Contemporary
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1971 was a time of significant change. In many parts of the world border crossings were opening up. There was a freedom and desire to travel through undiscovered countries. Further education gave a generation of young people new visions to explore and discover different cultures, languages and religions. There was a freedom to become adventurous. The overland route to India and the Far East was open and followed by many inquisitive people from Europe and North America.
During this time there was a dramatic revolution in music, clothing and social attitude. A desire to get away from traditional family routines. Drugs and looser sexual morals were easily accepted. The war in Vietnam raged on, generating demonstrations and draft dodgers. When following the trail there were many people to meet, those travelling with similar quests, those serving the travellers with food and resting places. There were villages, towns and cities to explore. It was an era when the trail promised wonder, adventure and excitement.
Here's what readers have to say about this book....
The central part of this book is the stunning narrative of a fictional young couple who travel overland from Istanbul to Afghanistan in the 1970's. The author made that journey himself from England many times as a trader. It begins with the hero travelling through Europe with a childhood friend, picking up hitch-hikers who narrate their stories as in Chaucer's Canterbury Tales. These hikers often re-appear on the route eastwards, enriching their stories. After meeting up with his girlfriend in Istanbul, the two lovers travel onward together seeking adventure. They sleep in the mysterious white caves of Cappadocia, and are welcomed into individual’s homes deep in the countryside. Beautifully written, covering the sights, sounds and political news of the times, as well as their sometimes intense personal problems, the unceasing drama of the story continues until the very last page.
Alastair Hull opens a fresh horizon of historical fiction in The Travellers' Tales. This superb book highlights a unique piece of travel history often overlooked in the war torn chaos that has divided much of Central Asia and the Middle East over the past half century. It details the wonders and dangers faced by a British couple travelling overland through Turkey, Iran and Afghanistan in the 1970's. Along the way they meet dozens of other young adventurers from throughout the world traveling by bus, train, car, truck, camper and even hitch-hiking on a route sketched out by Marco Polo over 650 years ago. Alastair focuses on the use of drugs, the rich heritage of music and anti-war idealism shared by this moving kaleidoscope of wide-eyed young men and women eager to absorb new lessons and values from a vastly different world This book brilliantly echoes a time, a place and a worldwide cast of characters in a series of adventures. For readers like me - who once shared in those times and adventures - or for those who have never heard of them, this traveller’s tale is a welcome insight into the fictional lives of two young college graduates. As the reader will discover, it is far safer to read about the ups and downs of this traveller’s tale than to have faced them yourself.
Fictionalised, but fascinating travellers' tales, bursting with detail, clearly written by someone who has been there and done that himself. With an unexpected moral punch at the end, the final pages leave you biting your nails ..
