Five bicycling books to enjoy during National Bike Month

Unless you live in a cave, or a compound in Abbottabad, you probably already know that May is National Bike Month.

Last week I posted an article about Bike Month events in Washington state and how to find events in locales across the US.

When you're not bicycling to work, using your bike to run errands, or out pedaling just for the hell of it, here are a few books I've heard about recently that you might enjoy on those hours off the bike.

“Cycling Home from Siberia,” by Rob Lilwall
I reviewed this bicycle travel adventure book last month, after its release in the US in April. It's the travels of an Englishman who sets off from Siberia in the fall to ride his bike home by the spring. He gets distracted and turns it into a three-year journey across Asia, Australia and the Middle East. More at “'Cycling Home from Siberia' on frozen roads and jungle paths”

“Bike Touring Survival Guide,” by Andrew and Friedel Grant
If you're planning on a bicycle tour this summer, the TravellingTwo.com
blogsters created an eBook that also available in Kindle format. The
240-page book covers packing, daily logistics like finding a place to
stay, and the challenges of dogs, bad weather and finding a place to
stay. And more. Andrew and Friedel know their stuff, gaining experience
on nearly 40,000 miles on the road in 33 countries.

“The Man who Cycled the Americas,” by Mark Beaumont
After setting a world record, since broken, for bicycling around the world, Beaumont set off on a bicycle expedition from Alaska to Argentina along the length of mountain chains that stretch from North to South America. A Scotsman, his stories were followed by the BBC. Now he's written a book about his adventure that is due out May 15. More at BikeRadar.com.

“It's All About the Bike: The Pursuit of Happiness on Two Wheels,” by Robert Penn
This world bike traveler sets about building the perfect bicycle. Along the way, he takes his readers on a journey from Portland, Oregon, for a Chris King headset to Smethwick, England, for a Brooks saddle. Lots of bicycle trivia meant to inform and entertain bike geeks and those wonder what all the fuss is about. More at “Lance Armstrong was wrong about the bike.”

“White Woman on a Green Bicycle,” by Monique Roffey
This really isn't so much about bicycling, as about racial tension in Trinidad. One of the main characters is an Englishwoman who moved to the island in the 1950s and becomes disillusioned with her marriage. She's known for riding her bicycle around Port-of-Spain. More at “Marriage shows shift in Trinidad in Roffey's novel.”