The 26 Greatest Adventure Books
We can’t all go on great adventures, but we can read about them.
Whether it be a Nobel Prize winner driving across America with his dog, Anthony Bourdain taking us on a tour of the world’s greatest meals, sailing side-by-side with an insane sea captain in Moby-Dick, experiencing Australia through the eyes of Bill Bryson, or experiencing frozen hell with Sir Ernest Shackleton, these 50 books that include memoirs, biographies, and novels, provide a wide array of curious, brave, and often downright insane people all in search of experiences that ended up making for great reading.
"The Right Stuff" by Tom Wolfe
Exploring what’s beyond our planet remains one of the last truly great adventures that few people have had the opportunity to experience. In The Right Stuff, one of America’s foremost reporters explores the U.S. space program in the postwar era, what the astronauts went through, what it put their families through, and why they were so willing to do it. [$12, amazon.com]
"Endurance: Shackleton's Incredible Voyage" by Alfred Lansing
At the start of the 20th century, when getting to a remote part of the world was still a nearly unimaginable task, Ernest Shackleton’s expeditions to Antarctica were really on another level. Here, in Lansing’s incredible biography, interviews with the last surviving crew members and diaries that had never been seen by the public prior to the book’s publication help to show why Shackleton’s name is synonymous with adventure. [$12, amazon.com]
"The Sea Runners" by Ivan Doig
Would you rather be imprisoned in a frozen hell, or would you rather escape the prison only to face the harsh conditions of the Pacific Northwest in the mid-19th century? That was the question four indentured servants had to ask themselves, and they answered by fleeing their Russian Alaska work camp in a stolen canoe in a harrowing search for the freedom they longed for. [$13, barnesandnoble.com]
"Into the Heart of Borneo" by Redmond O'Hanlon
If somebody is going to attempt an expedition that nobody else had attempted in over 60 years, the best bet has to be a humorous British writer and his poet friend, right? What could go wrong besides a few venomous snakes, huge worms, and terrible diseases? [$13, amazon.com]
"Pass the Butterworms" by Tim Cahill
It doesn’t always have to be serious, you can have a side of humor with your adventures. That’s what Tim Cahill does. Whether it be taking a swim in frozen North Pole waters, going deep into South American jungles, or eating bugs, Cahill shows that one of the best ways to understand different cultures is to be able to laugh a little, and never be afraid to step way out of your comfort zone. [$16, amazon.com]
"Alone on the Ice: The Greatest Survival Story in the History of Exploration" by David Roberts
There are countless stories of the triumphs and tragedies during the golden age of Antarctic exploration, but the tale of Douglas Mawson, leader of the Australasian Antarctic Expedition, who spent a month wandering in the arctic cold trying to find his base after his dogs abandoned him, might actually have you shaking your head in disbelief more than all the others. The title seriously does not lie. [$5, amazon.com]
"Deliverance" by James Dickey
You don’t get to hear “Dueling Banjos,” but the book that spawned the film with some of the most troubling and unforgettable scenes of when a weekend adventure with your friends goes incredibly wrong is, in fact, just as good as the movie. Possibly even better. [$10, amazon.com]
"A Voyage for Madmen" by Peter Nichols
Sailing around the world is the dream of any sea lover. Doing it alone, however, could be considered insane. In 1968, nine men said to hell with that logic, and all set out alone on nonstop trips around the world. One of them triumphantly made it, but the others weren’t as lucky. [$11, barnesandnoble.com]
"A Time of Gifts" by Patrick Leigh Fermor
What did you do when you turned 18? Patrick Leigh Fermor became a legal adult, then set out on foot to journey from the Hook of Holland to Constantinople, kicking off one of the great adventures of the 20th century. The walk would take three volumes to complete, but here, as the young writer crosses through Czechoslovakia into Hungary, finally ending up at the Iron Gate, where the Danube formed the boundary between what was then the Kingdom of Yugoslavia and Romania, you get to see the early stages of an incredible journey from a different time. [$12, amazon.com]
"A Time to Keep Silence" by Patrick Leigh Fermor
As if writing about a long walk across Europe at 18 and fighting in the Second World War didn’t add up to enough for lifetime, Leigh Fermor also produced this brilliant little book that shows just how healthy for spirit traveling to new and unfamiliar places can be. Whether he’s discussing visiting a Trappist monastery or looking out over an expansive landscape of nothingness, reading his books can provide anybody with a roadmap on how to live a full life. [$10, amazon.com]
"The Mountain: My Time on Everest" by Ed Viesturs
In this bestseller, Ed Viesturs, the only American to have climbed all fourteen of the world’s 8,000-meter peaks, opens up about the crown jewel of mountaintops: Everest. No book better emphasizes the reasons why climbers are so obsessed with scaling it, but Viesturs also shines a bright light on some of the most famous tragedies that were a direct result of that obsession. [$7, amazon.com]
"Wild" by Cheryl Strayed
Your mother has passed away, your marriage recently ended, and you’re headed in a downward spiral you can’t seem to stop. What do you do when it feels like everything has fallen apart?
