Even if you're staying close to home as the weather cools, your mind can still wander across distant horizons. For the World Traveler, autumn is the perfect season to embark on literary journeys through immersive travel memoirs, history books and vivid cultural histories.
Dive into our top travel-related new release books, taking you from the Mediterranean to the Great White North. Featuring captivating accounts and global narratives from celebrated authors like Bill Bryson, Frances Mayes, Paul Theroux and Pico Iyer, you'll satisfy your wanderlust with every chapter.
October Travel and History Book Releases
H Mart: The Cookbook: Essential Ingredients, Techniques, and Korean Recipes
by Stacey Kwon - H Mart H Mart - Eric Kim
The first cookbook from the cult-status Asian grocery store chain is a visual celebration with Korean recipes, ingredient spotlights, cultural deep dives, how-tos, and more.
When the first H Mart opened in 1982, it was just a humble grocery store in Queens, carrying the most basic of Korean ingredients. In the 43 years since then, the tiny shop has grown into America's largest Asian supermarket chain. And for the nearly 20 million Asian Americans living across the country, H Mart has become more than a simple grocery store. It's a place of community, a joyous connection to their culture and heritage. Cooking with H Mart is here to bring that joy home. This gorgeous, oversized cookbook and guidebook contains everything a person could ever want to know about H Mart: From its history and profiles to ingredient spotlights and how-tos.
The highlight of the book is the 75 home-cook friendly recipes that make the most of H Mart's ingredients. There are classic Korean dishes, like Spicy Cucumber Salad (Oi Muchim), Braised Beef Short Ribs (Galbi Jjim), and Stir-Fried Sweet Potato Noodles (Japchae) as well as unique twists using contemporary flavors. Pizza-Stuffed Fish-Shaped Waffles (Pizza Bunggeobbang) rethinks a popular Korean street food by swapping out the traditional red bean paste with pizza toppings. And Cheesy Kimchi Fried Rice (Cheese Buldak Kimchi Bokkeumbap) combines hot sauce, spicy kimchi, and mozzarella to make a truly addictive comfort meal.
Overflowing with brilliantly colored photography and illustrations, charts, and infographics, Cooking with H Mart will help any reader make the most of their next grocery run.
Mediterranean All the Way: Bold Flavors, Built to Share: A Cookbook
by Ayesha Nurdjaja
"A feast for all the senses . . . a welcome addition to any food lover's shelf!" -- JACQUES PÉPIN
"I adore the diverse flavor combinations that define Ayesha's cooking." -- LIDIA BASTIANICH
"Mediterranean cuisine has never been more vibrant and flavorful." -- BOBBY FLAY
In her debut cookbook, the powerhouse chef behind Shuka and Shukette, Ayesha Nurdjaja, serves up over 120 seasonal, flavor-packed, Mediterranean and Levant-inspired dishes that don't hold back.
At her hit restaurants, Shuka and Shukette, Chef Ayesha Nurdjaja brings the party with bold, colorful, vegetable-forward Middle Eastern and Mediterranean food. In her debut cookbook, she's doing the same--sharing over 120 vibrant, foolproof recipes that let peak-season produce steal the show. No fussy steps, no endless ingredient lists--just big herbs, bold spices, and plenty of sauces to swipe, drizzle, and drag your bread through.
This is food meant to be ripped, dipped, and devoured. You'll find silky-smooth hummus, rich and creamy labne, and easy to make flatbreads to swipe it all up. The heart of Mediterranean All the Way is seasonal produce, and Ayesha brings it hard with knockout combos like Fig & Burrata finished with an icy shower of frozen fig or Halloumi with Strawberries, spiked with Aleppo pepper and sumac. There's tahini-drizzled Roasted Cauliflower with Dates & Pistachio Chermoula that hits every note--sweet, nutty, crunchy, caramelized--and a springy Pea Party that's exactly as fun as it sounds. Throw in an extra crispy Sesame-Crusted Chicken Schnitzel or juicy Middle Eastern Meatballs, and you're in business.
Whether you're cooking for two or for a crew, Ayesha's menus and mix-and-match dishes make it easy to build a table that's as generous and joyful as the food itself. All you need now is a trip to the market--and maybe a second round of flatbread.
