Travel

Writer Geoffrey Wolff. His new collection of essays, "A Day At The Beach" (Alfred A. Knopf), is about the worst vacation ever. It started with over-priced dinners and ended in open heart surgery. Wolff is best known for his book "The Duke of Deception," a memoir about being the son of a con man.

Writer Nik Cohn (pronounced "cone"). Cohn walked the length of Broadway in New York City, talking with the various characters along the Great White Way. His chronicle of that experience is "The Heart of the World." (published by Knopf).

Travel writer Pico Iyer (rhymes with 'tire"). Iyer has an article on traveling to Vietnam in the new edition of "Conde Nast Traveler." Iyer's the author of "Video Night In Kathmandu" and the new book, "The Lady and the Monk: Four Seasons in Kyoto".

Writer William Least Heat Moon. His 1983 chronicle of traveling the back roads of America, "Blue Highways," became a literary classic and a huge best-seller. In his new book, "PrairyErth," Least Heat Moon looks at the geography, geology, and history of one county in Kansas. (The book's published by Houghton Mifflin, and "PrairyErth" is the correct spelling. There's no second "a").

Book critic John Leonard reviews two collections of essays about Africa; "African Silences" by Peter Matthiessan and "Maneaters Motel" by Denis Boyles.

Book critic John Leonard reviews "Wall to Wall," Mary Morris' memoir of her travels through China and the Soviet Union.

Writers Lindsy Van Gelder and Pamala Robin Brandt. They're the co-authors of "Are You Two...Together?" It's a gay and lesbian travel guide to Europe.

Nugent has written an account of his trip to India and the Himalayas in search of one of the world's rarest birds.

Book critic John Leonard reviews the author's newest book, about his journey through Yemen. Leonard appreciates the window into Middle Eastern culture, which the West often overlooks.

Book critic John Leonard reviews "The Search for the Pink Headed Duck," by Rory Nugent, about his travels to India and Tibet. He says Nugent is a "splendid quack" whose stories are exotic and sometimes hard to believe.