Welcome to Top 10 Tuesday! This is a weekly challenge hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, and this week’s challenge is about traveling through books!
The original prompt was favorite settings, but I don’t really have any! I love dystopian fiction with futuristic settings, I love historical fiction settings that take me back in time, and I love realistic fiction regardless of where it’s set. I don’t really have strong opinions on book settings. Therefore, I’m taking a different approach to this prompt. While I may not have favorite settings, I do have some favorite places in the world (as well as places that I really want to travel to someday)! This post was inspired by my husband and one of the books he got me for my birthday this year. One of the books he got me was because of the book itself and how he knew I really wanted it (Rise to the Sun by Leah Johnson). The other book he got me was one I had never heard of before. He knows that my favorite place in the world is Sevilla, Spain, and he obviously knows that I love reading. So, he decided to combine those two things by doing some research to find a book set in Sevilla that really captures the beauty and culture of the city. He started with a place I loved, and found a book for me to read inspired by that! It was so thoughtful, and I thought it was such a great idea since that isn’t normally how I go about picking books.
Therefore, for this post I’ll be highlighting one place and one book that I found that is set in this location. None of these are books that I’ve read before (most I hadn’t even heard of before this), and the first one on the list is the one my husband got me for my birthday! Without further ado, here are ten books to read based on ten distinct places in the world!
To learn more about a book, click on the photo to find the Goodreads synopsis. You can also check out my Travel Thursday posts for more bookish travel posts like this.
1. Sevilla (Spain)
Travel Status: I studied abroad here! It’s my favorite place in the world!
Book Status: This is the one my husband got me for my birthday; I can’t wait to read it!
2. Ecuador
Travel Status: I stayed with a host family in Quito for a few weeks and loved it!
Book Status: I hadn’t heard of this one before, but it sounds really interesting!
3. Hawaii
Travel Status: Visited a couple times and loved it!
Book Status: This one looks familiar, but I’m not sure if I had actually heard of it before or not. Regardless, it sounds intriguing and I hope to read it at some point!
4. Switzerland
Travel Status: Visited Geneva and loved it!
Book Status: I hadn’t heard of this one before! It seems to have mixed reviews on Goodreads, but most say that it really is evocative of Lausanne, Switzerland. I’m definitely intrigued!
5. Mexico
Travel Status: Visited a few times and loved it!
Book Status: There are so many books that I already own (and have either read or are on my TBR list) that are set in Mexico, but I wanted to pick one that was unfamiliar to me. I really want to check this one out now!
6. Quebec (Canada)
Travel Status: On my bucket list!
Book Status: I had never heard of this one before, but it sounds really interesting!
7. Scotland
Travel Status: On my bucket list!
Book Status: My favorite book set in Scotland is Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine, so I was curious to see what other books I could find that were set in Scotland. This one is older, but apparently pretty well known! From what I read it sounds like it was even made into a movie a while back. I’m looking forward to reading it and watching the movie adaptation!
8. South Africa
Travel Status: On my bucket list!
Book Status: I hadn’t heard of this one before, but it’s on my TBR now!
9. Chile
Travel Status: On my bucket list!
Book status: I came across this one online when searching for books to use for a historical fiction unit in my class, but I haven’t found a physical copy yet. I’d really like to read it and get it for my classroom!
10. Japan
Travel Status: On my bucket list!
Book Status: I’ve heard of this one but don’t own it (but it’s on my TBR)!
Have you read any of these books? What would your top ten be?
Let me know in the comments!
C.A. Hughes Book Reviews 
Oh, I love A Tale for the Time Being. And I had Molokai on my list this week, too.
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Wow, you’ve been to a lot of places!
The only part of Mexico I’ve been to is Tijuana. I’m sure it’s nothing at all like other cities there, but someday I’d like to go back again and see other parts of that country.
My post: https://lydiaschoch.com/top-ten-tuesday-favourite-book-settings/
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Both Scotland and Japan are on my travel bucket list. Scotland is also on my favorite book settings list, can never get enough of it! And yet I didn’t know that Eleanor Oliphant was set in Scotland — that really makes it a must-read for me. 🙂
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I’ve not read any of these but Molo’kai is on my TBR. I’ve been to Scotland loads because I have family there, my mum is Scottish so we went every year on holiday, we still go up every year at Christmas and I went to University there. I’ve also been to Spain quite a bit, but not to Seville, we would go across the border from France so we tended to stick to northern Spain. Before the pandemic last year, I was doing a journalism internship in Cape Town, so I was in South Africa for quite a bit, I was there almost three months before I had to come back in March (went out early January), and I really loved it, I definitely want to go back someday. I’ve also been to Switzerland as I was in Guides as a kid (the UK version of Girl Scouts), and one of the international guiding centres is in Switzerland so they used to do a big trip there every few years, I was lucky enough to get to go twice and really loved it.
My TTT: https://jjbookblog.wordpress.com/2021/10/12/top-ten-tuesday-337/
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I was lucky enough to visit Seville in 2016, one of the most stunning locations I’ve ever visited. Happy reading! My TTT https://readwithstefani.com/ten-more-books-about-books/
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I haven’t read it yet; I picked up The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie last year. It’s a short little book, so I hope to be able to squeeze it in.
Pam @ Read! Bake! Create!
https://readbakecreate.com/autumn-vibes-books-whos-cover-has-autumn-feels/
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What a fun way to approach this topic! I hope you enjoy the books you haven’t read and the places you haven’t been when you get the chance. Here is my Top Ten Tuesday. Thank you!
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