The Havana Syndrome: Secret Weapons, a Government Cover-Up, and the Greatest Spy Mystery of Our Time
by Michael Rey - Oriana Zill de Granados - Scott Pelley
An explosive, inside account of the mysterious attacks on U.S. officials around the world via an unseen, highly specialized weapon that has left dozens of victims with life-altering injuries, and the U.S. government's attempt to cover it up--with startling new evidence from an award-winning 60 Minutes team
For nearly a decade, U.S. diplomats, spies, and soldiers around the world have reported sudden, devastating neurological injuries--symptoms eerily consistent with exposure to a directed energy weapon. Victims were told their illnesses were "psychosomatic." Government agencies dismissed the evidence. And the CIA insisted no adversary was behind it. As the cases grew, from Havana to Hanoi, the media dubbed the phenomenon "the Havana Syndrome."
In this groundbreaking exposé, 60 Minutes producers Michael Rey and Oriana Zill de Granados reveal the hidden history of the so-called Havana Syndrome: from early attacks in Cuba and China, to the spread across global hotspots from Tbilisi to Vienna, to the mounting evidence implicating an elite Russian "kill" unit. Drawing on more than nine years of reporting, including secret medical records, whistleblower testimony, and intelligence reports, they expose not only the technology behind the attacks but the U.S. government's effort to downplay and deny them.
Combining the pace of a thriller and the authority of rigorous investigative journalism, this book brings readers inside the lives of officers like "Adam" and "Poly," whose careers and health were destroyed by the attacks, and Lt. Col. Greg Edgreen, the Pentagon investigator who risked everything to demand accountability. The Havana Syndrome is both a geopolitical saga with chilling consequences for national security and a deeply human story of betrayal and resilience.
The Rush: California Gold, the Civil War, and the Making of the Modern World
by Nathaniel Philbrick
A New York Times Most Anticipated Nonfiction Book of 2026 - A Los Angeles Times Best Book of the Fall
National Book Award winner and Pulitzer Prize finalist Nathaniel Philbrick, author of In the Heart of the Sea and Mayflower, reveals how California's Gold Rush forged the modern United States--and lit the long fuse to civil war
In January 1848, a carpenter spotted flecks of gold in a shallow stream at Sutter's Mill in California, triggering the greatest voluntary migration in U.S. history, as hundreds of thousands raced west in pursuit of sudden wealth, reinvention, and power. From the feverish gold-mining camps of the Sierra Nevada mountains to the wharves and vigilance committees of San Francisco, Nathaniel Philbrick renders a combustible, all-world society: Chilean brothers reinventing themselves to outrun prejudice; Native communities navigating dispossession and violence; the merchant-showman Samuel Brannan, drawn into the center of early vigilantism; and the politicians vying for control of California's future--the ambitious Free-Soil political boss David Broderick, who squared off against William Gwin, the Southern power broker intent on tilting the state toward slavery and the Confederacy.
In The Rush, Nathaniel Philbrick transforms the Gold Rush from a tale of sudden riches into the origin story of America's modern contradictions--capital consolidated at dizzying speed, democracy in thrall to private power, xenophobia weaponized in the name of liberty--and a stubborn belief in the American experiment that refuses to die. This is the story of a nation tearing at the seams and a republic tested by its own ideals. Not until ayear after the outbreak of the Civil War, when President Lincoln signed legislation that would unite the nation east to west by building a transcontinental railroad, was California's loyalty secured.
Philbrick follows the gold as it moves from riverbed to countinghouse to the halls of power, revealing how vigilantism hardened into law and how debates over slavery in the West tipped the balance in Washington. The result is a clear, human story of how a scramble for wealth reshaped ideas of freedom, labor, and belonging--and how California's rise helped push a fractured nation toward war. The Rush is alive with characters whose choices still reverberate: a searing, panoramic epic that captures both the fury and the promise of America.
The Sea-King and the Sorceress: Life and Death in the Viking Age
by Neil Price
From the acclaimed author of Children of Ash and Elm, an intimate, continent-spanning human journey through the Viking world.
For centuries, Vikings have been stereotyped as brutish and violent pillagers. But now, based on the latest archaeological research, preeminent scholar Neil Price reveals the true diversity and individuality of the Viking Age.
