Uncategorized

Guerilla Geographer

It has been too long. Last Saturday (in truth over a month ago now) we launched our gorilla marketing campaign for Mission:Explore on the streets of London. Georgie our marketing guru was going ape, check out the missions demonstrated here: http://bit.ly/GuerrillaVideo

Journey Journal featured with Travel Matters

Our great passport-sized Journey Journal is receiving great kudos and support. The latest responsible travel organisation to join in our mission is Travel Matters. Travel Matters is “a family focused travel agency based in South West London, founded on the principle of service. With our expertise, knowledge and attention to detail, we’ll ensure your family travel arrangements from the UK will be enjoyable and memorable. We are pleased to be celebrating our 11th year of trading.” Travel Matters is making the Journey Journal available through their web site and services to children, families and schools throughout the UK. To visit their schools page and learn more about Journey Journal visit here: http://www.travelmatters.co.uk/pages/163-Schools_Page

Alastair Humphreys to talk at Adventure Show

Serial adventurer, he’s currently walking around the M25 in the worst winter conditions in 50 years, and Eye Books’ author Alastair Humphreys will be talking at the Adventure Show at the end of this month, Sunday 31 January 2010.

Described as “The first great adventure of the 21st Century” by Sir Ranulph Fiennes, Alastair will be talking about his epic circumnavigation of the world by bike recounted in his two books: Moods of Future Joys and Thunder & Sunshine. (Alastair will also be talking at the National Geographic this month, details to come). You can check out Al’s blog, read about his cycling adventures by reading Moods of Future Joys and Thunder & Sunshine, or read about the wisdom he gained on his journey by reading Ten Lessons From the Road. Buy by using the buttons below.

For details on the adventure show go here: http://www.adventureshow.co.uk/visitor_information_show_features_talks_best_adventure.php

Time : 14:00 till 14:45
Where : Theatre 2

Around the world by bike. By Alistair Humphreys, Adventurer

Aged 24 Alastair Humphreys left England to cycle round the world. His journey along the length of the Earth’s three great land masses [Africa, the Americas, and Eurasia] took more than 4 years to complete. He has written three books about his adventure.

We may not have 20/20 vision, but we do have 2010

Can of Worms is getting ready for a new year of challenges. There are many lying in wait.  The first of which is its application for a GeoVation Award. In collaboration with The Geography Collective and TheWorkshop, Can of Worms hopes to bring MISSION:EXPLORE LONDON to an iPhone near you. To find out more and support our venture click here: http://challenge.geovation.org.uk/ventures/54


Jungle Beat – Drumming up Sales

We always appreciate readers’ reviews for our books whether good or bad. Feedback on what we publish is an invaluable tool to improving our selection process as well as the editorial and production work we undertake to challenge the way we see things. This year is the tenth anniversary of the publication of The Jungle Beat: Fighting Terrorists in Malaya, written by Roy Follows and published by Eye Books.

Sales of this book continue, especially on line where a cadre of enthusiasts, academics and people interested in military history have found and appreciate Roy’s book. This is just one example of a recent review, reproduced here in full from Amazon:

5.0 out of 5 stars Absolutely brilliant, 1 May 2009

I can’t think of enough superlatives for this book. It is exciting, funny, informing and very very observant all at the same time and written without the swaggering testosterone that is so evident in so many military accounts that one can read today (not saying that that is bad, just different). It harks back to the sunset of the British Empire and is a first hand account of a down-to-earth, no-nonsense individual who conducted exhausting and nerve racking operations deep into communist terrorist jungle territory. From the events and actions detailed in this book you would initally have thought this was some special forces unit, but in fact these were all the actions of the then Malayan Police, who were every bit as tough and uncompromising.
The book is quite short, but that in itself is a redeeming feature as they prose is kept short and sweet. It never goes into minute by minute break down of events but nevertheless paints a vivid picture.
I highly recommended this book.

Thank you for all the support that you provide to our “back catalogue”.

Alastair Humphreys Pecha Kucha talk at Big Chill House

Alastair Humphreys spoke last night to his usual great plaudits – “brilliant”, “good stuff!” for Pecha Kucha in the Big Chill House. For those of you who missed it and would like to hear Alastair speak, he will be speaking at the Oxford Union next Monday, 16th November. For other upsoming events featuring Alastair please visit his blog, link below. And please support Alastair’s career as an adventurer, author and motivational speaker by buying his books from us or directly from Alastair, or of course your local bookstore.

You can check out Al’s blog, read about his cycling adventures by reading Moods of Future Joys and Thunder & Sunshine, or read about the wisdom he gained on his journey by reading Ten Lessons From the Road. Buy by using the buttons below.

A Journey of a thousand miles starts with a Journey Journal

jjcoverJust in from the printer, Journey Journal created in collaboration with our fabulous friends at The Geography Collective is ready to roll out with our test market of school age kids. If you have kids or have involvement with primary or secondary schools and would like to know more about the Journey Journal please get in touch.

What folks have to say about Journey Journal:

“We think this is a fabulous initiative to get young people interested in the people, culture and traditions of the countries they visit.” The Travel Foundation

“The ideal document for all aspiring geographers to keep alongside their passport – see a new place and write your own book about it.” Dr Nick Middleton, University of Oxford, writer and presenter of the ‘Extremes’ series on Channel 4

“So many children today interact more with the screen in front of their noses than the world around them. The Journey Journal is a really imaginative way of encouraging young travellers to look up and around at the places they visit, to engage with the people who live there, and to think about  the impact their travels might have on themselves and others.” Hilary Wilce, education journalist and author of ‘Help Your Child Succeed at School’

To buy Journey Journal, use the button below:

Eye author Charlotte Metcalf

Charlotte Metcalf

Check out Eye author, Charlotte Metcalf’s  article on Marrakech in the Spectator magazine out this week.

Charlotte Metcalf is now the travel editor for The Spectator and has contributed to The Daily Mail, YOU Magazine, The Times, The Sunday Times, The Independent on Sunday and The Daily Telegraph.

She is the author of WALKING AWAY: A FILM MAKER’S AFRICAN JOURNAL, published by Eye Books.

In addition to writing, Charlotte is a renowned filmmaker and  has filmed, directed and produced an impressive list of documentaries for the BBC and Channel 4: CHINATOWN (Films of Record/BBC), LIVING WITH HUNGER (Insight/Channel 4/Discovery Time/CNN), GLOBALISATION IS GOOD (Freeform/Channel 4); THE TROUBLE WITH CORPORATE AMERICA (MBC/Channel 4); THE END OF AN AFFAIR (BBC). UNREPORTED BRITAIN was a 3-part documentary series for Channel Four, uncovering crime and violence on the streets of Britain. Charlotte produced, directed and operated camera for two films in the series.

Chain Reaction – what goes around comes around

Interest in Eye Book’s hilarious Crap Cycle Lanes is creating a chain reaction of interest in the Twittersphere and elsewhere. Featured in last month’s Architect’s Journal as the Book of the Month, Crap Cycle Lanes has now found its way on to the Guardian’s blog: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/series/bike-blog. What started as a ‘farcility’ of the month on the Warrington Cycle Campaign’s website is now available as a great gift for cyclists, urban planners and anyone with a sense of humour.

Erratum – California the Beautiful

In our post about Galen Rowell’s wonderful book California the Beautiful, I originally posted that this book had been reissued by Random House. Random House now distribute Galen’s wonderful California the Beautiful but the book has been reissued by the lovely Lena Tabori at  Welcome Books http://welcomebooks.com/californiathebeautiful/ -