ew realize that the great rivalry between Boston and New York began on the bookshelf, and not in the ballpark. In his 1858 story “The Autocrat of the Breakfast-Table,” Oliver Wendell Holmes dubbed Boston the “hub of the solar system,” and city boosters eventually expanded that to “Hub of the universe.” Not to be outdone, New York proceeded to claim that title for itself (along with 28 World Series championships). But despite its baseball dominance, the Big Apple is still unable to compete with Boston’s great literary pedigree. John Cheever, the Chekhov of the suburbs (born in nearby Quincy, Mass., but settled in New York), may have said it best: “All literary men are Red Sox fans — to be a Yankee fan in a literate society is to endanger your life.”
Established in 1852 following the donation of 50 books by the city of Paris, the Boston Public Library was the first public collection in the U.S. Today the building serves as an oasis of quiet and serenity among the bustling shops in Boston’s fashionable Back Bay district. There’s no better place to enjoy a book than here, and not coincidentally, no better place to find one.
“How many a man has dated a new era in his life from the reading of a book!” wrote Henry David Thoreau, who sought out Concord’s Walden Pond for two years, two months, and two days of writing, thinking, and simple living. Today, outdoor enthusiasts and fans of the transcendentalist can visit the pond’s sun-kissed waters, about 30 minutes from Boston, and see the spot where Thoreau first contemplated this: “Books are the treasured wealth of the world and the fit inheritance of generations and nations.”
Home to the Dead Author’s Club, Bukowski’s Tavern in the Back Bay pays homage to the mad poet Charles Bukowski with a large selection of potent inspiration. Meanwhile, deceased writers of centuries past, such as Ralph Waldo Emerson and Nathaniel Hawthorne, congregate at Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in Concord.
There are even more bodies to be found at Kate’s Mystery Books in Cambridge — as well as murder weapons, sinister villains, and an abundance of alibis. At nearby Harvard University, local lit majors hole up in the library’s 90 different branches.
However, the Charles Street Inn, in the Beacon Hill neighborhood, may be the best place for well-read travelers to rest their bones. Its rooms are named after famous local residents who have contributed to the arts. Henry James is one such honoree, perhaps for his novel The Bostonians.
— John Patrick Pullen
Sure, Boston may be home to some pretty deep thinkers, but words have breathed life into many places across the globe — especially these storied destinations.
Bristol, U.K.: Each summer 80,000 bookworms descend on Hay-on-Wye, a village of 1,500 people about 70 miles north of Bristol. The town boasts one hotel and plenty of farmland, but for 10 days, writers and thinkers converge here for the world’s largest literary festival. Last year, for instance, Al Gore was going on about the weather, Eric Schlosser about the food, and other writers about themselves. Bookshops abound, films are screened, bands play, and ice cream (made from local sheep’s milk) is served. Bill Clinton once called the event a “Woodstock of the mind.” That sounds about right, minus the drugs.
San Francisco: Home to the Beat movement of the 1950s, San Francisco’s North Beach still echoes with the genius of Jack Kerouac and Allen Ginsberg. Kerouac wrote On the Road at his home at 29 Russell Street, and Ginsberg wrote his revolutionary poem “Howl” at 1010 Montgomery Street. Copies of both have been available at Columbus Avenue’s City Lights Bookstore since they were published. At nearby Vesuvio Café, poets can still gather late into the night and find inspiration among the empty glasses.
Chicago: The City of the Big Shoulders got its nickname from a poem by Carl Sandburg, not from lugging tomes from local haunts like Bookman’s Corner on North Clark and Ravenswood Used Books in Lincoln Square. Chicago literati carry the load of national criticism as well. From Jessa Crispin, who runs the blunt yet refined Web site Bookslut.com (as well as a monthly reading series at North Clark’s Hopleaf Bar), to Ira Glass of public radio’s This American Life, Chicago has a leading voice in every medium. And let’s not forget what’s-her-name on TV with the book club … Oh, right — Oprah.
Delhi: At 19 hours by train from Delhi, Motihari is already a pilgrimage, but until recently it was mainly sought out by followers of Mahatma Gandhi, who began his nonviolent resistance movement here in 1917. Author George Orwell, another opponent of imperialism, also got his start here. Born in 1903 in a two-room house, Orwell lived in the village for only a year, but fans began seeking out the locale around the centennial of his birth. The local Rotary Club recently began converting the Animal Farm author’s home into a museum, in the hope that one day Orwell’s Motihari will be a destination rivaling Shakespeare’s Stratford.
Dublin: Visitors to Dublin inevitably seek out a well-poured pint, and the Dublin Literary Pub Crawl is a clever way to find the best. Small groups, led by a local actor, amble to watering holes frequented by the likes of Samuel Beckett and Oscar Wilde for a rousing crash course in literature. Along the way, crawlers are served at taverns like the Duke Pub and encounter gems like this: Once upon a time, Guinness offered Brendan Behan, legendary playwright, novelist, and drunk, a stockpile of stout to come up with a new company slogan. A month (and 12 empty kegs) later, Behan delivered the inspired phrase “Guinness Makes You Drunk.”
Portland, Ore.: If you could step inside the Internet and walk among the aisles of Amazon.com, it might look something like Powell’s City of Books, but wouldn’t be half as cool. The largest independent bookstore in the United States, Powell’s was originally founded in Chicago by Michael Powell. Michael’s father, Walter Powell, inspired by working for a summer in the Chicago store, returned home to Portland and opened his own branch. More than 30 years later, six Powell’s locations peddle new and used books across the Portland area. Collectors come from all over to browse their extensive stacks, attend events with world-famous authors, and pet Fup, the Park Avenue store’s 18-year-old cat.
Frankfurt: If you’re still reading this, you’re likely either going to or coming from the Frankfurt Book Fair, which takes place October 4–8. The world’s premier book marketing event, this is where the big deals go down. The words certainly are important, but the numbers are staggering. Last year, 284,838 attendees (including 11,920 journalists) came from 101 countries. But each year only one person leaves having locked up the next big bestseller. And if you’re an editor, here’s something else you should know: I have a great idea for a novel that I’d love to tell you about.
&mdash J.P.P.
Getting There: All the destinations featured in “The List” can be reached by flying Continental Airlines. To book your vacation to these and other destinations, visit Continental Airlines Vacations at covacations.com.
