Dave has read & reviewed most of the following books - they appear here in alphabetical order. To send a book to Dave for review, please email email him or send it to the address listed here.
 
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Title Author Description
An Unexpected Light Jason Elliot One mans descriptions and stories about his two journeys through war torn Afghanistan. His first journey was in 1979 and then later in 1989. Excellent travel writing. We are still reading this book and will post final notes here when complete.
Avenger Frederick Forsyth Two separate parties trying to do good for their country, takes place just before 9/11 - raises moral questions. An excellent read.
Bad Lands Tony Wheeler Join Lonely Planet founder Tony Wheeler as he explores some of the "badlands" in the world. He visited the following nine countries because of their human-rights abuses: Afghanistan, Albania, Burma, Cuba, Iran, Iraq, Libya, North Korea, and Saudi Arabia
Classic Motorsport Routes Richard Meaden Coffee table book, 224 pages of race routes and color photos. This book predominately covers famous historical racing routes in Europe but towards the end of the book you find routes in the mid and western USA.
A must have for any racing car enthusiast - work these routes into a vacation! Very nice write-up on Pike's Peak and the fast courses of the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, USA.
Dark Summit: The True Story of Everest's Most Controversial Season Nick Heil Ten years after the infamous events of 1996, another climbing season on earth's tallest mountain produces controversy. If you enjoyed Into Thin Air (see below), you will surely be gripped by the clutches of this book. It is a fast paced read in which you are quickly immersed in the world of extreme altitude mountaineering and the fine line decisions that climbers & guides have to make on the spur of the moment. A Beck Weathers type survival story is one of the uplifting parts of this book.
Home Away From Home Ngiep Dao This is a first hand account of a family who evacuated Vietnam just before Saigon fell in 1975. This book chronicles their escape via a military cargo plane, a stay for 2 months in Camp Pendleton in California until a sponsor was found. Coffeeville, a small town in the middle of Kansas became their new home. This is an intriguing, sometimes humorous, and at times sad story of how a Vietnamese family initially struggled to adjust to their new life in America. It is clearly evident that author Ngiep Dao has a vivid memory for details and conversations.
Into Thin Air Jon Krakaeur Describes the events of the Everest Tragedy in 1996. This is a high altitude struggle for survival that involves mortality as well as one man's amazing survival for a night unsheltered above 27,000 feet after he was left for dead. We were in the Everest base camp area 3.5 months before this tragedy.
Kite Runner Khaled Hosseini Review coming soon!
Kon Tiki Thor Heyerdahl An incredible journey of over 4000 nautical miles by Thor & friends on a hand built balsa raft. They left from Callao Peru and arrived in the South Pacific. This story also makes the argument that this journey was possible thousands of years ago.
Papillon Henri Charrière This is a classic story of a jailed Frenchman and his prison life which involves fascinating stories about escaping prison and evading capture including living with local villagers.
The Places in Between Rory Stewart An amazing tale of one man's journey walking across Afghanistan in the middle of the winter, mostly with just his dog. Takes place right after the "fall" of the Taliban and is a unique insight into the Afghan culture.
The Road to Ubar Nicholas Clapp The 'lost' city of Ubar is located in Oman in the Desert of the Empty Quarter, one of the largest deserts in the world. The author spent many years researching this fabled city buried under sand. Satellite imagery helped with the discovery. A fascinating read. Dave has personally visited the site of this city. His photo here.
Touching the Void Joe Simpson In our opinion, probably the most amazing mountaineering survival story of all time. Two climbers set out to climb a 6,000+ meter peak in the Cordillera Huayash range in the heart of the Peruvian Andes. An accident befalls one of the climbers and his partner makes a life or death choice. We've climbed a number of times in this part of the Andes - these are some of the most spectacular mountains in the world!
Unlikely Destinations Tony/Maureen
Wheeler		 The full autobiographical story of Lonely Planet, how it started, how it grew and where it is today. Join founders, Tony & Maureen Wheeler on their trips and book writing which spans almost 40 years.
Whale Warriors Peter Heller True Story. In 2005 author Peter Heller joined captain Paul Watson of the Sea Shepherd during their time attempting to stop Japanese whalers from killing whales. The read is fast, intriguing and at times repulsive and sad. A must read for anyone interested in eco-adventure and wildlife conservation.
Women of the Four Winds Elizabeth Fagg Olds This book profiles four women ahead of their time who lived in the early/mid 1900's including Annie Peck, the first person to climb the great 6000+ meter Huascaran in Peru. We feature this book here because of the story of Annie Peck and that is the only story we read in this book.

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