Tag Archive: reading companions

March 15, 2017

Book Review: My Reading Companions to Prague

Prague is a fascinating city. It’s beautiful and magic, but full of paradoxes. Reading about Prague is like discovering some secret spot that was once internationally recognised for its intellect, mystery, architecture and culture. Let me take you on this reading journey to discover Prague once again.

Pocket Rough Guide. Prague.

I’m in love with these pocket guides. They’re super practical (size-wise too!), yet with many photographs, maps and useful details. You can follow their ‘Best of…’ sections or read district by district. The best part is that you have cafe and restaurant recommendations linked with a particular part of the city. I must say it’s very useful!

Magic Prague by Angelo Maria Ripellino

A classic. One of the most important books on Prague was written by Angelo Maria Ripellino, an Italian Slavist. It’s not an easy read, but it’s truly fascinating to uncover the mystery of Prague with Ripellino. The author has an amazing knowledge and understanding of the history and culture of the city, without forgetting its legends and mystery. After all, it is Magic Prague.

Prague Pictures. Portraits of a City. by John Benville

Prague Pictures by John Benville is a selection of 6 essays capturing the magic of the city: from recent years and the Cold War period to historical and scientific times (I only need mention two astronomers: Kepler and Brahe who worked together in Prague). It’s a fascinating read, as Benville presents his selective pictures of “this mysterious, jumbled, fantastical, absurd city on the Vltava.” (p. 9)

Prague. A Traveller’s Literary Companion. Ed. by Paul Wilson

“A city is like a person: if we don’t establish a genuine relationship with it, it remains a name, an external form that soon fades from our minds. To create this relationship, we must be able to observe the city and understand its peculiar personality, its ‘self,’ its spirit, its identity, the circumstances of its life as they evolved through space and time.” (Ivan Klíma, “The Spirit of Prague”, p. 212)

What are your favourite reading companions to Prague? Please let me know in the comments below.

Written by Kinga Macalla

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August 10, 2016

Book Review: Reading Companions to the Isles of Scilly

I decided to fulfil my dream of visiting the British sub-tropical archipelago, the Isles of Scilly, located around 30 miles off the coast of Cornwall. You can read more about my travelling experience here and today I want to share with you what inspired me to visit the Isles and what reading souvenirs I brought back home.

Isles of Scilly Guidebook
Essential. I walked everywhere with this guidebook. I had an older edition I had bought in a charity shop which was thinner than the more updated ones. If you want to purchase the latest publication, you can do so on the ferry Scillonian III or on the Isles.

OS Explorer Isles of Scilly (101)
Additional touch. To be honest, I did not use the OS map that much, the above guidebook was all I needed when visiting the Isles.

Cereal Vol. 5
Inspiring. Tresco Abbey Garden, birds, photo essay. Beautiful.
The Rough Guide to Devon & Cornwall
Practical. There is a chapter devoted to the Isles of Scilly worth reading, but I would not carry it to the Isles.

Drawings by Sue Lewington
Artistic. I bought two books of her drawings, A Week on Scilly and Sketches of Scilly. Sue lived on St. Martin’s for nearly 8 years. You can easily get her drawings on the Isles, too.

Times Remembered. A Scillonian’s Story by Gladys Perkins
Local history. I bought a memorial written by a Scillonian, Gladys Perkins after visiting St. Martin’s Island. The book was advertised in the windows of most houses on St. Martin’s, since the author was born and is still living on this very Island!

Do you have any favourite guidebooks or fiction writing on the Scilly Isles? Please share your recommendations in the comments below.

Written by Kinga Macalla

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July 13, 2016

Book Review: My Reading Companions to Cornwall

I enjoy reading and learning new interesting (arte-)facts about Cornwall. Even though I try to pack my days with as many steps to walk and as many places to visit as possible, there is always time for reading and time to discover new publications on this topic. Below are my essentials:

Walking
I am usually equipped with OS maps which help me to locate myself, measure distances, or check if a beach disappears under a high tide. I find them very useful, but I also follow my own desires if I find an interesting path or if I just go for a walk without a precise destination in mind. Many years ago in a local charity bookshop I bought the walking guidebook called The Big Walks of the South by David Bathurst. Each path (the book includes The South West Coast Path, The Cotswold Way, and The Pembrokeshire Coast Path amongst others) is divided into manageable shorter walks and described with great precision. There are also mentions of places worth visiting. I rarely carry it with me, but I often read the relevant section before leaving home.

Sea + Food + Sleep
Cornwall is the land of many beautiful and secret beaches which I would not have been fortunate enough to discover without these two guidebooks: Wild Swimming. Explore The Secret Coast of Britain by Daniel Start and Wild Guide. Devon, Cornwall and the South West by Daniel Start, Tania Pascoe and Jo Keeping. The latter can also take you on a voyage of discovery of hidden places, local food and campsites. Both guidebooks are very easy to follow and contain many beautiful photos, maps, road directions and short descriptions. Even though they are quite heavy to carry, they are two of my most useful essentials when it comes to travelling to Cornwall.

Art + Science
My most recent discovery is Sea and Shore Cornwall. Common and Curious Findings by Lisa Woollett. The book combines science and art and the result is breathtaking. There are beautiful descriptions, poems, Cornish words, micro- and macro-photos. I enjoy reading its inspiring content on the beach (and trying to identify some of my findings!) and then looking at its lovely pictures when I get home. Here is one of my favourite discoveries/quotations from the book:

“equinoctial tides
If we exclude the influence of the winds, the biggest tides of the year come after the full and new moons closest to the spring and autumn equinoxes. There are times when the Earth is the closest to the sun and so the combined pull of sun and moon together is strongest. They are known as equinoctial tides”
[Lisa Woollett, Sea and Shore Cornwall. Common and Curious Findings, Zart Books, 2014, p. 74.]

Written by Kinga Macalla

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