy
1) A Venetian Affair – Andrea Di Robilant
This book is based on a collection of REAL LETTERS that were found in the attic of an old Venetian home, detailing a love affair that could never be. The author does such an AMAZING job bringing the characters back to life in this telling of their story. It’s a truly moving and entertaining tale. It brings to life the history and beauty of their water town of Venice and makes you feel like you’re right there in person. After having been to Venice myself and then reading this book, I now can’t wait to go back! I wish I had read it before I went as it would have made the entire stay there even more enjoyable. To think about the love story that unfolded among the same streets that we still walk today, and the couples’ hidden trysts and mysterious masked adventures, it’s too good to resist. I loved this book so much that after finishing it I immediately went on a deep dive into all the things I had read about, be it French/Italian architecture, philosophers that had been mentioned, the protagonist themselves and their lives, etc. Things I previously had no interest in were now so intriguing to me after reading about how those things had shaped these two peoples lives, and knowing those people were actual real people, made me want to learn more about it all! The writing is inspiring! This book is a hidden treasure and I recommend it to everyone!
Paris, France
2) Paris to the Past- Ina Caro
This is another of my favorite travel books that I read in prep for my trip to France. It’s non fiction, but the author does such an amazing job taking these wonderful, beautiful places and finding the fun history behind them, much like the true history at the core of The Venetian Affair. Her romanticized telling of history, place by place, makes the whole journey through the book feel like a fun story instead of an old history book. Her dry humor puts a funny twist on things and her storytelling brings life to otherwise potentially boring sites. I found myself inspired to do so much extra research throughout this whole book which made my later trip to France/Paris much more enjoyable. I knew what I was looking at and had a much deeper understanding of everything we walked around. I particularly loved how she maps out all of her travels and explains in detail how any traveler can utilize Paris’ fantastic train system and easily visit each place themself. She’ll tell you where to get on, what route to take, and where to get off. She also mentions what time of year or time of day she prefers to visit certain places that have a higher frequency of tourism. Because Paris was her home for years she knows many tips and tricks and hidden treasures that she shares with her readers. The book is an amazing tool for those who like to solo travel and plan their own trips!
3) The Phantom of the Opera-Gaston Leroux
This is another book based in Paris that I had the pleasure of reading after having been in Paris. If you don’t know much about the plot line, it’s about a famous opera singer that captures the obsessive heart of a mysterious phantom that lives beneath the theater. It’s a quick read and the story kept me at the edge of my seat needing to know what happens next. The reason I recommend it if you want to travel to Paris is because the majority of the story is centered around the famous Palais Garnier, which still stands and operates today. You can even book a show and go yourself! After reading The Phantom of the Opera, going to Palais Garnier and seeing a show is a new bucket list item for me. We drove by it a couple times when there and had no idea how famous it was/is! I so wish I had known about it at the time so we could have planned the trip differently and had time to actually stop and visit the famed beauty of a theater.
Eastern Europe
4)The Historian- Elizabeth Kostova
I LOVE this book and immediately thought of it when I started planning this post. I’ve read it multiple times and even though I’ve never been to Turkey or Romania, I immediately developed a love for the countries and their culture and long to see them in the future. The book is a Dracula spin off that combines a lot of the folklore around his story as well as the history of Vlad the Impaler who became the inspiration for the story of Dracula. This book literally has it all. History, mystery, great plot line, world travels, and my personal favorite, a slow burn romance! The list could go on! If you love a classic re-telling or are interested in visiting Romania or Istanbul I highly recommend this book. It’s on the bigger side but I promise it’s definitely worth the time! The local folklore that is so integral to the people there would be enough to make the read worth it, let alone all the historical content that is also included in the story. You can really feel how much time and effort Elizabeth put into her research when writing this book.
China/Japan/Korea
5) Three tigers, One Mountain- Michael Booth
I hesitate to include this book because it’s so different from the others I have recommended, but I thoroughly enjoyed it, and so will include it, and you can decide for yourself if you’d like to read it or not. It’s another work on nonfiction, but less focused on history, although there certainly are historical aspects to it, and more focused on the long history of politics between the three countries. I eventually decided to include it because I liked how the author, Michael Booth, travels between these three countries, exploring a myriad of things, and in doing so creates a greater understanding of a society and people who I feel I haven’t learned much about before. He writes in a way that is similar to Ina Caro from Paris to the Past where he includes information on how he gets from one place to another which is really nice for the independent travelers that don’t like to be in large touristy groups. He details multiple towns from each country and includes little social nuances and historical facts about each one, as well as what his present day experience is like. I found everything he wrote about fascinating and felt the book left me informed, which makes me more comfortable when planning travels. While the book is less riveting, it’s chock full of great information and interesting facts that kept me wanting to read more.