Product Description

Every year thousands of youngsters from America, Britain and Australia head to Europe for the trip of a lifetime. This eclectic, contemporary anthology drawn from literary magazines, websites and backpacking newsgroups records the trials and tribulations of these wannabe explorers, who armed with little more than a newly acquired backpack, guide book in one hand - Eurail pass in the other, embark on a journey that has become a de-facto rite of passage into the adult world. This funny, touching and sometimes mad collection of first-hand experiences brings new life to a well-told tale: from snap-shots at the Eiffel-Tower and yard-glasses at Oktoberfest to Monopoly-board adventures in London and Sangria-fuelled seduction in Spain.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #280240 in Books
• Published on: 2003-03-01
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 199 pages

Customer Reviews

Great Read for the Wanderlust
This is a great book for the young traveller. After returning from a trip to Europe I found myself wanting to relive the experiences. Unfortunately North American culture just isn't the same. This book brought it all back. I would also recommend this book to the wannabe backpacker. It offers excellent tips on security and social / cultural situations.

cheaper than airfare!
I spent some time studying in Germany during my high school years, and falling in love with Europe got me to cough up the money to go back their on my own. Freely running around in a foreign country is so enchanting that it was difficult to come home, and I think the book's ability to capture these little moments of travel bliss are what makes it so wonderful. It's more than just "teen angst abroad," as one reviewer described it. The essays aren't all written by kids, but also by Lonely Planet's professional travelers, and reducing the culture and experience to "teen angst" would be like summarizing the Bible on a post-it note.

Great!
The stories in Rite of Passage are full of passion, hunger, and searching, and that which is found is not always what is sought - it's not a book about finding the best spots to hang out, but instead discovering interesting places in the human experience.

Packaged as a travel book, Rite of Passage is really a collection of literary pieces. Ms. Johnson has an eye for tales with both heart and wit.

This book is for people who are truly alive, not some old betty wanting to prolong a Disney moment. Nor is it for the emotionally constipated, as evinced by one other reviewer.

Rite of Passage is the best book to come out this year! Anyone who gives it less than five stars is just not used to backpacking.