so much more than the whole Lonely Planet controversy/sensationalization

books:


	• Do Travel Writers Go to Hell?: A Swashbuckling Tale of High Adventures, Questionable Ethics, and Professional ... Thomas Kohnstamm Three Rivers Press, 2008 - 288 pages average customer review:based on 24 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Guidebook users pay the price

I can personally relate to this book as I was forced to flee Sao Luis to escape scamming cops just as Kohnstamm does toward the end of his book. My trip was in 1973, Kohnstamm's was in 2004, some things never change. As an ex-Lonely Planet author, I can also relate to Kohnstamm's expose about how LP updaters are grossly underpaid. I stopped writing for them in 2002 when I realized I was only breaking even. Of course, it's easy to badmouth Lonely Planet for exploiting their idealistic young researchers, but are guidebook users willing to pay the real price of their guides? When you consider all the helpful detail available from Lonely Planet, Moon, Let's Go, Rough, Footprint, etc, travel guidebooks are incredibly cheap.

In the book Kohnstamm tells how his research trip to Brazil was a disaster until he discovered that he could become an instant VIP by using the official business cards thoughtfully provided by Lonely Planet. From that point on it's easy going for Thomas with tourism operators falling over each other to show him around, feed and water him, and provide accommodations. If you look in the front of any LP guide you'll notice a little disclaimer "Lonely Planet writers do not accept discounts or payments in exchange for positive coverage of any sort." Notice the wording. It seems that it's okay to accept discounts and payments so long as they're not tied to positive coverage. Of course, guidebook updaters who do accept freebies will inevitably speak well of their hosts. That's only human nature. Guidebook users pay the price.

Backpackers looking for places to party and sex tourists in search of prey will be attracted to Brazil by this book. However, if you're an aspiring writer hoping to learn about travel writing, don't expect much as the narrative is mostly about Kohnstamm himself. You could easily skip the first few chapters about his empty life in New York.

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eye-opening

Well-written, fun read. I'd say it was Lonely Planet committing fraud, rather than the author, for paying their authors so little and yet claiming that their authors go everywhere and do everything they say they do. I've known a couple of LP writers and they have a very tough job. Once you tote up all the hours they travel, organise notes and write, the pay is peanuts.

Apparently in the company's 'good old days' - the 80s and 90s - authors were paid a decent wage, with some even earning a share of the profits.

Yes Thomas is a bit of a cad, but at least he's honest enough to confess all. Ultimately the book is the travel writer's version of Kitchen Confidential.

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Fun book that brings back memories

I think anyone that has done some traveling in their 20s or 30s will have a good time reading about the author's travel stories. They definitely brought back some good memories of crazy times out on the road. I was ready to drive to the airport as soon as I was done.

I also think he does a great job of painting a picture of the places he visits. I felt like I was on the trip with him, until I finished and realized I was actually where he was a the beginning.

All in all, I enjoyed it and would recommend it to friends.

so much more than the whole Lonely Planet controversy/sensationalization

To begin, I will disclaim with great pride that Thomas is one of my best friends. In fact he wrote the beginning of Do Travel Writers Go to Hell? while we were living together in southern chile (after he just wrote about patagonia for Lonely Planet,) with a full view of a snowcapped volcano; I was beginning my biography on Pablo Neruda (follow up to The Essential Neruda: Selected Poems) While some have called him a jerk and a cad here, the truth is he happens to be perhaps the most conscientious person I know.

Other reviews here already attest to his writing talent and the thrill and intrigue of the book's story, but what seems to be overlooked in all the Lonely Planet controversy/hype is one of the central themes of the book: The whole Lonely Planet thing was just part of the story, true circumstances which direct the book's plot. But what makes the book important is how he deals with the challenge so many young liberal art majors face, especially if they decide not to go to law school: the struggle between chasing financial stability vs. the often challenging path of following your passions.

That, plus all his great literary and historical allusions, plus the pure swashbuckling (Random House added that to the title, Thomas wouldn't have put that himself) of the Sex, Drugs, & Travel story, is what makes this book a true piece of literature.

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reviews: page 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

For those who think that travel guidebooks are the gospel truth.

The waitress suggests that I come back after she closes down the restaurant, around midnight. We end up having sex in a chair and then on one of the tables in the back corner. I pen a note in my Moleskine that I will later recount in the guidebook review, saying that the restaurant ?is a pleasant surprise . . . and the table service is friendly.? ?Thomas Kohnstamm, professional travel writer and author of numerous Lonely Planet guidebooks

WANTED: Travel Writer for Brazil
QUALIFICATIONS REQUIRED
Decisiveness: the ability to desert your entire previous life?including well-salaried office job, attractive girlfriend, and basic sanity for less than minimum wage
Attention to detail: the skill to research northeastern Brazil, including transportation, restaurants, hotels, culture, customs, and language, while juggling sleep deprivation, nonstop nightlife, and excessive alcohol consumption
Creativity: the imagination to write about places you never actually visit
Resourcefulness: utilizing persuasion, seduction, and threats, when necessary, to secure a place to stay for the evening once your pitiable advance has been (mis)spent
Resilience: determination to overcome setbacks such as bankruptcy, disillusionment, and an ill-fated one-night stand with an Austrian flight attendant

As Kohnstamm comes to personal terms with each of these job requirements, he unveils the underside of the travel industry and its often-harrowing effect on writers, travelers, and the destinations themselves. Moreover, he invites us into his world of compromising and scandalous situations in one of the most exciting countries as he races against an impossible deadline.

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