Adventureland!

Adventures in Reading. No, Not a Mistype.

Adventure Week continues with an obligatory book post. You thought you could escape the book post, didn’t you? I live and breath literature, so OF COURSE there was going to be a book post. What’s so adventuresome about books? Listen up kids, school’s in session. THE FUN KIND OF SCHOOL!!!! [Insert maniacal laughter]

As an ungainly youth with severe social anxiety, reading was always my preferred method of self-soothing. I was the child who got in trouble for the book skillfully hidden under my desk, as I pretended to listen when I was, in fact, reading. Books took me away from the cruelty of children’s taunts and the long division the school district forced upon me and thrust me into worlds of excitement and all the best qualities of the human spirit.

It totally ruined me for life.

Thus, when adventures are slim on the horizon, I am the ultimate escape artist. After all, of what use is a degree in literature if it’s not used for the powers of good, i.e., escapism?

So if you’re craving an adventure, but are stuck in a litany of daily drudgery involving carpools or cubicles, come sit by me. I’ll hook you up with a refreshing dive into another world via a good book so that you can hide your adventure in your purse when you can’t afford that plane ticket to Morocco and the ensuing kidnappings, chases through the Bazaar and visit to the ambassador’s house (yes, that is the basic plot to The Man Who Knew Too Much. Try to keep up).

Here is where I recommend a (very) few of my favorite adventure books from several genres. I have purposely excluded some of the more obvious selections, like the Harry Potter books or basically anything written by Tolkien because really, aren’t they on everyone’s list? The comment section is for you to nominate any I may have missed, especially the lesser represented genres like sci-fi (I’m new to sci-fi). It’s called interaction, you shy readers whom I treasure greatly.

A bibliophile’s list of lesser-hyped adventure books:

  • She by Sir Henry Rider Haggard. On an expedition to the depths of an undiscovered jungle, an explorer and his crew comes across a mysterious society run by the all-powerful She, a female force akin to the likes of He Who Must Not Be Named. A Victorian piece of adventure literature at its most theatrical, written by a guy who must have been on too much opium (and who is, incidentally, a distant relative of mine. Not even kidding. Great-great-great-great-great-great uncle a billion times removed). Also totally twisted, so be prepared for Victorian strangeness and maybe a little cheese.

  • The Testament by John Grisham. For a more contemporary audience interested in a fast and entertaining read, The Testament features a drunk lawyer on his last legs who in one last attempt to maintain employment ventures into the heart of the Brazilian Pantanal to find the mysterious heir to a fortune. Boa constrictors, indigenous tribes, tour down the circuitous labyrinthine river; need I say more?
  • Rob Roy by Sir Walter Scott. This book comes with a disclaimer; it is adventuresome and full of action and betrayal on the Scottish Highlands during the Jacobite Rebellion, but it is challenging to read if you aren’t semi-familiar with a nineteenth-century Scottish Brogue (but really, who isn’t?). I personally love this book, but fully admit it might be too much to handle if you can’t understand it. So read only if you have full faith in your ability to translate antiquated language instantaneously while you read, because in that case IT’S AMAZING.
No, seeing the movie doesn’t count. The movie is NOTHING like the book.
  • Chasing Cézanne by Peter Mayle. For the more sophisticated adventurer who prefers wine on a terrace to snakes in the jungle, this is a fun, quick read that journeys from Provence to the Caribbean in search of international art forgers and thieves. So up my alley, especially seeing as I briefly considered a career in international art thievery.
  • State of Wonder by Ann Patchett. Another dive into the South American jungles, this time involving a mysterious pharmaceutical operation trying to ply the secrets of the jungle for nefarious purposes. Also involving missing people and the search for the secret to never-ending fertility. Page-turning action that ALMOST made me consider a career in biochemistry (not really, but still a good book).
  • The Princess Bride by William Goldman. This one is for readers who like their adventures with heaping doses of satire, which happens to be my first language. Everyone and their brother has seen the movie, but I assure you, the book is very different and well worth reading. There’s nothing I love more than an author so willing to mess with your mind.
  • The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas. One of my favorite books of all time, it brings joy to my heart because it is just FUN. I am being very vulnerable here; if you don’t like this book and tell me about it, I will probably cry, that’s how much it means to me. Sword fighting, pirates, fake nobility, betrayal, hidden treasure, vengeance, love and loss – all taking place in France during the Napoleonic mess. You know how I love that twisted country.

Now, you may be asking yourself why the nineteenth century is so heavily represented here. All I can offer as an excuse is that one doesn’t escape an MA specializing in nineteenth century literature without developing some pretty strong opinions. In fact, I SEVERELY edited this list down. Because I love you and don’t want to scare you away.

Anyone dying for more adventurous Victorian/Romantic selections, though, hit me up; I didn’t even cover Mary Shelley or Wilkie Collins. Those Victorians sure knew how to write a good adventure story. They also knew a lot about colonialist oppression and how NOT to treat someone with mental illness, but that’s for another post.

Tomorrow – the GRAND FINALE of ADVENTURE WEEK! No more books, I promise. Please come back.

4 Comments

  • Erica Schatz

    I always love a good book suggestion, so I’m looking forward to reading a few of those! As far as sci-fi suggestions…well, what I have is more fantasy, but if you haven’t yet, I’d suggest The Golden Compass trilogy by Philip Pullman. (technically, it’s called His Dark Materials Trilogy, but it starts with The Golden Compass) And I guess it’s labeled as a young-adult book, but I read it in college and fell in love with the stories! A girl gets to travel into different realms and is involved in battles, and so much more, but I’m horrible at explaining books I love. Plus, there’s a deeper sub meaning under the story line, which is always cool.

    Oh! And it’s not so much an adventure, but Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card is a great sci-fi book about a kid who was selected at a young age to attend a live-in training school where he trains all day for strategic battle plans. Again, you’ll want to look this book up ’cause I never make books sound as cool as they are. There are a ton of books in this series, but this is the only one of them I ever read, and I loved it.

    • Natalie the Singingfool

      I find myself liking most of the YA I’ve read so far, so I’ll give them a shot (I have heard of them, but unless I get a personal recommendation I remain wary) – I do love a good fantasy read! Thanks so much for the input; I’m ALWAYS looking for new reads!

  • Chelsea

    Ellen Kushner writes these two books called Swordspoint and Privilege of the Sword. I love them because they’re sword fighting books. However, they are so enthralling that I want to LIVE between The Hill and Riverside. Swordspoint is a prequel to Privilege of the Sword.

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