Fresh Air Fiend: Travel Writings - Paperback

by Paul Theroux (Author)

Paul Theroux's first collection of essays and articles devoted entirely to travel writing, FRESH AIR FIEND touches down on five continents and floats through most seas in between to deliver a literary adventure of the first order, with the incomparable Paul Theroux as a guide. From the crisp quiet of a solitary week spent in the snowbound Maine woods to the expectant chaos of Hong Kong on the eve of the Hand-over, Theroux demonstrates how the traveling life and the writing life are intimately connected. His journeys in remote hinterlands and crowded foreign capitals provide the necessary perspective to "become a stranger" in order to discover the self. A companion volume to SUNRISE WITH SEAMONSTERS, FRESH AIR FIEND is the ultimate good read for anyone fascinated by travel in the wider world or curious about the life of one of our most passionate travelers.

What does it mean to be a stranger in a strange land--and how does that distance reveal the self?

• The Writer as Traveler: Theroux demonstrates how the traveling life and the writing life are intimately connected, exploring how one must first "become a stranger" to truly discover the self.
• Global Adventure: From a solitary week in the snowbound Maine woods to the expectant chaos of Hong Kong on the eve of the Hand-over, these essays touch down on five continents.
• A Literary Journey: A master of the genre delivers a travelogue of the first order, reflecting on everything from being in the Peace Corps to paddling the remote coast of Palau.
• Being a Stranger: At the heart of this collection is the search for perspective that only comes from distance, whether in a crowded foreign capital or a remote and silent hinterland.