Books & Looks: Real Books for Real Readers was started as a literary podcast to supplement Blaine Desantis’ website, ViewsOnBooks.com, and expand into audio and video interviews with authors.
With Books & Looks, Blaine’s goal is to focus on real books that real people will read. At least half of the books he reviews are either new authors or unknown authors that many in the general public are unaware of. After a segment reviewing books or interviewing authors, Blaine ends each episode with a discussion of the movies and TV shows he is currently watching.
Learn more about Blaine and his podcast at ViewsOnBooks.com.
This Week’s Episode
Today we welcome Paige McClanahan, travel writer for the New York Times and author of the eye-opening new book “The New Tourist.” With a career spanning continents and cultures, Paige brings a wealth of experience and insight to the conversation about how tourism has evolved over the past half-century.
Book Spotlight: “The New Tourist”:
“The New Tourist” is a captivating deep dive into the world of modern travel, exploring how tourism has transformed since the 1970s. Through a blend of historical analysis, on-the-ground reporting, and over 2,000 interviews, Paige uncovers the complex realities behind an industry that moves more than a billion people each year.
Discussed in this Episode:
- The explosive growth of global tourism, from 25 million annual trips in 1950 to over 1.5 billion today
- The story of Tony and Maureen Wheeler, founders of Lonely Planet, and how their guidebooks reshaped budget travel
- Social media’s double-edged impact on travel, from democratizing voices to overwhelming fragile destinations
- Barcelona’s battle against overtourism and the importance of sustainable tourism management
- Reexamining “tourist traps” like Amsterdam’s Red Light District and understanding their appeal
- The environmental cost of travel and the urgent need for transformation in the aviation industry
- How personal connections formed through travel can break down stereotypes and foster cross-cultural understanding
Links:
Listen to the latest episode of Books & Looks:
About Blaine Desantis:
Blaine is an avid lifetime reader, a retired attorney, and has been a book club leader for the past seven years. He is an active teacher in senior education classes at Furman University. Blaine loves fiction, nonfiction, histories, mysteries and almost all genres of books.