With summer around the corner, it is the perfect time to think of travel. Armchair travelers will find it easy to venture to far-off lands with this great list of reads for all ages.

A great way to get young children to think about travel is with the board book, “Wherever You Go,” by Pat Zietlow Miller and Eliza Wheeler. Written in the same vein as “Oh, the Places You’ll Go!” by Dr. Seuss, this story invites the reader to follow an adventurous rabbit and his animal friends’ journey down a winding road with rhyming verse.

Another fun travel read, with a beloved character, is “Pig the Tourist” by Aaron Blabey. Full of humor, Pig the Pug’s travel plans go joyfully awry with hilarious illustrations and consequences that manage to bite him in the end.    

If you have a curious child, you will want to share “Atlas Obscura: Explorer’s Guide for the World’s Most Adventurous Kid” by Dylan Thuras. A popular series amongst adult readers, this is the first volume for younger readers. This book takes readers on a journey across the world to unusual and noteworthy places.

If this sounds great, be sure to check out “Hidden Wonders: A Guide to the Planet’s Wildest, Weirdest Places” by Lonely Planet Kids, which features interesting places that are off the beaten path.

“Paris in Love,” by Eloisa James, is an absolutely jewel of a book that describes a year spent living in Paris. After Shakespeare professor and romance novelist Mary Bly endured a series of life events that left her shaken, she and her husband chose to take academic sabbaticals and move their family to Paris for a year. After starting out as a series of Facebook posts for her fans, “Paris in Love” evolved into a full-length chronicle featuring all the members of her family.

If you are looking for grittier travels, check out any of renowned explorer Levison Wood’s nine travelogues. “Walking the Nile” is Wood’s account of spending nine months walking 4,000 miles through six countries to become the first person to walk the entire length of the Nile River.  Additional adventures to explore include “Walking the Himalayas” and “An Arabian Journey: One Man’s Quest Through the Heart of the Middle East.”

“Long Way Round: Chasing Shadows Across the World” by Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman is the account of their 20,000-mile motorcycle ride around the world. Lasting four months, the duo drove through Europe and Asia and then crossed the Bering Strait from Russia to Alaska and continued their journey through Canada and the United States to end in New York. Featuring original diary entries, maps, charts, and photographs, this is an immersive and entertaining look at a unique journey.

Contributor Lori Skinner is the head librarian for Northwest-Shoals Community College. For more information, she can be contacted at 256-331-6288 or lori.skinner@nwscc.edu. NW-SCC Libraries are open to the public and look forward to serving your library needs.