Continental Drifter: Dispatches from the Uttermost Parts of the Earth

As contributing editor of Outside magazine and correspondent for other adventure and travel journals, McRae has visited out-of-the-way places from the Patagonian Ice Cap to Outer Mongolia. He introduces us to the adventure-travel industry and such notable representatives as Richard Bangs (Sobek Expeditions) and Leo Le Bon (Mountain Travel). McRae joined Joe Cummings of the Lonely Planet guidebook series for a scouting trip in Thailand. We read about a press journey to Tibet, a visit to Jane Goodall and her chimpanzees in Tanzania, a 1000-mile motor rally in Amazonia. Exploring the slums of Nairobi, McRae found no street names; a resident's address is the nearest municipal toilet (WC 142). His final story tells of Warren Pearson's goal of spending a winter alone in Antarctica. This is a heady trip for vicarious travelers. (Jan.)