Novel Pairings
It’s like wine and food, but not. Instead, we pair books and locations. All stories have been personally tasted and tested in location. We try not to repeat the traditional “Eat, Pray, Love” or “Under the Tuscan Sun” travel stories here. Instead, these pairings are for the travel-palate who is looking for something new.
Consider these pulpy companions (or their screen-bright twins) to help savor the mood of your next visit to a far- or not-so-far-off land. A good story can change everything we experience in a location.
This crisp and wandering story has wild threads of spiritualism, love, and peppery artist. It begins crisp but mysterious in flavor and grows to a broad passion. Would be perfect paired with wide open grasslands, Italian cafes, brunch overlooking a misty vineyard, or any artists’ colonies.
A structured, almost scientific story which at first obscures deeper notes of earthy and warm botanicals. It quickly opens up into a lusher world. Best paired with colonial locations and stories. Old world, with chapters of tropical sun and humid air, this is a favorite for Sri Lanka.
Wildly succulent, passionate, and warm. Good for those who want to begin on a bit of a frustrated note but get pulled through an evocative and cathartic journey. Best paired with any foodie destination such as Mexico, Italy, Spain, Greece. You’ll want a sunset, a glass of wine, and maybe a box of tissues.
This refined story is best for planned, polished, and cultured trips. It begins with a curious child, an unusual education, and a little complex competition but grows to something more intricate and pure. Best paired for those reveling in refinement or nostalgia for European cities without cars.
Foreign, mysterious, and sad. The perfect companion for anyone who wants that sense of peeking behind the curtain, or is feeling a strong “stranger in a strange land” sensation. If you’re falling in love and can’t entirely share yourself, or entirely be understood, this is a good companion.
Like lush, ripe, sweet pears. Words you can eat. Goes great with vibrant, green, tropical paradises or slow muggy Southern mornings dripping with haze and Spanish moss. Recommended for trips or evenings heavy with tactile sensuality. Also pairs nicely for historian-buffs in the Deep South of the USA.
Slightly unrefined, it’s perfect for off season travel in colder destinations, such as Maine, Scotland, Nova Scotia, or Nantucket in the off season. A lovely companion when it’s just you, the winter wind, and locals. Recommended after a day hiking in drizzling rain or along a rocky shore. Pairs well with heavy socks, a window seat and a cup of hot tea.
This one is for the dreamers. The idealists. The travelers who go to escape and want to be inspired. A favorite the world over, this parable is the perfect companion to any first trip, where wonder and excitement are bound to be dominant.