Between Terror and Tourism

Praise for Between Terror and Tourism“Mewshaw, an intrepid travel writer and prolific novelist (Year of the Gun; Shelter from the Storm), celebrated his 65th birthday by taking an astonishing but somewhat hapless journey across North Africa. Sprinkling his account with literary allusions, he starts in Alexandria, Egypt, heads west through Libya, backtracks to Egypt, and continues on to Tunisia, Algeria, and Morocco, revealing his dogged determination, edgy fearlessness, and knack for faithful dialog. Seasoned travelers will sympathize with the cultural misunderstandings and bureaucratic troubles encountered in various places, particularly Libya. Mewshaw admits that “travel is a need as urgent as oxygen.” That urgency is evident in each well–turned phrase and incisive observation. Verdict: Recommended for Arabists and libraries with larger travel collections. Readers who enjoyed Michael Benanav’s Men of Salt will appreciate this book.” —Library Journal“Mewshaw wonderfully engages the travel reader’s vicarious demand for history, cultural insight, and unexpected incident.” —BooklistPraise for Michael Mewshaw“I have been an admirer of Michael Mewshaw’s writing for some thirty years. Perhaps the highest compliment I can pay Mewshaw is to admit that I was once fired from a job for reading him, or more accurately, for being unable to stop reading him.”—Professor Richard J. Golsan, Texas A&M University“Perhaps the best American writer you never heard of.” —The San Francisco Chronicle

Michael Mewshaw’s five-decade career includes award-winning fiction, nonfiction, literary criticism, and investigative journalism. He is the author of the nonfiction works Sympathy for the Devil- Four Decades of Friendship with Gore Vidal and Between Terror and Tourism; the novel Year of the Gun; and the memoir Do I Owe You Something? He has published in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, and numerous international outlets. He spends much of his time in Key West, Florida.

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