Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Chris Taylor
The Beautiful Game: A Journey through Latin American Football
(Victor Gol-
lancz). Entertaining account of the history of the continent's sporting obsession. The chapter
on Bolivia focuses on the country's struggle to defend its right to play international fixtures
at high altitude, and a Santa Cruz football academy that turns street kids into major stars.
TRAVEL
Yossi Brain
Trekking in Bolivia: A Traveller's Guide
(Cordee). Specialist trekking guide
covering a good range of routes throughout Bolivia, with clear descriptions, sketch maps and
useful background information and advice.
Yossi Brain
Bolivia: A Climbing Guide
(Cordee). A must for all serious climbers visiting
Bolivia, with expert route descriptions and excellent logistical advice and information by the
man who was the leading climbing guide in the country.
Mark Cramer
Culture Shock! Bolivia
(Kuperard). Light-hearted and sometimes witty intro-
duction to Bolivian culture, customs and etiquette from a US expatriate living in La Paz.
Percy Harrison Fawcett
Exploration Fawcett
(Weidenfeld and Nicolson). Rip-roaring ac-
count of the adventures of the eccentric British explorer who surveyed the borders of Bolivia
at the height of the rubber boom in the early twentieth century. The topic was published
posthumously after the author disappeared looking for the mysterious civilization that he be-
lieved lay hidden somewhere deep in the Amazon.
Yossi Ginsberg
Jungle: A Harrowing True Story of Survival
(BoomerangNewMedia).First-
hand account by the only survivor of a disastrous expedition by three young travellers who
tried to reach Rurrenabaque overland through the forests of the Alto Madidi - this is the topic
that launched Rurrenabaque as a backpacker destination.
Richard Gott
Land Without Evil: Utopian Journeys in the South American Watershed
(Verso). Wonderful account of a journey through the former Jesuit mission towns of Brazil
and eastern Bolivia, interspersed with finely researched histories of the many fruitless jour-
neys and forgotten expeditions across the same region made by travellers through the centur-
ies.
David Grann
The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon
(Simon &
Schuster). A fascinating account of gentleman explorer Percy Fawcett, who set off in the
1920s in search of the mythical kingdom of Z; although set mainly in Brazil, Bolivia also
features.
Ernesto “Che” Guevara
Bolivian Diary
(Pimlico/Pathfinder Press). Published posthum-
ously, the iconic Argentine revolutionary's description of his disastrous attempt to launch
a continent-wide guerrilla war from the backwoods of Bolivia reads like the chronicle of a
death foretold.
