Theroux’s Shattered Images

THE PILLARS OF HERCULES: A Grand Tour of the Mediterranean by Paul Theroux (G.P. Putnam’s Sons, $27.50).

It’s rare, indeed, to catch Paul Theroux in an ecstatic mood, so let’s share part of it:

“Venice is magic, the loveliest city in the world because it has entirely displaced its islands with palaces and villas and churches. It is man-made, but a work of genius, sparkling in its own lagoon, floating on its dreamy reflection, with the shapeliest bridges and the last perfect skyline on earth: just domes and spires and tiled roofs.”

This glowing description lasts for exactly four paragraphs of a 500-page book. Then the loveliest city in the world disappears in Theroux’s rearview mirror. He’s in a hurry to describe less lovely places.

Theroux isn’t comfy with such prosaic emotions as awe and delight. While the rest of us travel to escape our normal lives, travel is Theroux’s normal life and he has numerous books to prove it--most memorably those involving train travel. He’s a trenchant observer whose acerbic style etches the usual travelogue gloss. Most travelers ignore taxi drivers who won’t shut up and crop out the graffiti on the cathedral wall. Theroux revels in such details. To him, each is a tiny piece of mosaic that when fitted together reveals a truer picture of the travel experience.

So why don’t the pieces of “Pillars” fit?

One problem is scope. The idea of “Pillars” was to travel the coast of the Mediterranean--from the Rock of Gibraltar, around the boot of Italy and the Adriatic, through the Greek islands to Istanbul, Turkey, across the seasides of the Middle East, then west to Morocco and Ceuta, site of Gibraltar’s sister rock (and, in mythical terms, the other pillar of Hercules). It’s too much to cram into one book, even when the subject is about traveling as well as the places traveled.

Another problem is lack of discrimination. Any oddball who catches Theroux with his notebook out joins the cast of “Pillars.” In the end, it’s more shattered glass than mosaic.

Theroux pokes around in odd corners and has odd adventures. He’s mobbed by beggars in Albania; he visits Nobel Prize winning author Naguib Mahfouz in a Cairo hospital room. However, his hit-and-run judgments, which used to sound perspicacious, now sound petulant: “The whole of Greece seemed to me a cut-price theme park of broken marble, a place where you were harangued in a high-minded way about Ancient Greek culture while some swarthy little person picked your pocket.”

Theroux can be a wonderful craftsman, but his detachment and contrariness is getting tiresome. And I thought travel was supposed to be broadening.

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WINTER ADVENTURE: A Complete Guide to Winter Sports by Peter Stark and Steven M. Krauzer. CROSS-COUNTRY SKIING: A Complete Guide by Brian Cazeneuve (both from W.W. Norton & Co., $17.95, paperback, photos and illustrations).

Two more volumes in this estimable series. As in the biking, kayaking and hiking guides, these emphasize technique and safety. The cross-country book opens with a discussion of equipment and has a good section on various turning methods (wedge, stem, parallel and telemark). “Winter Adventure” is a real catchall, including how-to information on sledding, snowshoeing, snowboarding, ice skating, iceboating, curling and even something called “skijoring,” which basically means being hauled along on your skis by a pair of huskies.

The guides’ flexible plastic covers and good paper stock make it practical to throw one in your daypack.

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SHOT ON THIS SITE: A Traveler’s Guide to the Places and Locations Used to Film Famous Movies and Television Shows by William A. Gordon (Citadel Press, $14.95, paperback, photos). Divided geographically, readers can look up a state (or the City of New York) and “Site” lists places featured in various well-known films or TV shows. Some are obvious, such as the Empire State Building (“King Kong,” “An Affair to Remember,” “Sleepless in Seattle”) and some are becoming landmarks, such as the Dyersville, Iowa, baseball field in “Field of Dreams” or the exterior of the New York Police Department’s Ninth Precinct, which passes for the 15th Precinct in “NYPD Blue.”

But there are many quirky ones. For example, Jodie Foster’s cabin in “Nell,” which was built at Fontana Lake in the Nantahala National Forest in western North Carolina. Or “Forrest Gump’s” shrimp boat, docked at Lucy Creek, S.C.” Indexes add to the enjoyment, allowing readers to cross-reference movie or TV titles.

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JERUSALEM: An Archaeological Biography by Hershel Shanks (Random House, $45, maps, illustrations, photos). People have been building things on the hills of Jerusalem for at least 5,000 years. That’s a lot of history. But Shanks, editor of “Biblical Archaeology Review,” has pulled it together, using the latest research to create a fascinating archeological travelogue.

The 14 chapters march through the history of this remarkable city, from pre-Israelite times to the Muslim-Crusader era. Using “Jerusalem’s” text and photos, a traveler could wander the city, picking out pieces of the still-visible past. Though “Jerusalem” is filled with dates and data, the writing is geared toward the layman, not the scholar. Shanks’ discussion of Jerusalem’s hidden water supply is particularly intriguing. Schematics showing the changing outline of the city’s walls help pull the historical ebb and flow together.

Quick trips:

THE UNOFFICIAL GUIDE TO SKIING IN THE WEST by Lito Tejada-Flores, Peter Shelton, Seth Masia and Bob Sehlinger (Macmillan, $14, paperback, trail maps). Good for serious skiers. Around 50 of the top areas are rated and discussed. Some information about accommodations and restaurants, lots of stuff on runs and snow conditions. The writing style is overly chatty and the guide isn’t particularly efficient but Tejada-Flores, Shelton and Masia are experienced skiers and their chat is worth heeding. Each area’s mountain size and skiable terrain is rated, one to five stars.

SKIING USA: The Insider’s Guide by Clive Hobson (Fodor’s Travel Publications Inc., $17, paperback). Thirty resorts in 11 states, emphasizing Colorado. The focus here is on the whole ski resort experience. Ski conditions are outlined (no trail maps) but there is equal information on hotels, condos, night life and eateries. Plenty of phone numbers and practical information.

SKIER’S GUIDE TO UTAH by Michael Jensen (Gulf Publishing Company, $16.95, paperback, photos, trail maps). A straightforward, practical guide to 14 ski resorts. Along with one to two pages of terrain description, Jensen includes lengthy lists of each resort’s lessons, workshops, special events and other winter activities (cross-country, snowshoeing, heli-skiing, etc.). Accommodations and restaurants are rated by one to three dollar signs, depending on expense.

THE UNTAMED COAST: Pictures and Words About Rare People and Rare Places Along the Edge of America by Peter Jenkins (Rutledge Hill Press, $29.95). A companion book to Jenkins’ travelogue published early this year, “Along the Edge of America.” The book (reviewed here) recounted Jenkins’ two-year exploration by boat of America’s Gulf Coast. “Untamed” is a collection of photos (with some explanatory text) taken during that trip. Good book, good photos.

TUCSON: The Old Pueblo by Lisa Schnebly Heidinger, photos by Rick Graetz, Susie Graetz and Larry Mayer (American & World Geographic Publishing, $15.95, paperback). Unabashed boosterism. Lots of pretty photos led off by a gushy essay on life in Tucson.

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Books to Go appears twice a month. For information on more travel books, see L22.