From an arctic hunter to a woman of Persian ancestry; from a Sámi nomad to a bear endowed with personhood; from Viking raiders to Rus' river traders; from sorceresses to shape-shifters; from immigrants to diplomats; from followers of many gods, to the worshippers of one; from settlers to farmers--as we meet all these and many more, Price enlists the full range of modern archaeological knowledge to reconstruct Norse lives in personal detail, presenting a new and complex image of the Viking Age. Taking the reader from Greenland to Greece and across three centuries, Price demonstrates that Vikings--in all of their heterogeneity--were both surprisingly similar to us today, and also thrillingly strange.
Densely peopled, beautifully rendered, and impressively wide-reaching, The Sea-King and the Sorceress sheds a light on the realities of life in the Viking diaspora.
September Travel and History Book Releases
Alexander: God, King, Man
by Edmund Richardson
"In this staggeringly good biography, Edmund Richardson reveals in riveting and sumptuous detail the real Alexander, the man behind the legend. Richardson has drawn on new sources from recent archeological discoveries, adding a real freshness to this millennia old story." -- Daily Mail
An enthralling new biography of Alexander the Great, written as an intimate, present portrait of the way his world saw him and the price he paid to become history's greatest military mind.
Alexander the Great: a wide-eyed boy from the hills of Macedon who ruled most of the known world by his mid-twenties. For centuries, historians, refugees, poets, and explorers have told his story, and yet Alexander himself has remained a mystery.
But over the last few years, a series of remarkable discoveries has changed everything. From the bottom of the Mediterranean Sea and the dust of Central Asian hillsides, the remains of Alexander's cities have emerged. The diaries of Babylonian astronomers who knew him have been deciphered.
he tombs of his ancestors have been unearthed. Now, for the first time since antiquity, it is possible to tell a different story. The story of a young man whom almost no-one noticed, until the day he became king. A king who became a hero, a hero who became a living god, and a god who died broken-hearted in Babylon.
Using cutting-edge research and a unique narrative approach, Alexander thrusts readers into Alexander the Great's world in ways which have never before been possible: to see the same stars wheeling overhead, feel the desert wind, and experience the full horror of battle. Alexander is a cinematic work of non-fiction, a revelatory retelling of one of the most famous and elusive stories in history.
Greek Out: Sunny Vibes, High-Energy Mediterranean Flavor
by Maria Koutsogiannis
Eat the Mediterranean way with these 120 sun-kissed dishes that taste as good as they make you feel.
"If you're looking for a modern Greek food bible, this is it." -- Alex Snodgrass, Creator of The Defined Dish and New York Times Bestselling Author
Everything tastes better in Greek! For millions of fans worldwide, Maria Koutsogiannis of Food by Maria is the ambassador for everything that is tasty and Greek. In her much anticipated first cookbook, Greek Out, she debuts insanely delicious and nourishing recipes, viral fan favorites, and vivid stories straight from her Greek family and life.
Through more than 120 fresh and inviting Mediterranean dishes, home cooks can tap into that special something that makes Greek food so Greek--whether it's chicken marinated with loads of oregano and garlic (and roasted upright gyros-style), a pita stuffed to the max with spinach, stringy cheese, and artichokes; or honey drizzled over phyllo, kebabs, donuts, and anything else you can think of.
Shot on location in Greece to capture the essence of a sun-and-sea life, the stunning photographs and Maria's practical meal-prep tips, mix-and-match strategies, and joyous energy are not only fun and inspiriting--they make it easy to cook generously, gather often, and feel empowered to do more with less. It's time to get your Greek on!
Idle in Provence: A Brief History of Thyme
by Eric Idle
In 1971, at the beginning of Monty Python mania, Eric Idle bought a crumbling ruin in the hills of Provence. With no electricity, no water, no road, and no plan, he set out to transform the neglected stone shack into what he lovingly calls a shackeau.
Idle in Provence is the story of the transformation of both the place and the man. Against the sun-drenched backdrop of southern France, Idle penned iconic songs and scripts, hosted a revolving door of eccentric and brilliant friends--George Harrison, Robin Williams, Paul Simon, and others--and found a rare kind of peace far from the madness of showbiz. Equal parts memoir, travelogue, and comedy masterclass, the book is filled with laugh-out-loud moments, tender reflections, and the kind of sharp, self-deprecating wit only Idle can deliver.
As he reflects on love, loss, friendship, and joy, Idle paints a vivid portrait of a place that became more than a home--it became a sanctuary. The story spans decades. It's a love letter to France, to old friends, and to the wild, unpredictable journey of being alive.
