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License to Travel

A Cultural History of the Passport
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( 94 ratings, 17 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
License to Travel by Patrick Bixby delves into the history and evolution of the passport, exploring how this humble document has shaped global mobility and identity. It presents an engaging examination of the social, political, and cultural impacts of passports, revealing their role in travel regulation and personal freedom throughout history.
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Format: Hardback
$4799
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

You might enjoy this book if you're fascinated by the cultural, historical, and political dimensions of travel. It explores how travel has shaped our global consciousness and personal identities throughout history, offering insightful perspectives on the world and the transformative impact of moving from place to place.

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License to Travel

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description
This surprising global history of an indispensable document reveals how the passport has shaped art, thought, and human experience while helping to define the modern world.

Narrow escapes and new starts, tearful departures and hopeful arrivals, unwanted scrutiny in the backrooms of officialdom: some of our most memorable experiences involve a passport. In License to Travel, Patrick Bixby examines the passports of artists and intellectuals, ancient messengers and modern migrants to reveal how these seemingly humble documents implicate us in larger narratives about identity, mobility, citizenship, and state authority.

This concise cultural history takes the reader on a captivating journey from pharaonic Egypt and Han-dynasty China to the passport controls and crowded refugee camps of today. Along the way, the book connects intimate stories of vulnerability and desire with vivid examples drawn from world cinema, literature, art, philosophy, and politics, highlighting the control that travel documents have over our bodies as we move around the globe.

With unexpected discoveries at every turn, License to Travel exposes the passport as both an instrument of personal freedom and a tool of government surveillance powerful enough to define our very humanity.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Patrick Bixby's License to Travel is lauded for its comprehensive exploration of the history and cultural significance of the passport, highlighting its power and inequalities. Reviews praise the book for being insightful and accessible, providing a formidable overview of how passports impact freedom and define individual identities. The narrative is described as engaging, making it an enlightening read for both seasoned travellers and those interested in the political dynamics of travel documentation.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780520375857

Publisher: University of California Press

Format: Hardback

Date Published: 25 October 2022

Country: United States

Imprint: University of California Press

Illustration: 18 b-w photos

Audience: Professional and scholarly

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 20.0mm

Width: 140.0mm

Height: 210.0mm

Weight: 408g

Pages: 248

About the Author

Patrick Bixby is Professor of English at Arizona State University. His books include Unaccompanied Traveler: The Writings of Kathleen M. Murphy.

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