Austria, Ballet Thriller, Pronouncing Author Names, Corn Dogs & More: Endnotes 30 June

Every Friday, we celebrate the weekend — and all the reading and relaxing and daydreaming time ahead — with Melissa's favorite book- and travel-related links of the week. Why work when you can read fun stuff?!

This post is part of our Endnotes series.

Colorful flowers! Rolling green hills! Snowy mountains! A blue, blue lake! It’s Zell am See in Austria. The village and its namesake lake were the place to see and be seen by the European aristocracy in the 19th century. Now the rest of us can enjoy the beautiful scenery while hiking, cycling, swimming, and taking in the view. To recreate the vista in the photo above, visit the Berggasthof Mitterberghof, a mountain inn overlooking the lake. Here are 11 Amazing Things to Do in Zell am See in Summer, a really fun (short) hype video, and a 20-minute walk through town.

• What are pro readers reading this summer? The writers of the Washington Post Book World share their picks. (gift link)

• Enjoy this short story The Star-Bear by Michael Swanwick about a Russian émigré poet living in Paris who’s visited by a mysterious bear with an agenda.

• So helpful! 30 Author Names You Might Be Mispronouncing.

• This conversation about flight-free travel — with Byway Founder Cat Jones — makes a case for slow travel. ‘You want to be the person that explores a destination through a locals lens, tasting your way through the flavours and family-run boutiques of local communities, but it’s often difficult to shake off the guilt from having just hopped off a jet that floods our air with toxic emissions. We’re not about to suggest you start walking, swimming or skipping across oceans and borders to get to where you need to be, but there are plenty of healthier, small habits we can all make in order to protect our planet.’

• These delightful celebrity photos from the new book Greg Williams Photo Breakdowns: The Stories Behind 100 Portraits are so much fun!

• You know those iconic, mid-century-modern signs that designate America’s National Forests? Here’s the story of the unsung hero ranger who designed them.

• Only vaguely related: Name that tree!

• Transport yourself to Puerto Rico with this simple, delicious recipe for a piña colada. According to lore, creating the perfect recipe took three months. But on 16 August 1954, Ramón ‘Monchito’ Marrero — bartender at the Caribe Hilton’s Beachcomber Bar — mixed up his new signature drink.

• Melanie Hamrick is an American choreographer, former ballerina, life partner to Mick Jagger (!), and now the author of First Position, a romantic thriller set in the world of ballet. In this list, she recommends 6 enthralling reads that keep you guessing.

• Enjoy this collection of graphic art from vintage high school yearbooks. ‘Visually speaking, the yearbooks in this collection loosely followed the predominant graphic design and illustration trends of the day… this meant editorial spreads and photo collages in the 1960s, psychedelia and grooviness in the 1970s, and rainbows, airbrush, graffiti, neon, and technology in the 1980s.’

• Nothing says ‘summer in Texas’ like a corn dog at the State Fair. Here’s The Story of Fletcher’s, America’s ‘Original’ Corn Dog. If you’d like to find a corn dog close to you, the Taste Atlas lists the best corn dogs in the world.

New Episode of The Library of Lost Time

In each mini-podcast episode, we discuss two books at the top of our TBR, then share a fun book- or travel-related distraction. Get all the episodes and books galore here.

In this episode, we get excited about two books: 100 Places to See After You Die: A Travel Guide to the Afterlife by Ken Jennings and What the Dead Know: Learning about Life as a New York City Death Investigator by Barbara Butcher. Then Mel gets excited about postcards from around the world. [transcript]

Links

• 100 Places to See After You Die: A Travel Guide to the Afterlife by Ken Jennings.

• Brainiac: Adventures in the Curious, Competitive, Compulsive World of Trivia Buffs by Ken Jennings.

• Maphead: Charting the Wide, Weird World of Geography Wonks by Ken Jennings

• What the Dead Know: Learning about Life as a New York City Death Investigator by Barbara Butcher.

• Visit the Postcrossing.com website, Twitter, and Instagram.

Why not write a postcard or letter to a far-away friend?

Top image courtesy of auerimages/Shutterstock.