Somewhere Found: Travels in Obscurity
"Highly recommended!"
For some, travel isn’t just a holiday, but an identity, a way of discovering oneself by wandering the world.
Like Robert Louis Stevenson, who said, “I travel not to go anywhere, but to go,” modern-day flâneur Kyle Battisti has circled the globe, forgoing Insta-famous destinations in favor of the offbeat and uncelebrated, from Kurdistan to Sudan, Mauritania to Lithuania.
Growing up a self-described outsider in 1980s Utah, he was awestruck by Arabian domes he’d unearthed from encyclopedias and the curiously named Yugoslavia of his sixth-grade school report, a fascination with places unknown that persisted as he stumbled into adulthood, now with boarding passes in hand. Somewhere Found: Travels in Obscurity chronicles his far-flung explorations as he gulps down horse sausage in Kyrgyzstan, battles leeches in Sri Lanka, listens for ghosts in a decommissioned Latvian prison, and, one hot-mess Christmas Eve, makes a questionable purchase from a Moldovan at a gay Moscow nightclub.
In intelligent, insightful, and often hilarious detail that evokes the greats — Jan Morris, David Sedaris, Edmund White — Battisti’s forays in “hidden cemeteries, seductive alleys, elaborate doorways, and quiet gardens that both cats and pigeons call home” take readers on an unforgettable armchair journey to captivating places where most of us will never venture.
Reviews
"Kyle Battisti's Somewhere Found is a vibrant, introspective memoir that beautifully weaves together themes of travel, identity, and self-discovery . . . Battisti offers a deeply relatable portrait of what it means to yearn for connection. His honesty about insecurities, mistakes, and triumphs makes his story resonate universally, while his wit keeps even the weightiest moments approachable . . . [His] humour shines throughout, from cultural misunderstandings to the absurdity of mishaps on the road . . . Somewhere Found is a must-read for fans of travel memoirs and personal storytelling . . . a reminder that life's most profound lessons often come from unexpected detours—and that in being 'lost,' we can often find ourselves. It is highly recommended!"
—BookViral Reviews
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"The text has a nice blend: it’s about Battisti’s life and his adventures, but also drops in a thorough view of the places he visits, taking in plenty of their history. In well-written passages that fluctuate between his own experiences and nicely-penned explorations of history, readers are not quite transported—but certainly get a feel for the places and their individual identities . . . Thankfully, it’s served with a firm dose of attitude and engagement, a genuine attempt to become as involved in the places the author visits as possible, and an understanding that is delivered through the words . . . Kyle Battisti’s Somewhere Found: Travels in Obscurity is vividly written and delivers a true sense of life-affirming joy, blending history and culture from inaccessible corners of the world.”
—IndieReader​