Nice Places
The adage that travel broadens the mind is tested in a comic, thoughtful fashion in Vincent Chu’s novel Nice Places.
Feeling aimless, Georgie quits his dead-end technology job to travel the world for a year and learn about himself. His plans change after his belongings and passport are stolen, leaving him stranded at a ramshackle hostel only a few miles from home.
On a whim, Georgie takes a photograph of noodles at a local restaurant and posts it to Instagram, pretending he’s in Thailand. When he gains hundreds of social media followers as a result, he devises a plot to travel around the world without leaving city limits. He does so with the help of Ant, an ambitious art student.
Clever and twisting, the story leans into Georgie’s attempts to maintain his illusion, even as he struggles with existential questions about whether travel is an escape or a portal to enlightenment. Also included are the perspectives of adventurous guests at the hostel who swear by the romance of travel, influencers and cynical travel magazine editors who can only think in terms of likes and manifestos, and Ant, who grows fond of Georgie and debates turning their “project” into an art thesis.
While the characters’ continuous pontification on travel and living leads to stilted moments, the story on the whole is enchanting because of its light touch. Peppering its heavier musings with brief chapters filled with travel haikus and self-questionnaires, it enjoys its premise even as it interrogates heady concepts including identity and self-fulfillment. Georgie proves to be an endearing hero, his quest for meaning both quixotic and sympathetic.
Embracing the paradox of a self-described “vagabond” who doesn’t go anywhere, the jovial novel Nice Places finds philosophical gold beneath a surface of absurdity.
Reviewed by
Ho Lin
Disclosure: This article is not an endorsement, but a review. The publisher of this book provided free copies of the book to have their book reviewed by a professional reviewer. No fee was paid by the publisher for this review. Foreword Reviews only recommends books that we love. Foreword Magazine, Inc. is disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
