Summer is here and we have vacation on the brain! At the Conundrum we are ready to help you travel. Either by finding the perfect book to carry along on your vacation, or the perfect book to read so that you feel like you are vacationing even if you are staying at home. We have
you covered.
There are so many great books that can help you get vacation ready. You might wish to start with a copy of “1000 Places to See Before you Die” to help you plan out your trip (or your daydream). I just love this book. With its concise descriptions of the world’s greatest sights and places it gives you just enough information without weighting you down with a dense guide book you never actually read. Each section provides the “What”, the “Where”, “Best Times” and “Cost” along with tips to save you time and money in each locale and a brief history and description of what makes this place worthy of the being in the top 1000 places you just must simply see before you die. After years of using this book I now own 2 copies, one that I keep whole as my starting point and reference book and the other from which I tear the pages covering wherever it is that I am visiting. I carry those few, thin pages in my bag rather than a heavy guide book (save the weight for the novels you are bringing to read on the plane!).
Once your trip is planned now how are you getting there? Will you be driving? If so you might need some fun conversation starter card games to keep everyone playing nicely together. Check out our Chat Packs. These fun cards ask questions like what is the “weirdest thing you have ever…”, or “what is the greatest…” you get the picture. These cards also work great as entertainment at the lake house or camp at night and on rainy days to keep away a nasty case of the “I’m Bored’s”.
If you are driving a bit of distance you may want to use the time in the car to listen to a great audio book. Whether it is a choice like “A Gentleman in Moscow” or “Lincoln in the Bardo” for an amazing and engaging story, or “Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone“ for whole family enjoyment you will love how quickly time flies by when your imagination is engaged via an audio book from Libro.fm. What? You don’t know about Libro.fm yet and still use that OTHER audio book company? Check out the section in today’s newsletter telling you about this fantastic new option supporting our independent bookstore.
Now you have arrived at your destination. Have you packed enough books? And what did you choose to read on vacation? Are you a theme reader? I did not know that I was but while planning a trip to Italy I kept picking up books like Jess Walters “A Beautiful Ruin”, John Grisham’s “Playing for Pizza” and several books by “Under the Tuscan Sun” author Frances Mayes. I even packed a hardcover copy of a new Young Adult book because it is based on Pucchini’s opera Turandot which I was planning to see while traveling the area. So yeah, I guess I am a theme reader and did not know it.
So with all this great stuff waiting for you at The Conundrum the only question left to ask is : Where are you travelling this summer? Wherever you are going whether in body, in spirit or both we hope you will come by The Conundrum to find a few books, games or puzzles to add to your trip. And don’t forget to pack your Conundrum T-shirt and then send us a photo of you wearing it in some interesting locale. We will post all of the photos to our Facebook and Instagram account and whoever gets the most “likes” by August 15th will win a $25 gift card to The Conundrum! So get those cameras clicking and send us some fun shots as we spread the word about our love of reading around the world! Have a nice trip and remember: Life is a journey so be sure and pack enough books.