Travelers' Tales Guides

In Travelers' Tales Alaska, contemporary adventurers, seekers, and lifelong Alaskans take you into the "Last Frontier" for wild and poignant adventures. Walk among bears, witness the Inupiat taking of a bowhead whale, and spend time "weathered-in" on the Bering Sea coast. Follow the seasons of commercial fisherfolk in the world's most dangerous seas, sail the Inside Passage, or flight-see with bush pilots famed for high-stakes navigation around Denali, North America's highest mountain. Discover the 49th state's quirky side, including an entire town that lives in a single World War II-vintage high-rise, a "Hairy Man" who roams the Bush, and backcountry gourmands who communicate with edible plants. Drive the Alaska Highway or head north along the pipeline Haul Road to the Arctic coast, not simply to get there, but to be there. Get the inside view as Alaskans share their stories of learning a new land or guiding tourists through Native culture. Whether you choose camping at Wal-Mart or casting for grayling on a lake named Paradise, whether you travel the Great Land in actuality or in your armchair, these stories bring Alaska alive, in all its latter-day complexity and glory.

Paris is one city that you should endeavor to know over the course of a lifetime, and not just in one or two visits. It is the center of the civilized universe, and it belongs to everyone-even to those who see it only in their dreams. The City of Light has bestowed on millions the gift of the incandescent present, an image or experience into which all life is condensed and reflected upon for years to come. Travelers' Tales Paris captures the romance of the world's favorite city through stories that entertain, inform, and touch the heart. John Gregory Dunne reveals the manic pleasures of driving in the city's chaotic traffic. Joseph Diedrich and Katya Macklovich explore romantic encounters that could only happen here. Herbert Gold and David Applefield take aim at the nostalgia surrounding The Left Bank, one reveling in its literary past, the other urging the visitor to reach out to a new, modern Paris in the outlying area of Montreuil. Tim O'Reilly and Coleman Lollar evoke the appeal of unexpected tourist sites, and Marcel Laventurier recounts his harrowing escape from the Nazis on a train bound for occupied Paris in a tale you will never forget.

"Any attempt at peace must be attended by a knowledge of self," discovers writer and photographer Mikkel Aaland, who grew up with a bomb shelter for a bedroom, in terror of nuclear war. At the height of the Cold War, Aaland finds himself drawn into a mysterious Shinto priest's plan to save the world. Traveling from Norway to the Philippines, Iceland to South Africa, he places pieces of a sacred Shinto sword in key power spots around the world. Along the way, he comes face to face with his deepest childhood fears of war and destruction, encounters the compelling and mysterious Shinto religion, struggles with the uncertainties of love, and learns to face life with an open heart. The Sword of Heaven tells the extraordinary true story of a journey in which all boundaries are pushed-geographical, cultural, and personal-and in which the healing of the world and the healing of one man appear to be inextricably linked.

This newly designed collection paints a unique portrait of a complex and captivating land. One contributor lives as a monk for a month, gaining an inside look at monastic life. Another discovers Bangkok's riverine pleasures, a world away from its car-choked streets. Yet another finds refuge as the houseguest of an isolated tribesman. Through these engaging personal stories, readers witness how Thailand satisfies just about any traveler's hunger for the exotic, the beautiful, the thrillingly different. Writers include Pico Iyer, Norman Lewis, Diane Summers, Simon Winchester, Ian Buruma, Thalia Zepatos, and Tim Ward.

Too many travel guides are dry lists of attractions or portentous histories of a place. This isn't the case with The Thong Also Rises. Hot on the (high) heels of Sand in My Bra and Whose Panties Are These? comes this collection of the best in women's travel and humor writing. These Ms-adventures take readers around the world and back again - and they'll be happy to be reading rather than experiencing some of these adventures. Subjects include learning how to go to the bathroom with a pig in Thailand, trying to explain that sex toy to customs while Mother is watching, attending naked wedding ceremonies on Valentine's Day in Jamaica, conquering that consuming fear of wooden puppets with a visit to Prague, boarding a crusty old Soviet Bomber in Laos, and more. Contributors include such notable writers and comedians as Jill Connor Browne, Wanda Sykes, Laurie Notaro, Wendy Dale, and Ayun Halliday.

"Animal Reiki is a great introduction to the growing field of energy medicine. Written in an easy-to-read style, this book will be enjoyed by animal guardians and veterinarians alike." --SHAWN MESSONNIER, DVM, author of The Natural Health Bible for Dogs & Cats "I learned a lot from Animal Reiki and highly recommend it to a wide audience." --MARC BEKOFF, University of Colorado, author of Minding Animals and editor of the Encyclopedia of Animal Behavior "Fulton and Prasad have created a much-needed guide to a method of helping animals heal that is gentle, intuitive, safe and powerful." --SUSAN CHERNAK McELROY, author of All My Relations: Living with Animals as Teachers and Healers WHETHER YOU'RE A NEWCOMER TO THE FIELD OF energy medicine, an experienced practitioner or an animal lover committed to learning everything you can about your companion's health, Animal Reiki will open your eyes to a new level of healing and well-being. From dogs and cats to horses and birds, this book is everything you need to understand and appreciate the power of Reiki to heal and deepen the bond with the animals in your life.

India is among the most difficult-and most rewarding-of places to travel. Some have said India stands for "I'll Never Do It Again." Many more are drawn back time after time because India is the best show on earth, the best bazaar of human experiences that can be visited in a lifetime. India dissolves ideas about what it means to be alive, and its people give new meaning to compassion, perseverance, ingenuity, and friendship. India-monsoon and marigold, dung and dust, colors and corpses, smoke and ash, snow and endless myth-is a cruel, unrelenting place of ineffable sweetness. Much like life itself. Journey to the Kumbh Mela in Allahabad, the world's biggest party, with David Yeadon and take "A Bath for Fifteen Million People"; greet the monsoon with Alexancer Frater where the Indian and Pacific Oceans meet; track the endangered Indian One-Horned Rhinoceros through the jungles of Assam with Larry Habegger; encounter the anguish of the caste system with Steve Coll; discover the eternal power of the "monument of love," the Taj Mahal, with Jonah Blank; and much more.