Atlas of the Unexpected: Haphazard Discoveries, Chance Places and Unimaginable Destinations

Atlas of the Unexpected: Haphazard Discoveries, Chance Places and Unimaginable Destinations

Atlas of the Unexpected: Haphazard Discoveries, Chance Places and Unimaginable Destinations

Atlas of the Unexpected: Haphazard Discoveries, Chance Places and Unimaginable Destinations

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Overview

A journey to forty-five unexpected destinations near and far, with quirky histories, beautiful maps, and evocative photography: “First-class armchair travel.” —South China Morning Post

A New Statesman Best Book of the Year

Take an armchair voyage to places both infamous and unknown that have, often by chance or by haphazard means, been destinations of discovery that shaped our world. Set foot on the aptly named Just Enough Room Island. Chart the royal romance that led shipwrecked lovers to discover the purple rock of Madeira. Learn about the surprising origins of Vaseline. Follow in the footsteps of a stray goat who led its keeper to uncover lost ancient biblical scrolls. These are the world’s most wondrous, improbable, and—most of all—unexpected places, presented by a cultural historian and winner of an Edward Stanford Travel Writing Award.

“Elborough writes about a wide range of subjects with originality, learning and charm. Atlas of the Unexpected . . . is seductively beautiful: an inspiring, dream-inducing guide.” —New Statesman

Praise for the Unexpected Atlas series

“Engrossing.” —The Observer

“Understatedly expressive.” —The New York Times

“A delightful compendium.” —The Daily Telegraph

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781781318393
Publisher: Quarto Publishing Group USA
Publication date: 12/20/2022
Series: Unexpected Atlases
Sold by: Barnes & Noble
Format: eBook
Pages: 208
Sales rank: 60,541
File size: 50 MB
Note: This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Described as 'one of the country's finest pop culture historians', Travis Elborough is an acclaimed author and social commentator who lives in London. His work delves into the ephemera of retro culture as well as the history of London, geography, and a broad range of other subjects. His Atlas of Vanishing Places won the Illustrated Book of the Year at the Edward Stanford Travel Writing Awards in 2020, and he has also written The Bus We Loved, a passionate love letter to the Routemaster bus which defined London transport for more than 50 years. His other works include A Traveller’s Year, A London Year, The Long-Player Goodbye, Being A Writer and A Walk in the Park: The Life and Times of a People’s Institution. Travis is a regular contributor to Radio 4 and the Guardian, and has penned articles on all aspects of travel and culture, from pirates in the Caribbean to donkeys at the British seaside. He has written for the Times, Sunday TimesNew Statesman, BBC History Magazine and Kinfolk among others, and is a visiting lecturer at the University of Westminster, where he teaches creative writing.


Described as 'one of the country's finest pop culture historians', Travis Elborough is an acclaimed author and social commentator who lives in London. His work delves into the ephemera of retro culture as well as the history of London, geography, and a broad range of other subjects. His Atlas of Vanishing Places won the Illustrated Book of the Year at the Edward Stanford Travel Writing Awards in 2020, and he has also written The Bus We Loved, a passionate love letter to the Routemaster bus which defined London transport for more than 50 years. His other works include A Traveller's Year, A London Year, The Long-Player Goodbye, Being A Writer and A Walk in the Park: The Life and Times of a People's Institution. Travis is a regular contributor to Radio 4 and the Guardian, and has penned articles on all aspects of travel and culture, from pirates in the Caribbean to donkeys at the British seaside. He has written for the Times, Sunday Times, New Statesman, BBC History Magazine and Kinfolk among others, and is a visiting lecturer at the University of Westminster, where he teaches creative writing.

Table of Contents

Accidental Discoveries

  • Madeira Archipelago, Atlantic Ocean
  • Derinkuyu Underground City, Cappadocia, Turkey
  • Vaseline,Titusville, Pennsylvania, USA
  • The Dead Sea Scrolls, Qumran, Israel
  • Cahokia Mounds, Illinois, USA
  • Pompeii, Naples, Italy
  • Fly Geyser, Nevada, USA
  • Galápagos Island, Pacific Ocean

 
Strange Roots

  • Georgia Colony, Savannah, Georgia, USA
  • Chemainus, Vancouver Island, Canada
  • Buzludzha Monument, Stara Zagora Province, Bulgaria
  • Freetown, Sierra Leone, West Africa
  • Freshkills Park, New York City, USA
  • Fort House, Leith, Edinburgh, Scotland
  • Chess City, Elista, Kalmykia, Russia
  • Fordlândia, Pará, Brazil
  • Gibsonton, Florida, USA
  • Nowa Huta, Kraków, Poland

 
Haphazard Destinations

  • Neft Daşları, Caspian Sea, Azerbaijan
  • Manshiyat Naser, Cairo, Egypt
  • Caleta Tortel, Capitán Prat Province, Chile
  • Jaisalmer Fort, Jaisalmer, Rajasthan, India
  • Just Room Enough Island, St Lawrence River, New York, USA
  • Spiegelhalter Jewellers, London, UK
  • Monemvasia, Laconia, Greece
  • Uros Floating Islands, Lake Titicaca, Puno, Peru
  • Cliff of Bandiagara, Mopti, Mali
  • Korowai Tree Houses, Kia, Indonesia

Cavernous Locations
  • Lascaux Caves, Montignac, France
  • Xuankong Si, Shanxi Province, China
  • Matmata Village, Matmata, Tunisia
  • Shell Grotto, Margate, Kent, England
  • Coober Pedy, South Australia
  • Movile Cave, Constanța County, Romania
  • The Petrifying Well, Knareborough, Yorkshire, UK
  • Aogashima, Philippine Sea, Japan

 
Serendipitous Spaces

  • Zhangye Danxia Landform, Gansu, China
  • Slope Point, South Island, New Zealand
  • Glass Beach, Fort Bragg, California, USA
  • Lake Hillier, Western Australia
  • Grüner See, Styria, Austria
  • Cat Island, Tashirojima, Japan
  • Grand Tsingy, Melaky, Madagascar
  • Hitachi Seaside Park, Hitachinaka, Ibaraki, Japan
  • Canfranc Station, Canfranc, Spain 
     
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