Road trips are great-the open road, the junk food consumed while driving, the abundance of country music stations in this fine land of ours. Road trips are supposed to teach us something; what I learned was not to freak out when the tire pressure indicator comes on, if two gas stations have already told you the tires are fine, and when asked, Why Kansas?, the best answer is, Why not Kansas? Some might suppose my affection for Kansas is linked to my high tolerance for monotony; however, that is unkind to Kansas. Since I have lived all my whole life surrounded by mountains, I was frankly thrilled to see the vast flatness of farm lands, the quaint and unfamiliar water towers, and the extended horizon on every side of me. Naturally, books about road trips are favorites of mine, too. Here are a few good ones to try:
Blue Highways: a journey into America by William Least Heat Moon
Horatio’s Drive: America’s first road trip by Dayton Duncan
Assassination Vacation by Sarah Vowell
Travels with Charley by John Steinbeck
Eight Women, Two Model Ts, and the American West by Joanne Wilke
Jack Ruby’s Kitchen Sink: offbeat travels through America’s Southwest by Tom Miller