Along the way, readers are treated to behind-the-scenes glimpses of Eric Idle's creative output, candid memories of fame, and thoughtful meditations on life, purpose, and the legacy of laughter.
Charming, cheeky, and unexpectedly moving, Idle in Provence is Eric Idle at his best--hilarious, candid, and unforgettable.
An Inconvenient Woman: The Extraordinary Life of Lillian Smith, the Southerner Who Defied Jim Crow America
by Keri Leigh Merritt
A revelatory and immersive biography of a white Southern woman who was a key figure in the early civil rights movement, devoting her life to ending segregation in America only to be forgotten by history.
Born in Florida to a religious family, Lillian Smith (1897-1966) was a white Southern woman living in the Jim Crow South who defied all stereotypes: She lived with her lover, Paula, first running a summer camp in the foothills of the Appalachian mountains, and then a magazine, devoted to creating a new vision of the South, one that passionately championed equality and integration.
Smith published Black and white writers, a rare feat in those days, and herself wrote articles instructing white Southerners on why they shouldn't support segregation--Smith firmly believed racism hurt white Americans, too. In 1944 she published a bestselling novel, Strange Fruit, which became a national sensation and was banned in Boston and Detroit. The FBI began a file on her, she received death threats, and her house caught fire three times, twice intentionally, resulting in the loss of all her works-in-progress and her correspondence.
Undaunted, she continued her ardent fight against segregation, maintaining correspondence with some of the great leaders of her day, including Eleanor Roosevelt, Martin Luther King Jr, W.E.B Dubois, Paul Robeson, and Pauli Murray. She continued to fight for both civil and human rights throughout the 1960s, helping nurture many of the activists in SNCC and CORE, only to succumb to cancer in 1966.
Drawing on previously unpublished archival research, and with a modern appreciation of Smith's complex identity, AN INCONVENIENT WOMAN is the definitive account of a woman who defied all expectations and dedicated her life to racial equality.
The Kitchen I Came Home to: Big Flavors and Tall Tales from My Corner of Kentucky
by Sara Bradley - Emily Timberlake
Two-time Top Chef finalist Sara Bradley invites you to pull up a chair for a celebration that's a little bit Sunday supper, a little bit Saturday night, with over 100 recipes packed with big flavor, moxie, and plenty of heart.
"This is the kind of cookbook that makes you slow down, gather the people you love, and cook with joy. Rooted in Kentucky and brimming with Southern warmth, it's a beautiful reminder of how powerful food can be."--Kristen Kish
Sara Bradley always knew the kind of food she wanted to cook. Growing up Jewish in Paducah with her mom and grandma's twists on Kentucky classics, Sara developed a deep love for exploring different cuisines while also staying rooted in the regional traditions that make the city what it is: not just the Midwest, not just the South, but the middle of everywhere.
Sara's recipes don't use any fancy ingredients or tools and are based in easy-to-learn techniques she learned in her childhood and culinary school. Like how to know when heirloom stone-ground grits are done cooking (hint: use the roof of your mouth) and what it takes to make a steak that's perfectly charred on the outside and medium-rare on the inside (lots of butter). Alongside these techniques are tips on how to use up leftovers and make them into something new, as well as stories showing just how deep the love for food runs in Sara's family.
In The Kitchen I Came Home To, Sara shares more than 100 recipes, including:
- Beer Cheese with Crudités
- Duck and Dumplings
- Goat Cheese and Honey Kugel
- Sweet Tea-Brined Chicken Thighs
- Cornmeal-Coated Catfish and Fried Pickle Chips
- Roasted Garlic Matzo
- Braised Pork Pot Roast with Fennel Aioli
- Strawberry Basil Pie with Black Pepper Whooped Cream
- River Bottom Peanut Butter Fudge
- Green Onion Dressing, aka GOD Dressing
With heartfelt and hilarious stories, plus more than 100 recipes, The Kitchen I Came Home To will fill you up with joy, laughter, and delicious food.