If you’re Cheryl Strayed, you start hiking. You put on your boots, walk across trails in California and Oregon, and you find that redemption. In this inspiring memoir, Strayed proves that personal change and growth comes from within, but being out in nature also doesn’t hurt the process. [$8, amazon.com]
"Into the Wild" by Jon Krakauer
The title couldn’t be any more clear as to what this 1996 classic is about, but the story inside is a harrowing, ultimately tragic tale the likes of which you probably won’t find anywhere else.
Christopher McCandless gave it all up: talking with his family, his college funds, and a great future. He hitchhiked to Alaska with nothing but 10 pounds of rice, a rifle, several boxes of rifle rounds, a camera, and a guide to edible plants. He died after more than a hundred days of surviving in the wild, and with a deft hand, Krakauer brilliantly put together the hows, whys, and events that unfolded up to that point in this dizzying work that you won’t be able to put down. [$11, amazon.com]
"Walden" by Henry David Thoreau
An adventure book doesn’t need to feature swashbuckling badasses climbing mountains or sailing the rough seas. It doesn’t even have to offer up much action at all. Such is the case with Henry David Thoreau’s Walden. It’s a book that, while glacial in its pace compared to a few of the titles on this list, is one man’s adventure of going it alone in the woods of Massachusetts.
The idea of a person giving it all up so he can drop out for awhile to just explore nature, be by himself, and survive on mostly his wits, just doesn’t seem likely in our hyper-connected world. Somebody doing it and writing so clearly and beautifully about it seems downright impossible. That’s what makes this timeless. [$6, amazon.com]
"The Green Hills of Africa" by Ernest Hemingway
There are two Ernest Hemingway’s that we know best: Hemingway the novelist who wrote classics like For Whom the Bell Tolls, and Hemingway the larger-than-life outdoorsman. Although For Whom the Bell Tolls, a book on many high school reading lists to this day, was published a few years before it, 1933’s Green Hills of Africa is the book that truly made Papa the adventurer we still talk about to this day.
Recounting his experiences in East Africa, Hemingway writes about hunting with the touch of a novelist, but also finds time to wax philosophical about 19th century European writers at certain points. It might not be considered among his greatest works, but it’s an essential one to read if you want to know him. [$9, amazon.com]
"No Picnic on Mount Kenya" by Felice Benuzzi
There are dangerous adventures, and then there’s the story of Felice Benuzzi and his fellow Italian soldiers escaping a British POW camp because, “one had only to start taking risks again.” The trio of men survived in the wilderness with the small amount of food and supplies they hoarded, then ascended 16,300 feet to Mount Kenya’s Point Lenana, only to turn around and return to the the camp for the duration of the war. It’s a strange and exciting story. [$5, amazon.com]
"The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey" by Candice Millard
After suffering the type of defeat Teddy Roosevelt was handed in the 1912 election, most politicians would pack up and just take it easy for a long time. But that just wouldn’t be like one of our most iconic presidents, now would it? Instead of taking the path of least resistance, Roosevelt found one of the toughest and most grueling challenges he could by making the first descent of the then-uncharted and unmapped Amazon. It’s not exactly the type of retirement activity you could see any of today’s leaders taking, and nearly ever excruciating detail of the trek is here in this book. [$11, amazon.com]
"Travels with Charley" by John Steinbeck
One of America’s great writers hits the road with his trusty dog to rediscover what he once loved so much about his country; it’s really the type of formula that just wouldn’t work as perfectly today as it did in 1960. Yet this adventure across the continent remains a timeless classic that helped Steinbeck win the Nobel Prize a few months later. [$9, amazon.com]
"Conquistadors of the Useless" by Lionel Terray
France needed heroes after countless young men were wiped out after two brutal world wars. Former soldier Lionel Terray was just the man for the job.
