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Without Reservations
Without Reservations: The Travels of an Independent Woman | Alice Steinbach
Paris Dear Alice, Each morning I am awakened by the sound of a tinkling bell. A cheerful sound, it reminds me of the bells that shopkeepers attach to their doors at Christmastime. In this case, the bell marks the opening of the hotel door. From my room, which is just off the winding staircase, I can hear it clearly. It reminds me of the bell that calls to worship the novice embarking on a new life. In a way I too am a novice, leaving, temporarily, one life for another. Love, Alice In the tradition of Anne Morrow Lindbergh's Gift from the Sea and Frances Mayes's Under the Tuscan Sun, in Without Reservations we take time off with Pulitzer Prize winner Alice Steinbach as she explores the world and rediscovers what it means to be a woman on her own. "In many ways, I was an independent woman," writes Alice Steinbach, a single working mother, in this captivating book. "For years I'd made my own choices, paid my own bills, shoveled my own snow, and had relationships that allowed for a lot of freedom on both sides." Slowly, however, she saw that she had become quite dependent in another way: "I had fallen into the habit . . . of defining myself in terms of who I was to other people and what they expected of me." Who am I, she wanted to know, away from the things that define me--my family, children, job, friends? Steinbach searches for the answer to this provocative question in some of the most exciting places in the world: Paris, where she finds a soul mate in a Japanese man; Oxford, where she takes a course on the English village; Milan, where she befriends a young woman about to be married. Beautifully illustrated with postcards Steinbach wrote home to herself to preserve her spontaneous impressions, this revealing and witty book will transport readers instantly into a fascinating inner and outer journey, an unforgettable voyage of discovery. From the Hardcover edition.
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SheilaChew
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Current reads. 21 days left until I go back to work. Soaking up as much summertime as each day can hold! #teachersoflitsy

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SheilaChew
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Slow summer mornings unwind with coffee and reading on the back patio. I am loving this travel memoir! Anyone travel alone? Where did you go?

Last summer I tagged along with my husband on a business trip. During the day, I was on my own in Austin, Texas. It was a great time!

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LapReader
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Pickpick

Read this one decades ago while on a holiday on the Gold Coast. I remember it giving me serious itchy feet for travel. I also remember getting through lots of books that holiday by the water.

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Bookishlie
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Pickpick

All the stars ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️. I seem to be in a memoir kinda mood. This was such a lovely book. I‘ll re-read it again. I feel like Alice has a lot to teach me:)
#24B4MONDAY

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Bookishlie
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Only got to read 1 hour today 😞my husband is not a reader and actively sabotaged me all day. It‘s ok though. This is my first #24B4MONDAY so I got time:)

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BookishMe
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SW-T 😊😊😊 5y
Tanisha_A Yep! 🙂 5y
Trashcanman ♥️ 5y
41 likes3 comments
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Rissreads
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Pickpick

A travelling memoir.
What a fantastic philosophy ‘Turn a mishap into an adventure!‘ This was the kind of book that you can read a bit here and read a bit there. Each chapter starts with a postcard that the author has written and mailed to herself describing events or emotions of her travels in Europe. How I wish I could just take a year off and travel like she does.

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Rissreads
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#Fridaynightbookclub is actually #Saturdaymorningbookclub in Australia.
Our book club is meeting tonight so I‘m excited for that as it means a new book to read!
❤️💛💜💙🧡💚

Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks Awwww 🐶❤️ 6y
mreads ❤🐕❤ 6y
JoScho So cute!!! 6y
34 likes3 comments
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Rissreads
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New book! I think I‘m going to like this one......🤞

olivia.ferz I love this quote. Very meaningful. 6y
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lauralovesbooks1
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Pickpick

When Alice Steinbach's children were grown, she realized "I had fallen into the habit of defining myself in terms of who I was to other people and what they expected of me." She decides to spend much of a year in Europe determining who she was outside of those limits. I adored the memoir and reflection as well as the travel writing. #nonfictionNovember

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aliasNayNay
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All I require is to sit in the sun and read my book!!
#books #reading #outdoorreading

