Much as I love Chatwin's book on his own time in Patagonia, it's not really much use for practical travel advice so I've also acquired a small heap of guide books. And maps of course. For years I had a lovely old map of the area hanging on the wall but unfortunately it didn't survive a too close encounter with a candle. The crinkly brown edges do add a certain something right enough, but burning a huge chunk out of a map before you've had a chance to see the burnt bit in real life isn't really recommended practise for sensible travelling.The 2 books that will be going with me are the Trotter and the Time Out (if you click on the picture you can see the details, burnt edges and all). The Trotter series is not one I've come across before but from my expeditions into travel book shops it looks like it's becoming the new Rough Guide (who long ago took over a lot of the Lonely Planet market). The Time Out looks to me to be the best English language guide available at the moment; and I of course like the idea that it has Patagonia on the front instead of just Argentina/Chile. Patagonia isn't a 'real' country, in that it has clear, mapped out edges - it's more an... idea of a place. Similar to Lapland, in that it sprawls over several countries with no respect for such niceties such as official international borders.