Climbing the French, Italian, and Swiss Alps, the Walker Spur of the Grandes Jorasses, the south face of the Aiguille Noire de Peuterey, the north-east face of Piz Badile, the north face of the Eiger, and also a member of the 1950 expedition to the Nepalese Himalayan peak, Terray was one of the France’s great post-war adventurers. His memoir, released before his death on a rock climb in 1965, shows a man who was unafraid of any challenge. [$16, barnesandnoble.com]
"The Calling: A Life Rocked by Mountains" by Barry Blanchard
Nothing beats a great coming-of-age story, but when it’s a true one that involves climbing mountains and punk rock, then it’s a little bit sweeter. That’s Barry Blanchard’s memoir; the tale of an American Indian teenager facing very few prospects who went on to become one of the most respected alpinists in the world. [$22, amazon.com]
"Touching the Void" by Joe Simpson
The ecstasy of climbing to a 21,000-foot peak in the Andes turns to utter disaster when Joe Simpson falls off the face of an icy edge and breaks his leg with a blizzard approaching. Unable to lower him to safety, Simpson’s partner makes it back to camp thinking his friend is dead. But he isn’t, and what unfolds is one of the most unbelievable stories of survival you will ever read. [$10, amazon.com]
"A Cook's Tour" by Anthony Bourdain
Anthony Bourdain is well-known as a bestselling author and beloved television host who has been all over the globe to try different dishes, and showcase different people and cultures from all points north, south, east, and west. And while Kitchen Confidential might be considered his greatest accomplishment as a writer, A Cook’s Tour gets to combine all of the things we love about Tony. He’s living out all the food adventures we all wish we could go on. [$10, amazon.com]
"The Longest Way Home" by Andrew McCarthy
From actor to award-winning travel writer, the Pretty in Pink star spent four years taking assignments that took him from the highest mountains to the most dangerous rivers because he craved adventure, but also because he was unable to commit to marrying his fiancée. This is the age-old story of a man hitting the road for work, for experience, and to find himself. The only difference is McCarthy is a former teen heartthrob who also happens to be an incredible writer. [$14, barnesandnoble.com]
"Let My People Go Surfing: The Education of a Reluctant Businessman" by Yvon Chouinard
There aren’t many instances where a book by a rich businessman that details how he started making his fortune would make a list of books about great adventures, but this is the life and times of Patagonia’s founder Yvon Chouinard we’re talking about. How adventure shaped him and his philosophies is something that just about everybody can get behind. [$11, amazon.com]
"In the Heart of the Sea" by Nathaniel Philbrick
The true story that inspired one of the great American novels. The sinking of the whaleship Essex by an angry sperm whale was one of the most famous disasters of its day, and what the survivors did to make it nearly three months lost at sea will shake you to your core, but also leave you wondering what you’d to to make it home. Nathaniel Philbrick doesn’t fumble delivering one of the most harrowing stories you will ever read. [$7, amazon.com]
"Desert Solitaire" by Edward Abbey
Despite all of our modern advances and explorations, the American west still remains the strangest and most mysterious region on the continent, and that’s a huge part of what makes Edward Abbey’s book about spending nearly a year living in the desert such a fantastic book. It’s almost like a 20th century version of Thoreau moving to middle-of-nowhere, Utah, meditating on the expansive, dry landscape. [$8, amazon.com]