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RebelReader
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1. Tagged book. Read it years ago,but I was raising my kids and couldn't afford to travel. It did give me the travel bug and now I'm spending my daughters' inheritance. 😜
2. Zion National Park, Utah..so far!
3. I want to walk the Camino de Santiago and then tour Spain and Portugal afterwards.
4. Fly, but I would like to tour the United States by car
5. Gelato-I had it for lunch every day when I was in Italy! 😋😋😋
#ManicMonday

Chrissyreadit I need that book! And Zion was my favorite place too! (edited) 7y
JaclynW You've been to Italy and Zions is your favorite!??! (I'm from Utah so I can ask this question. 😉😊) 7y
RebelReader @JaclynW I know it's weird,but my daughter and I spent 5 days in Zion and we both felt it was so beautiful and also it was a feeling we got by being there. We were in awe and comforted at the same time. Italy was wonderful too since I went with my Mom, but I didn't get that "feeling" 7y
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JaclynW @RebelReader Aw, yes, I know what you're saying. 😊 Zions is quite a wonder. My favorite national parks in Utah are actually Bryce Canyon and Canyonlands. Bryce is near Zions actually (less than an hour drive). Canyonlands is near Moab on the eastern side of Utah. Lake Powell is also wondrous! It's like Zions surrounded by water (get a houseboat to stay on and cruise around in). If you get a chance to come back, I highly suggest these places. 👍 7y
RebelReader @JaclynW We planned to do a day in Bryce Canyon, but my daughter had never been to Vegas so we skipped it. I knew she wouldn‘t like Vegas, but she had to see for herself. I will definitely be back to Utah. I would love Lake Powell too since I love the water. Thanks for the recommendations! 👍 7y
JaclynW @RebelReader Some things we have to learn the hard way! 😉😞 I'm not a fan of Las Vegas either. I hope you get to come back to Utah. If you come up north, the landscape changes to big mountains and green forests. There's so much to see! 7y
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Jess_Read_This
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"It is one of the strongest bonds, I think, that can spring up between people: sharing a passion for certain books and their authors." ❤️❤️❤️❤️

#BookThatMadeMeCry. I bawled like a baby at the end. I discovered midway through reading that Alice passed away from cancer. I wept that we lost this brilliant writer, woman, and adventurer.

#Riotgrams #InspiringWoman #Travelogue #Recommend #AliceSteinbach

elkeOriginal Love your photo. You are a bookstagrammer 💕 7y
Jess_Read_This @elkeo Lol! Thank you. I try to keep my hashtag count down though 😉Under ten is my rule. 7y
RealLifeReading Great photo! 7y
Jess_Read_This @RealLifeReading Thank you so much! ?My husband couldn't understand why I had to buy the vintage suitcase at a yard sale for "decorating" ? 7y
elkeOriginal Ha - silly man. The suitcase is 👏👏 7y
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DebinHawaii
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Day 24 #MayBookFlowers #readthisnotthat I didn't dislike 'Eat Pray Love' but I was not wowed by it. I think for a "woman going on a journey to find herself" kind of book, either Alice Steinbach's 'Without Reservations' or 'Educating Alice' are much better reads. ??

MemoirsForMe Totally agree! 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 8y
Flaneurette Yes! I agree also! 8y
ReadingsByTheC I love these! I re-read Without Reservations every year. 8y
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CaitlinByTheBook
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Mehso-so

This was last month's #bookclub pick that I've just finished. I wanted to like it, but it was only okay. The author used rhetorical questions a little too much and described too many people/situations as "annoying" (it came off sounding childish). True to the title, she went with the flow in her travels and a lot of the book was about people she met and explored with, but I'd have liked more about her solo travels.

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MarieA
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I love it when you find the perfect book for your current mood/state of mind. You were just what I needed!

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ReadingsByTheC
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Pickpick

This is my all-time favorite travel memoir. I reread it yearly and it always feels like I'm having a conversation with a friend. I know there are a thousand books about people running away to Europe to find themselves, but there is something so simple and intimate about this book that sets it apart for me. #booktober #memorablememoirs

Gulfsidemusing Read this with my book club s few years ago❤️ 8y
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mhillis
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Summer vacation read #4 I do like how each chapter begins with a postcard that the author has written to herself. Not sure if I like the book itself but I'll probably finish it. #summerreading

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