“I am so impressed again with the life-giving power of literature. If I were a young person today, trying to gain a sense of myself in the world, I would do that again by reading, just as I did when I was young.” – Maya Angelou (American poet)
World’s Great Literary Cities
Above: The Library of Congress, located in Washington, D.C., is the de-facto National Library of the United States and the largest library in the world. Many of its treasures are accessible online!
The power of literature is such that people from all across the globe write about the same shared human experiences; these truths transcend cultural differences, language barriers, geography, religious and political beliefs. Everyone has their own bildungsroman (coming of age story): we have all fallen in love, lost a friend or family member, forged unlikely relationships, experienced a spiritual awakening, been on a personal quest, overcome adversity … etc. Writers are inspired by these commonalities, and readers consume their art in order to learn, build connections, and better themselves. It turns out that poems, plays, books, heck, even graphic novels, magazine articles, and comic books have a lot more to offer than helping us pass time in a crowded doctor’s office or a long flight. In fact, literature is recognized as such an important shared connection that UNESCO designates some cities as Cities of Literature (which we will denote in this blog with an asterisk (*) next to the city name) as part of their wider campaign to recognize Creative Cities.
So, if you care to get lost in the world’s most impressive literary cities with us, keep reading …
Let’s briefly highlight what is considered the “Holy Trinity” of literature in the British Isles: First is Edinburgh (pictured) which has the distinction of being the first City of Literature named by UNESCO and which hosts the International Book Festival annually. Next, London is inescapable for lovers of literature. From Poet’s Corner in Westminster to the British Library with its irreplaceable manuscripts, the city is a haven for bibliophiles. Dublin completes this famous literary trilogy: Trinity College is home to the famous medieval Book of Kells and the Dublin Writer’s Museum is a highlight of the city!
It is not a stretch to understand why so many cities on UNESCO’s list are from the British Isles. So much of the (constantly shifting) literary canon originated in the English-speaking world. Whether or not that is fair is a discussion for another day. Authors with names you may recognize such as Shakespeare, Dickens, Byron, Tennyson, Jane Austen, the Bronte sisters, the Shelleys, Virginia Woolf, C.S. Lewis, Oscar Wilde, Dylan Thomas … well, you can see where we are headed with this, have so inspired the minds of readers that their works are consistently read and taught at all levels.
Literary tourism is not a new trend (despite the fact that UNESCO only relatively recently began naming Cities of Literature). Think about how people used to flock to Stratford, Shakespeare’s hometown, or Lake Geneva where much of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein was set. Europe has long been heralded for its literary significance and influence, and though often the famous tomes produced elsewhere required translation, the impact of those writers cannot be ignored. Could you imagine a world without the Grimm Brothers and their famous fairytales, or without the spectacular works of Tolstoy, Dante Alighieri, or Miguel de Cervantes? We didn’t think so! Let’s take a peek at the most prominent European cities known for their famous authors or their literary contributions.
Perhaps a seemingly unlikely entry to our list, Óbidos commanded the world’s attention when, in 2012, it committed itself fully to its literary history by transforming its Gothic church of Santiago (pictured) into a massive library and a bookshop as well as opening bookstores in places such as an old fire station, a produce market, and a former wine cellar. Additionally, Casa José Saramago, the headquarters of Óbidos City of Literature, named after the famous Portuguese author, has detailed information on all the other worldwide cities of literature. So, if our list isn’t comprehensive enough for you, schedule your vacation to Óbidos for your fix!
Check out the gallery below to see more European cities known for their literary heritage and prowess, and we have denoted the UNESCO-recognized cities with an asterisk (*) by their name.
“Reading makes immigrants of us all. It takes us away from home, but more important, it finds homes for us everywhere.” – Jean Rhys (British Colonial novelist)
Though not as many cities outside of Europe are known for their long literary heritages, that is changing! The echoes of marginalized authors are reaching new audiences, and we are discovering lost works from pre-and-post-colonial locales. Those discoveries are changing our understanding of the past. Meanwhile, newer international authors are writing about the ghosts they grew up with.
Think of authors like Aphra Behn, Rudyard Kipling, Chinua Achebe, Jean Rhys, Khaled Hosseini, Jamaica Kincaid, Claude McKay, and more who wrote about (or are currently writing about) life in Africa, the Middle East, India, the Caribbean, and Asia before, during, and after colonial rule. The cities below are paramount in the evolution of the literary canon!
Let’s shift our focus now to the American market (from Canada to the reaches of South America). Of course, you may be more familiar with North American authors such as Mark Twain, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Margaret Atwood, Ernest Hemingway, Toni Morrison, Edgar Allen Poe, Harper Lee, Sylvia Plath, and so, so many more, but we bet you also know who Gabriel Garcia Marquez and Isabel Allende are. Let’s take a look at some of the most consequential literary cities in the Americas.
Iowa City, Iowa: You may be asking “What?” right about now, but hear us out! Iowa City (one of the only Cities of Literature in the USA) is an unsuspecting Midwestern city that has cultivated some of North America’s top writing talent. The Iowa Writers’ Workshop has hosted such famous authors as Flannery O’Connor, John Irving, Ann Patchett, Raymond Carver, Curtis Sittenfeld, and countless others. Tourists should absolutely visit Dey House, home of the workshop, and take time to linger in its library and archives, attend a student reading, or visit the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library (pictured). You won’t be sorry you did!
If the Midwest isn’t your thing, okay we get it, but maybe Seattle is? It is the only other US city that bears the UNESCO City of Literature honor. The city is known for its number of indie bookstores, its publishing initiatives, and its engagement with reading and literature festivals and events.
Of course, many cities across the USA have a history and significance with literature! After all, we couldn’t leave out places as paramount as Washington D.C. (the Library of Congress is the de facto National Library) or New York (where the Algonquin hosted the famous Round Table and the Harlem Renaissance gave voices to some of our finest African American authors)! See the gallery below for additional cities on which literature has left an indelible mark.
Of course, we can’t leave our wonderful neighbors to the north and south behind, so we present the remaining UNESCO Cities of Literature: Quebec City (pictured) and Montevideo, Uruguay, along with a collection of other cities for book lovers!
The listed cities are known for their wealth of bookstores and beautiful libraries, for being the home of prolific writers, and for their commitment to the publishing industry, among other fascinating reasons!
“The world is a book, and those who do not travel read only one page.” – St. Augustine of Hippo (African Theologian and Philosopher)
We hope you have been inspired by our tour of different cities around the world recognized for their importance in the realm of literature. Of course, this is not a comprehensive list! There are so many other cities where famous writers were born or spent time composing (such as Hannibal, MO along the Great River Road where Mark Twain’s boyhood home is, or Laugharne in the Pembroke Coast where Mary Wollstonecraft was raised and Welsh poet Dylan Thomas is buried), there are cities that mean as much to a novel or play as its characters do (hello Pamplona in The Sun Also Rises or Cuernavaca in Under the Volcano), and there are places with such charming bookshops that people visit just to see them (Hong Kong) – but we never claimed to be perfect. Watch out for a second blog to cover more of the places we couldn’t fit in.
Also, check out some related interests below, and, most importantly, get out there and travel!
