This journal is a surprise because Frances Mayes is renowned for her love of Tuscany, but confesses a weakness for wanderlust so+ she and her companion Ed went on a year long trek. As she did with UNDER THE TUSCAN SUN, Ms. Mayes divides her anecdotal stops into distinct chapters making it easy to pick up and put down so that it can be reading over several days by armchair travellers. Each of the escapades are cleverly described so that the reader feels as if they have met the same people that the Mayes encounter whether it be a guide in Fez, a Greek family baptism, the people they dine with or serve them in Madrid, or a rug dealer in Istanbul. Food and shelter are big issues as the traveling duo wants local flavor. Those two critical staples are vividly described in each chapter, but the trek belongs to the people that Ms. Mayes and Ed encounter on their journey as their peculiarities come across as warm and welcoming to readers. Couch potato tourists will want to read the well-written A YEAR IN THE WORLD: JOURNEYS OF A PASSIONATE TRAVELLER.

Harriet Klausner