Ten books that take you someplace you’ve likely never been

Jeff Somers is the author of Lifers, the Avery Cates series from Orbit Books, Chum from Tyrus Books, and the Ustari Cycle from Pocket/Gallery, including We Are Not Good People. At the B&N Reads blog he tagged ten books to read instead of taking a vacation this summer, including:

Shantaram, by Gregory David Roberts

India is big. Like, really, really big. Saying you want to “go to India” is sort of like saying you want to go to Europe, or the Moon—you really need to be more specific. That being said, despite the often grimy subject matter, Roberts’ controversial biography-as-novel introduces to an India that is equal parts overwhelming and exciting, overcrowded, hot, and beautiful, as seen through the eyes of an escaped convict on the run. You might not want to follow in the author’s supposed footsteps exactly, but reading this book is like getting off a plane in India without any money or a current passport and just diving into the country.

Read about the other entries on the list.

--Marshal Zeringue