Atlas of Improbable Places: A Journey to the World's Most Unusual Corners(Unexpected Atlases)

'A delightful compendium of the strangest places on the planet.’  DAILY TELEGRAPH  Travel in search of the obscure and bizarre, the beautiful and arcane in a unique atlas showing the modern world from surprising new vantage points.  Discover the macabre Island of Dolls. Wonder at San Juan Parangaricutiro’s church tower, the sole survivor in a town sunk by lava. Explore Beijing and Berlin’s labyrinths, home to both refugees and espionage. Marvel at nature’s own extraordinary masterpieces: the magical underground river shaped like a dragon’s mouth in the Philippines and Palmerston, a floating world.  The truths and myths behind these hidden lairs, forgotten cities and improbable wonders are as varied and intriguing as the destinations themselves. Acclaimed author and social commentator Travis Elborough is a marvellous travel guide to the world’s most unusual corners on this fascinating voyage through geography, taking travel writing to new heights.  ‘This engrossing book traverses the heights and depths, the beauty and terror, of our world.’  THE OBSERVER  ‘Understatedly expressive’  NEW YORK TIMES  ‘Deeply researched – and really worth your time’GQ 

About the Author :
Travis Elborough is an author and social commentator. His books include the four titles in the Unexpected Atlases series - Atlas of Improbable Places, Atlas of the Unexpected, Atlas of Vanishing Places and Atlas of Forgotten Places, together with A Traveller’s Year, A London Year, The Long-Player Goodbye, Being A Writer and A Walk in the Park: The Life and Times of a People’s Institution. Travis is a regular contributor to Radio 4 and the Guardian, and has penned articles on all aspects of travel and culture, from pirates in the Caribbean to donkeys at the British seaside. He has written for the Times, Sunday Times, New Statesman, BBC History Magazine and Kinfolk among others. Travis was the winner of the Edward Stanford Travel Book Award in 2020.

Review :
“ ‘A compendium of unlikely, curious and plain odd locales’ seems something of a natural habitat for Travis Elborough, a cultural historian with a touch of the Betjemans and a lick of the Meades about him. From deserted mining towns in Nagasaki to the ever-decreasing Holland Island in Maryland, he and cartographer Horsfield do us a great service: making the world feel bigger.”   “If you are one of those people whose mind is beginning to wander long before the bread sauce has gone cold, there should be only one book on your Christmas wish list this year… Atlas of Improbable Places by Travis Elborough and Alan Horsfield has that rare, through-the-wardrobe quality. It is a delightful compendium of the strangest places on the planet…”   “non-formulaic, deeply researched – and really worth your time.  Co-author and cartographer Alan Horsfield brings a scientific rigour to its scope and design.”    “This is a deliciously gloomy, sometimes spooky and often kooky collection of essays…”   “The author makes a witty and well-informed guide to some of the world’s most curious and bizarre locations.”   “With its identical towns, global corporations and digital landscapes, the modern world can seem quite uninspiring. But, for the British author Travis Elborough, interesting places do exist, you just need a way to find them.”     “informative and enthusiastic, scholarly and amusing….once started it’s nigh on impossible to put down.” “an elegant, atmospheric remedy for creeping world-weariness.”   “Elborough’s worldwide search for the curious, the surprising, the forgotten gems or the just plain eccentric is complemented splendidly by Horsfield’s impeccable maps of those places that are so far off the beaten track that their very existence is virtually unknown - or even officially restricted. ...a worthy addition to any bookshelf, coffee table or E-reader…”   “Atlas of Improbable Places: A Journey to the World’s Most Unusual Corners by Travis Elborough, with maps by Alan Horsfield, is a curated guide to places that just don’t quite make sense. Elborough organized the book by theme– “Dream Creations,” “Floating Worlds,” “Otherworldly Spaces,” and more– rather than geography, which makes it easy to decide what genre of oddity or improbability you want to consider based on your mood. The large black and white photographs, coupled with beautifully simple maps, gives this book an air of sophistication and inspires more than a little awe.”   “this engrossing book traverses the heights and depths, the beauty and terror, of our world.” “Guaranteed to whet the appetite of all budding urban explorers and teenagers wondering where to go on their gap year.” “The photos are a treasure trove. The paper is divine. Travis Elborough’s writing is sublime, and the cartographic skills of Alan Horsfield make this a gift you will not want to part with. So buy yourself something nice this Christmas.