Suggested Books to Read While Traveling in Latin America

Bus rides, long shuttles, early nights after a full day of traveling… all of these are great reasons for uploading/bringing along a book with you when you travel.  Many inns have a book exchange, so if you bring one book with you, you can resupply.  Another important reason for doing some reading before, during or after your travels is that you will learn more about the culture you have chosen to immerse yourself in. Following are some of our favorite reads, definitely influenced by the time we have spent in Latin America.

The White Rock, Hugh Thompson
Tropical Nature, Adrian Forsyth & Ken Miyata
1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus, Charles C Mann
The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon, David Grann
Last City of the Monkey God Douglas Preston
Sweat of the Sun,Tears of the Moon: A Chronicle of Incan Treasure, Peter Lourie
Valverdes Gold, Mark Honigsbaum
Land of Ghosts The Braided Lives of People and the Forest in Far Western Amazonia, David Campbell
River of Doubt, Theodore Roosevelt’s Darkest Journey, Candice Millard
Savages, Joe Kane
Three Cups of Tea, Greg Mortenson
Latin American Heroes: Liberators and Patriots from 1500 to the Present, Jerome Adams
When the Rivers Run Dry: Water – The Defining Crisis of the Twenty-first Century, Fred Pearce
Confessions of an Economic Hit Man, John Perkins
The New Confessions of an Economic Hit Man, John Perkins
River of Darkness: Francisco Orellana’s Legendary Voyage of Death and Discovery Down the Amazon, Deckle Edge
The Mapmaker’s Wife: A True Tale Of Love, Murder, And Survival In The Amazon, Robert Whitaker
At the Tomb of the Inflatable Pig: Travels Through Paraguay, John Gimlette
Is A River Alive?, Robert MacFarlane