Grounded

In the spirit of AROUND THE WORLD IN EIGHTY DAYS, an intrepid writer rediscovers the magic of travel by circumnavigating the world with one simple rule: no planes, ever. How to really see the world by not flying over it ... 'I have good news and bad news. the good news is, they let me aboard the ship.' 'I can't believe it,' Rebecca says excitedly. 'I thought there was no chance! I'm almost done packing - I'll catch a taxi to the terminal now!' 'See, this is the bad news part,' I say, watching the docks slowly recede into the distance ... Let's face it, for all its convenience, flying sucks the adventure out of a journey. Check your shoes. Bag your liquids. So when Seth Stevenson decided to embark on the ultimate adventure - circumnavigating the world, no less - he vowed to recapture what he once loved about travel by sticking to one simple rule: no planes, ever. In the spirit of Around the World in Eighty Days, he sets off with fellow traveller Rebecca as expert navigatrix determined to savour every unexpected bump in the road - and see everything you miss by flying over it. He bunks on cargo freighters, cruise ships and ferries, rides on rickshaws, motorbikes and double-decker buses, drives a car across the Australian outback, pedals a bicycle through Vietnam, rattles across Russia on the trans-Siberian Railway - and even abandons Rebecca in Singapore to maintain his 'no fly' rule. this funny, wise and thoroughly entertaining armchair tour around the world is a timely reminder of what travelling should be. 'With travel writing it's not just about where you go, it's who you're on the journey with. Seth Stevenson makes a delightful travelling companion and Grounded is a charming read' AA Gill, author of AA GILL IS AWAY and tHE ANGY ISLAND