Summer: Handy Travel Books

Handy Travel Books

Anyone preparing to travel has most likely perused the shelves for insights to their destinations, consulting typical guidebooks containing hotel and restaurant info, holidays, city guides, etc. But other travel books offer handy tips of a more general nature. Here's a few to check out before your next journey:

Jet Smart
by Diana Fairechild
181 pp; $12.95
ISBN 0-89087-737-8
Flyana Rhyme/Celestial Arts

A former flight attendant offers over 200 tips on beating that ugly traveler's nemesis: jet lag. She gives you the insider's point of view of how airlines and captains can control the in-flight environment, things you can do to prevent disruption of your body's clock and how to be a "power flyer." But be warned: with all the nasty in-flight effects she reveals, it's a wonder any knowing person flies at all. Sing it: "Radiation—Dehydration—Giving me the Trepidation!" Still, it's no good putting your head in the sand, and the author's practical tips really do work. Just don't read this book in-flight—especially if you're already paranoid.

The Wordless Travel Book
by Jonathan Meader
17 pp; $4.95
ISBN 0-89815-809-5
Ten Speed Press

"Point at these pictures to communicate with anyone..." albeit with a limited vocabulary, but then again just how much conversation do you intend with pictograms? The drawings are colorful, charming and perfectly simple. They even include an alien with space ship, perhaps something for when you need to make friends. Icons are grouped on different pages. A page of tools displays everything from wrenches to a level (in case you plan on practicing your building skills abroad). More practical for the average traveler are pictures of animals, vegetables, utensils and such. If you want asparagus soup, they say, point to the asparagus and then to the bowl of soup. Get it?

The Packing Book
by Judith Gilford
206 pp; $8.95
ISBN 0-89815-821-4
Ten Speed Press

Is there an art—or at least a skill—to packing? This book offers lots of tips and a game plan for toting only the essentials. It's true that by taking less, your trip becomes easier. Less means lighter luggage, faster packing and therefore more enjoyment; plus it allows for more things to come back with you. The book includes guidelines for carry-on luggage, men's and women's wardrobe checklists, buying the right luggage, travelers accessories, optimal fabrics for wrinkle-free packing, and an assortment of basic quick-lists for getting organized. There's even a top ten list of packing tips for carry-on, and the number one tip is: When in doubt, leave it out!