Queens and Kings: An Unusually Personal History
by Lucy Worsley
"Queens & Kings is history with a uniquely personal touch. Warm, insightful, and full of heart, Worsley has distilled a lifetime of personal experience into this crowning achievement of a book. Prepare yourself for a personal tour of the palace rooms with Britain's favorite historian." --Hallie Rubenhold, bestselling author of The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper
"This dazzling book is full of brilliant detail, behind-the-scenes wit and humor, and a great tenderness for her subjects. All seen through the lens of Lucy Worsley's career working as Chief Curator at Hampton Court, her scholarship, passion for her subject and deep knowledge is lightly worn, this is history writing at its best." -- Kate Mosse, New York Times bestselling author
A colorful journey through some of the most significant moments in British history, as seen through Lucy Worsley's life and adventures as Chief Curator for Historic Royal Palaces.
No one has lived and breathed the monarchy quite like Lucy Worsley. For over twenty years, she worked as Chief Curator in some of Britain's most splendid palaces--and now she is ready to throw open the doors and welcome us in.
In Queens and Kings, Lucy takes us on a journey through some of our most turbulent and significant moments in history. From the Council Chamber in which Henry VIII decided to break from the pope to lunch with the late Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace, from encounters with the Tower of London's Ravenmaster to the depths of Queen Victoria's wardrobe, Lucy shares how she grew to know the queens and kings, courtiers and servants who lived in these buildings over the centuries.
She traces their footsteps through the corridors and cloisters, the courtyards and kitchens and breathes new life into moments of great joy and consequence' as well as tales of intrigue which lurked in the shadows of regal splendor. Packed with new stories told from unexplored places, this is a fresh history of the monarchy.
Receipts from the Bookshop: A Bookseller's Year in an English Seaside Town
by Katie Clapham
"An utterly delightful peek into the real life of an English village bookshop, as told to us by the owner herself. A must-read for everyone who's ever felt most at home in a bookstore." - Julia Quin, New York Times bestselling author of Bridgerton
Based on the popular Substack that Julia Quinn calls "delightful" and India Knight describes as "absolute heaven," a quirky and gossipy insider glimpse at a year in the life of a family-owned bookstore in a seaside English town--as told by the store's owner.
One summer not long ago, bookseller Katie Clapham began chronicling life at the small independent bookstore she runs with her mother in the English seaside town of Lytham St Annes. Her cozy bookshop diaries detail the romance and frustration of running your own bookstore - from the loyal customers to the feisty passers-by, and the deliveries filled with tempting new stock to the never-ending aftermath of cardboard boxes. Katie faithfully records the change of seasons from sad January to exhausting December, punctuated with visits from inquisitive dogs, adorable children, and people just looking for a good place to get an omelets around here.
Tender, funny, and thoughtful, Receipts from the Bookshop is a love letter to everything we hold dear: small towns, family, book chat, hot cups of tea, and just the right snack at 11 AM. …
- A valentine for book lovers everywhere.
- Cozy armchair travel for anyone who loves England.
- Reminds readers why bookstores are our happy place.
- The perfect story of a small family business built on love and commitment.
- A warm, funny look at community in a small seaside town.
True North: On the Road in Canada
by Paul Theroux
Acclaimed, bestselling author and travel writer Paul Theroux turns his gaze to Canada in a sweeping, personal journey.
For more than half a century, Paul Theroux has traveled the globe and chronicled its far corners with curiosity, wit, and an unflinching eye. With True North, his twelfth travel book, he turns that eye to a country that has long been his quiet neighbor: Canada.
What begins as the completion of a North American road trip trilogy becomes something more personal. Theroux traces his own ancestral connection to Quebec, where his forebear Antoine Theroux arrived in the 17th century. Theroux meets his Quebcois friends and relations, then travels more widely through remote villages, multicultural cities, and sweeping landscapes that have defined modern Canada.
Along the way, he speaks with farmers, refugees, writers like John Irving and Michael Ondaatje, and Indigenous leaders such as Tanya Talaga, listening as Canadians reckon with identity, belonging, and patriotism, often in response to the jabs and provocations of their southern neighbor.
From snowbound Ottawa at the height of political protests to the Viking settlement at L'Anse aux Meadows, from Toronto's "ethno-burbs" to Vancouver's Pacific gateway, True North is a panoramic portrait of a vast country both familiar and elusive. It is also a meditation on kinship, migration, and the resilience of a people shaped by history, geography, and challenging weather.
For more great reads to add to your TBR list, check out our book recommendations for Lifelong Learners and Time Travelers.